Yesterday my moving fillister plane got a little bit wet. I tried to wipe it off, but I decided that it would be better to place it on top of one of the transformers, so it could dry completely.
I forgot to take it down when it was dry, but the always cooperative gale stricken North Sea helped me with that today.
Go figure if an old cast iron plane survives a fall from 4 feet onto a steel floor undamaged?
Nope, no chance of that happening. The plane is broken in two.
I need a little time with either calm sea or alongside in a place where we are allowed to do hot work to try to fix the plane.
My plan is to braze the two parts together. In order to do that I am going to chamfer the sides of the broken area and line up the parts before brazing.
With a bit of luck I should be able to get the plane back together, and then it will be a matter of some work with a file to make sure the sole is level again. The blade also took a hit, so there's a nick in the cutting edge. But if everything else goes as I hope, that will be a minor challenge.
If only I had observed the 7P's as described by Ralph the accidental woodworker this would not have happened.
The crashed plane.
Ouch! I broke a 78 the exact same way once. It makes a hole in your stomach.
ReplyDeleteI hope the weather calms down for you.
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DeleteA gale-tossed ship? You and Jonas have the *best* woodworking stories. :)
DeleteA gale-tossed ship? You and Jonas have the *best* woodworking stories. :)
DeleteI have to admit I got a bit annoyed, but nobody else was to blame. I should have put the plane back in the tool box as soon as it was dry.
Deletethe weather should calm down tomorrow. We had to sail in to port yesterday to pick up some much needed equipment. We left port again an hour ago, so I guess that in approximately 1 hour the smooth ride is over again.
Brgds
Jonas
Jeff,
DeleteOne of the few advantages of off shore woodworking is that you can pretty much always blame the weather if something turns out different than you hoped for.
Brgds
Jonas
The 7Ps have nothing to do with this Jonas. This is the dreaded bounce test with Mr Steel deck. He won and the plane lost. I'll be waiting to see how the brazing comes out.
ReplyDeleteHi Ralph.
DeleteMr Steel deck is a tough nail...
I can't help to think that a bit of planning would have seen me put the plane back in the tool chest. Not doing so was actually a P... poor performance from my side.
Brgds
Jonas
Alternatively, you've just made yourself a bullnose rabbet plane. I'm not familiar with the replacement cost of this brand and plane model, but it's worth mentioning that you still have a functioning tool and a specialty plane at that.
ReplyDeleteI guess I could make it into a bullnose rabbet plane if the brazing fails.
DeleteBut I sort of feel compelled to repair the plane. After all I was to blame for the damage.
I don't know the prize of the plane either, since it is an old Swedish version of the Stanley 78. But I would like to see it back as a user plane again.
Brgds
Jonas
I saw your post title, and was expecting a tale of a real plane crash. Ha. I'm glad it wasn't and you are ok.
ReplyDeleteI guess this is the sort of headline one could expect from one of the tabloids.
DeleteI should feel sorry for that, but it was just too fine a word play to not use it.
Brgds
Jonas
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ReplyDeleteWhen I was young, I worked a season on a Great Lakes drilling barge and was sick MUCH of the time. The idea of doing woodwork in an enclosed space, in the North Sea,...it makes reading this blog difficult for me.
ReplyDeleteHi Paul.
DeleteI'm sorry to stir up old feelings like that :-)
Normally I'll skip the woodworking whenever the weather is too rough. But I still have to eat, sleep and work normally though.
Thanks for commenting.
Brgds
Jonas
Maybe you should put a wooden moving filister plane into your mobile toolbox.? I am very interested to see the results of the welding operation....
ReplyDeleteI am afraid that it is too big. The tool chest is very tightly packed as it is.
DeleteI suppose that I could try to learn how to use a rabbet plane without a fence though.
I would like to be able to say that the welding is guaranteed to be a success. But I haven't welded or brazed cast iron since 1994 in the engineer shop class. And I know that I had a whole lot more training then compared to now.
Besides the engineer shop class was on land, and it does make a difference when everything is moving.
My planning capabilities may be low, but my self confidence is high (perhaps a bit too high..)
Brgds
Jonas
You could use a wooden filister with a fixed fence. Those are pretty slim and very cheap to get at ebay. Look for ece planes.
DeleteThis is a story I hope I never have to tell. I did drop my fillister once. Luckily it is wooden, and only fell a few feet, though it did leave a nice little ding on the back of the plane. I tried the old trick of using a damp towel and a hot iron, but it did not really do much, as it is 120 year old beech and not a soft pine etc. Luckily, that little ding did nothing to affect the performance of the plane, as it is on the top and back.
ReplyDeleteI'm interested to see you put yours back together. I've seen some repaired planes, but I've never actually seen somebody do it. So I look forward to the process.
Bill
Hi Bill
DeleteI guess this is the weak spot of the metal planes.
The damp towel and the hot iron I guess you are right in that they work best on soft woods.
Given that your plane is that old, I would choose to view it as added character. But it still hurts the moment it happens.
I'll try to see if I can take some pictures of the repair process. I think I'll have to get someone to operate the camera for me though. I have to use one hand for the welding torch and the other hand for the filler material.
Brgds
Jonas
Man, that's a real bummer! I don't know anything about welding, but try to align the two parts as perfectly as possible on a flat surface when welding. Maybe there will need to be less flattening of the plane's sole afterwards. Good luck with it.
ReplyDeleteMatt
Hi Mark.
DeleteThat is pretty close to my idea. I think I'll try to use a piece of angle bar for the alignment. I am sure most of the paint will be burned off during the process, since it is a good idea to preheat the entire thing before welding it to avoid stress cracks to form after cooling.
Thanks.
Brgds
Jonas