# pitting on the sole of a plane



## twmv86 (Oct 14, 2018)

these are more like potholes than pitting. i got my #7 today and was dismayed when i saw the sole. that wasnt shown clearly or mentioned in the description. its about 3 inches back from the mouth. if it were in front or closer to the mouth it'd probably have more effect on performance. blades chunky too but i could deal with that. stinks that he chose to show the angle he did in the listing. i have circled it here. and heres the carnage i found today.
ive never had anything that a little flattening wouldnt take out. no word back from the seller. i imagine its going to be $25 to ship it back. @TwoSkies57 @vchiarelli can this be used like this? i dont think its gonna crack in half but wow those are deep and its a heavy plane.


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## Nickp (Dec 4, 2012)

Too bad...but it certainly won't crack in half...

You could clean out the potholes, mix up some JB Weld and just before it completely hardens take a razor blade and slice the JB down to the sole. Then wait till the JB cures completely and sand the bottom of the entire sole till satisfied it is completely flattened. JB will harden dark gray but still noticeable after cleaned up.

There may be others with other options but this is what I would do. I have used JB to repair cylinder heads between water jackets successfully and they would be under pressure after reassembled...


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

pitting is a form of extremely localized corrosion that leads to the creation of small holes in the metal. The driving power for pitting corrosion is the depassivation of a small area, which becomes anodic while an unknown but potentially vast area becomes cathodic, leading to very localized galvanic corrosion. The corrosion penetrates the mass of the metal...

Now that Nick dragged that out of me..



> You could clean out the potholes, mix up some JB Weld and just before it completely hardens take a razor blade and slice the JB down to the sole. Then wait till the JB cures completely and sand the bottom of the entire sole till satisfied it is completely flattened. JB will harden dark gray but still noticeable after cleaned up.


You could clean out the potholes... what do you mean could??? make that will and use peroxide or distilled white vinegar... be sure to rinse well...

mix up some JB Weld and just before it completely hardens take a razor blade and slice the JB down to the sole.... So far so good...

Then wait till the JB cures completely and sand the bottom of the entire sole till satisfied it is completely flattened.... now this is where things can go south in a big hurry if you are not careful...

scribe lines diagonally across the bottom of the sole with a Sharpie marker to give a good indication of how true and flat it was... you'll catch on quick to the why for how come...
attach your sand paper (120/150 to start) to an old thick piece of copier glass or a granite slab that is super flat with a small homogeneous amount of spray on adhesive....
do this till the sole becomes flat...
From here on out step the grits down to sand out the scratches from the flattening....
keep going and going w/ finer and finer paper till you have a mirror finish... I like silicon carbide wet/dry for this operation....
got 1,000 or 1,500 paper??? - now we're talkin'...
got finer... why not???


*Notes:*
If the sole is badly out of flat start start w/ 80 grit and keep at it till you bring the sole back into the real world and proceed w/ the polishing...


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## twmv86 (Oct 14, 2018)

very understanding seller is sending a return label. this was an auction that accepts offers. usually the bad ones are buy now, sometimes after an auction no one bids on. it was cheaper than a lot of them so that should have told me something. i should have asked for a better view of the sole and the mouth. lesson learned whew. the search continues.
i do have a #6 but dang i wanted a #7 then i would be content right???????? haha


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## twmv86 (Oct 14, 2018)

my lucky day after all. found a #7 $20 cheaper and in better condition


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

While the pitting is annoying it shouldn't have affected the operation of the plane. As long as the rest of the sole is flat and smooth it should work as normal. I've bought quite a few old Sheffield made chisels by many different makers, some probably well over a hundred years old and as long as there is no pitting at the cutting edge they work as well or better than new ones.


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## Nickp (Dec 4, 2012)

twmv86 said:


> my lucky day after all. found a #7 $20 cheaper and in better condition



Great...less work for you...good luck with it...


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## Nickp (Dec 4, 2012)

Stick486 said:


> pitting is a form of extremely localized corrosion that leads to the creation of small holes in the metal. The driving power for pitting corrosion is the depassivation of a small area, which becomes anodic while an unknown but potentially vast area becomes cathodic, leading to very localized galvanic corrosion. The corrosion penetrates the mass of the metal...
> 
> Now that Nick dragged that out of me..
> 
> ...




You're right...I did not go into as much detail...now that I know you're watching, I'll be more careful...:smile:


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## woodknots (Mar 7, 2012)

Tim - you got great answers from Stick and Nick and you certainly could do that if you were going to keep the plane, but Charles had a good answer and one that I like. You could test it out to see how it works as I don't think that pitting would have affected the operation. I'm glad you were able to get one in better condition and for less money.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Tim... 

Dem, udder fella's dun beat me to it..... Solid, GOOD advise..

Its all about FLAT... she's gotta be flat, especially on the battleship planes..Another thing about the big boys is the total contact area with the wood creates a considerable amount of resistance. So they came up with the corrugated soles... on the flat soled planes, a nice squiggly line of wax lightly applied routinely will help her run smooooooooooooooooooooth. Keep the shavings nice and whisper thin!!!!!! If your not used to the big boys yet, probably wouldn't hurt to have a lil Ben Gay sitting around LOL........

enjoy


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

I have a nice Wind River #6 that's a treat to use. Definitely runs better with a squiggle of wax across the sole. Not sure whether I'll ever need a #7, but then again, what does _need_ have to do with anything?


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

> on the flat soled planes, a nice squiggly line of candle wax lightly applied routinely


maybe not such a good plan...

If you are considering candle wax... not all candles are created equal...
You also have to contend w/ dyes in the wax...
Best to steer clear of using candle wax...
Candle making colorants come in a vegetable based block so there is no paraffin in these color blocks.
*
PARAFFIN CANDLES*
Paraffin development began in 1830, but manufactured paraffin was not introduced until 1850. It provided an alternative to tallow which gave off an unpleasant odor when burned. In 1854 paraffin and stearin (the solid form of fat) were combined to create stronger candles, very similar to those we use today.

*BEESWAX CANDLES*
Candles have a wide variety of ingredients, but there are only a few main ingredients that are used throughout most of the world. We will talk about the main types, and the advantages and differences of each.
Most honey and bees wax is collected from July to September. It can come from the pollination of canola, sweet clover or sunflowers. Generally these plants result in a lighter scent and lighter colored beeswax.
There are two types, solid beeswax and honeycomb wax. The solid bees wax candle is created by pouring liquid wax into a candle mold. The result is a smooth, dense candle which burns for an extremely long time. Honeycomb beeswax candles are created by rolling honeycomb textured sheets. The honeycomb candle is less dense and burns faster.
Beeswax candles produce a bright flame, do not drip, do not smoke or sputter, and produce a fragrant honey odor while being burned.

*CRYSTAL WAX CANDLES*
These are also called wax tarts or wax potpourri. They are made with an all-natural candle wax that holds twice as much fragrance as paraffin wax candles, making them suitable for highly scented candles. They are used with a potpourri warmer (without any water). The fragrance emerges when the candle starts to melt.

*GEL CANDLES*
Gel candles have a new and unique look. They give off a beautiful illumination and a wonderful aroma. And they burn three times as long as wax candles.
But be careful. Gel candles produce a higher burning flame and they burn much hotter. Too much heat can shatter a glass candle-holder or container which can ignite nearby combustibles, resulting in a room fire. To be safe, never burn a gel candle more than four hours.
*
SOY CANDLES*
Soy wax candles are made from soy beans. They are non-toxic, non-carcinogenic and bio-degradable. They burn up to 40% longer than paraffin candles and burn evenly which means there is no tunneling effect. However, it is not recommended to burn more than four hours at a time. Soy candles are very sensitive to temperature and light. They should be stored away from sunlight, fluorescent lighting and other sources of heat. 

Be careful of today's "paraffin" candles. They may NOT be real paraffin but a synthetic concoction that may contain silicons. If you want to be sure you are actually getting real paraffin, look for canning wax. You can find it at Wally World or anyplace that sells canning supplies. If you can't find it with the canning supplies, which are generally in the housewares section, walk over to the grocery side and you'll find it there. it is sold in a pound box which contains several 3" x 5" x 1/2" blocks. One block will last you for a long, long, time. 

.


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## Danman1957 (Mar 14, 2009)

For future reference; if a surface is damaged like the sole of the plane, you might be surprised how little a machine shop might charge to re hone the sole to dead flat !


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## sreilly (May 22, 2018)

As I read through the literature on vintage planes one thing that stood out was the plane sole and its flatness. Seems that there were certain areas that were critical to being completely flat while others weren't as critical. Now before anyone jumps I'm pulling this from memory so there may be some "rusty" parts.....Seems the toe area in front of the iron all the way across and the sides going to the heel were very important to be flat as well as directly behind the iron. The heel should also be flat all the way across. My understanding was if there was a bit of a hollow in the center area behind the iron after the cut going back towards the heel it was acceptable. That made sense to me as the overall surface contact area with the wood would be flat. So I guess if the plane sole 's outside area is flat including the toe and heel you're in decent shape. What I'm unclear about is how much this flat area should be. Obviously the more the better but what in the minimum? Most planes I've see are what maximum 2 to 2-1/2" wide so are we talking 25-50% with more being better. Are we talking 1/2" in from the sides all the way back?


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Stick486 said:


> maybe not such a good plan...
> 
> If you are considering candle wax... not all candles are created equal...
> You also have to contend w/ dyes in the wax...
> ...


Noteworthy points indeed. Never really considered or scented wax. I've had a brick of paraffin wax for I don't know how long and still have better than half of it left. At that, I've waxed the soles of my planes pretty much from the start and I've never had an issue with finishing.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

TwoSkies57 said:


> Noteworthy points indeed. Never really considered or scented wax. *I've had a brick of paraffin wax for I don't know how long *and still have better than half of it left. *At that, I've waxed the soles of my planes pretty much from the start and I've never had an issue with finishing.*


Same here...
it's the ''other'' that may result in issues....

furniture, bees and canning wax are excellent too...

I think avoiding candles might be in order...


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Stick486 said:


> Same here...
> it's the ''other'' that may result in issues....
> 
> furniture, bees and canning wax are excellent too...
> ...



Yep!! 

@Cherrville Chuck @Semipro 
Gentlemen, would either of you be so kind as to remove "candle" from my previous post #10. I see now where that can easily be misinterpreted.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

TwoSkies57 said:


> Yep!!
> 
> @Cherrville Chuck @Semipro
> Gentlemen, would either of you be so kind as to remove "candle" from my previous post #10. I see now where that can easily be misinterpreted.


Done. When I read that it made me think that whatever is appropriate for putting on machine tops such as table saws or jointers would also work on plane bottoms. I have some Waxilit that I got from LV. My largest plane is about a #5 but it has the corrugated sole so it hasn't needed any friction reduction treatment.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Thank you Charles,,,,

there are probably so many products that would work, its sometimes hard to find one that actually does.. I've used paraffin wax for planes and ivory soap for screws for decades *LOL*...the wax might work on the screws, but I've still got a upteen year old brick of paraffin and I"ve gone thru countless bars of soap...I think we tend to stick with what works based on what we've used... Stick made a good point though.... "wax" is so generic, and covers so, so many variations that a poorly worded phrase or comment can lead someone down a very problem ridden path..........


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

You would be alarmed to find out how many plane crashes have occurred because of unspecific language between the tower and planes or ground crews. The worst in BC history happened because of that between the tower and a snow plow operator at the Cranbrook airport.


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