# Old hand planes found help identifying



## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

Hey every one seems like I keep uncovering these hand planes of my grandfathers. I know they are a bit rusty but I think I can clean them up and put them to good use. The only thing is I need help figuring out what the best uses for them are. I am still new to using hand planes but excited non the less. Is this bedrock 603 basically a no 4, also the block plane just says made in usa who is manufacturer, and last but not least the no 708 is this salvageable and this is a rabbit plane right? Any info at all on these would be of great help thanks!


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

Thanks again guys !


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

The bedrock looks like a no4






the block plane is not great but being your grandfathers I would fix it up anyway. As far as the manufacturer most likely craftsman or Stanley. A have 6 of those and none have the manufacturer.


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

The 708 is salvageable. I restored all of these. They looked about like the 708. You need to flatten the sole, and make sure the side is 90 degrees to the sole. The blade will also need sharpening.


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

The bedrocks were the best planes Stanley ever made. It is about the same as a no4 except better.


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

Wow you have a nice collection your self. Thanks for the help I hope to spiff these up and put them to work ... Where can I get new blades for them? If I do will it hurt their value?


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

I am using the factory blades in all of mine, so I don't know where the best place to get new ones is. I would save the original blade. Can't hurt the value if you still have the factory blade. Right?


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

Nice score on the rockbed. I was unable to find anything on the












708. Is it a Sargent.


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

This looks like your rabbit plane. Are you sure it is a 708 and not a 78?


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## gideon (May 26, 2010)

Your 603 is like a stanley 3, not 4. That would have been a 604. The 78 is missing the fence assembly which is common.


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

I'm sorry about that ... You guys are right it's a no 78! Now that I see fence is missing I'm going back to the basement to look for it. Also like I said I am new but a no 3 and a no 4 are pretty much the same right ... What are the big difference. Another thing is what do I use to touch up the bake lite I think it's called. Ya know the black paint basically. Can I just tape thugs off and paint them with black rust oleum? Thanks.


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

I took mine apart and sandblasted everything. I polished the bare metal parts, and painted the rest with engine enamel.


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

Your rockbed is worth between 150-500 dollars I wouldn't sandblast it. But the other ones I would strip down to bare metal and start over.


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

The deference between the no3 and no4 is the sole on the no4 is 9 1/2by2-1/2 the sole on the no3 is9-1/4 by 2-1/4. That is the only deference I can see.
View attachment 113057
View attachment 113065
View attachment 113073


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

I don't know why those pictures don't work. Try these.


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

ThAts great although I would never sell ... I cleaned them all up and honed the blades with some water stones. I think I'm gonna go like I said with out paint but how fine a sand paper on glass should I go with the sole of the plane?


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

I didn't use sandpaper, so i don't know, I'd say at least 320 but finer wouldn't hurt.


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

What did u use?


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## hwebb99 (Nov 27, 2012)

I cheated, my grandpa has a machine used to surface heads and blocks out of a car engine. It is accurate to within .001 of an inch across a 30 inch block. It took about an hour to do 7 of my bench planes.


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## BZawat (Sep 21, 2012)

When I'm flattening a plane sole, I start with 100 grit paper, and stop at 220. No reason to go any finer than that. Sandpaper on plate glass is very effective as a means of lapping the sole flat, and is also very good for sharpening & honing the cutting iron.

I like to use waterproof silicon carbide paper, and spray it with WD40 as a lubricant to carry away the rust & sharpening slurry. For sharpening I go from 600x to 3000x, then finish on a leather strop charged with Cr2O3 paste. Gives you an edge so sharp you can split a hair with it. 

If the cutter is in bad shape, you may need to address it with a bench grinder to re-establish the bevel before honing. This can also be done on glass with a coarse grit paper, but it takes a considerable amount of time.


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## BZawat (Sep 21, 2012)

Also, you don't have to go too crazy with lapping out the sole. I like to make sure the mouth & toe area are dead flat, and that the toe & heel both lie flat and in the same plane. Easy way to tell this is to mark up the sole with something - marker, chalk, whatever - and take a couple swipes on your lapping plate to see where your high & low spots are.


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