I have bought a roll of the thin cork sheets from a hobby store and glued some of it to a piece of MDO I had laying around the shop. I then melted some paraffin (the stuff that is sold for caning and is available everywhere) and coated the cork with it. It makes a great surface to set my planes on while working without damaging the blade or the sole. Moreover, it transfers a bit of the wax to the sole to improve the resistance when planing. I will probably line the drawers where I store my planes the same way.
Edited 4/25/2007 11:22 am ET by dherzig
Edited 4/25/2007 11:23 am ET by dherzig
Replies
I don't believe in the myth of needing to protect your plane soles and cutters from wood. Metal is harder than wood, and is designed to cut wood.
I think your idea is good in that it will prevent moisture from causing rust. I have a bar of paraffin wax on my bench that I rub across the sole of any plane being used to ease it's use by lowering friction.
The myth that hand planes can be damaged by laying them sole down on a wooden benchtop are unfounded, unless the stated benchtop has screws and other metal parts protruding through it, which is of course rediculous, also.
I used to set all of my planes on a plywood shelf under my bench. In the spring and summer, when humidity is high, the unfinished plywood would take on moisture, and transfer it to the planes, causing rust. I solved this issue by finishing the plywood shelf with a film forming finish. Moisture can no longer transfer, and I haven't had any rust issue's since doing so.
Jeff
The myth that hand planes can be damaged by laying them sole down on a wooden benchtop are unfounded.................
Thank you.
Since I have been into planes I have used a magnetic strip to put on the bottoms of my planes. I found that it protects the sole of the plane while in storage. My shop is in the basement of my house. I have never had a rust problem. All though I have always kept a layer of paste wax on my planes. I feel that wax is more better :-) than oil for protecting iron. I think one has to be a bit anal about this to prevent rust. If you pay enough for your planes it is easy to be this way quickly.
True. I could buy a Rolls for what I've spent on planes.
I'll bet the Rolls would be a bear to pick up and run across a board--probable do a terrible job at smoothing, too! :) Tom"Notice that at no time do my fingers leave my hand"
Whatcha do is flip it upside down and make it stationary: bring the work to IT.
...Then this post would have to move to power tools, right?Magnus
"Remember, a bad carpenter always blames his tools" -Joe Conti-
There I go........... hijacking the thread again.
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