The face of the blade is lapped.
Additional sharpening need only
involve honing the existing bevel.
Because the blade in the detail rabbet
plane is aligned with the side of the
plane in addition to being parallel
to the sole, the cutting edge must be
kept perfectly square with the sides
of the blade when sharpening it.
Care and Maintenance
The body of this plane is ductile cast iron and comes treated with rust
preventative. Remove this using a rag dampened with mineral spirits.
Clean all machined surfaces.
We recommend that you initially, then periodically, apply a light coat
of silicone-free paste wax or Waxilit
®
sliding agent and glue release to
seal out moisture and prevent rusting (as well as act as a lubricant for
smoother planing). Wipe off any wood dust from the surfaces that you will
be waxing, apply a light wax coating, let dry, then buff with a clean soft
cloth. At the same time, the solvents in the wax will remove any harmful
oils left from your fi ngers that can lead to corrosion.
Keep in mind that typical paste wax contains silicone that, if transferred
to your workpiece, could cause fi nishing problems such as "fi sh eyes".
Before treating a plane with a sealant, wipe off any fi ngerprints with a
cloth dampened with a small amount of light machine oil. Remove any
residual oil; then apply the sealant to the plane’s sole and cheeks.
If storage conditions are damp or humid, the plane should, in addition to
the treatment outlined above, be wrapped in a cloth or stored in a plane
sack. This precaution will also guard against dings and scratches.
Every so often, take the plane apart to clean and lubricate it where necessary.
Clean all parts with a cloth dampened with a dab of light machine oil. For
corroded plane bodies, we recommend you fi rst remove the rust with a fi ne
rust eraser, then treat as described above.
The bright fi nish on the brass components can be maintained as above. If
a patina fi nish is preferred, simply leave the brass components unprotected
until the desired level of oxidation has occurred, then apply a sealant.
If you want to make them bright and shiny again, you can revitalize the
surface with a brass polish.
Figure 6: Freehand honing the blade.
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