r/handtools • u/RegularGuyAtHome • 1h ago
Advice for Rust Pitting on the sole of a Stanley #5 Plane
Hi everyone.
I’ve inherited my grandfather’s Sweetheart #4 and #5 Stanley Planes. I’m currently flattening the #5’s sole with sand paper duct taped to an old smooth glass cutting board.
It’s real pitted as you can see from the first picture which is what it looked like when I started. The second and third pictures show where I’m at currently after a lot of sanding.
Unfortunately, the pitting on the sole is the deepest right around the mouth of the plane as you can see in the third picture.
My question to you all is: you figure I should just keep sanding it down until I sand past all the pitting, or would the best course of action be to use some kind of metal epoxy to fill it and then sand it flat.
My only worry about continuing to sand it down is how much thickness I need to sand down to eliminate the deepest pitting, and the possibility of making the plane weaker. I’d hate to do something that leads to me destroying a family heirloom during its use.