Which is the best path: Frog replacement or install new lateral adjustment lever
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I picked up a 5C type 11 missing the lateral adjustment lever for a song. I have another 5C which I think is compatible with the type 11 frog. If you had a choice would you try and replace the lever (just for completeness) or just swap out the frog? I can’t see myself needing to use two 5Cs.
I guess the real question is how difficult is it to rivet on the new lever?
Thanks,
Joey.I’m not much for keeping things “original,” I’ll leave that to the collectors.
Just swap in the other frog and be done with it in my opinion. I can imagine a scenario where you damage the lateral adjustment lever trying to remove & replace it. Then you’d have two planes without adjustment.
If you do try to replace the lever, I’ve had good luck using a small sledge hammer held in the vise as an anvil to strike against when setting the rivet. I’ve tightened several loose levers this way.
I am going to replace the whole frog. Just as an fyi, I wasn’t talking about removing the lever from my other 5c frog and putting onto the broken one. I was talking about trying to find one off ebay or on another flea mall damaged plane. Anyhoo, I’d rather go the simple route. Plenty of broken planes out there with undamaged frogs.
Thanks!
Joey.The frog casting is very thin where the lever is pinned. There is a great chance of cracking the cast iron when hammering out the old pin, and also when hammering in the replacement.
You could use the broken one with a cambered iron. That way you could simply set it by eye, and not need the adjuster.Riveting a new lever is apiece of cake with a soft rivet and small hammer. It’s a lot cheaper than sourcing a new frog that may or may not fit correctly. Stanley wasn’t known for precision machining. Often frogs and their seats were hand fitted, not precision machined. And while there is a small amount of risk, it’s minute if you exercise care. If you break the frog you are no worse off than if you threw it away for a new frog.
Just use a small anvil ( a small hammer head) and a drift ( even a large nail set) to peen so there is no risk of hitting the casting.
EBay has several folk who can get you exactly the lev hat matches. I have used New Hampshire plane parts many times ( no affiliation)That said, you can use the plane without the lever and it will work. In fact, I’ve been to Lie Nielsen tool events where the demonstrators tell you that precision adjustment is best done by hammer tapping even on their precision machined bedrock clones and they are quite willing to sell you one of two of their hammers for the purpose.
I have a small brass hammer I use sometimes if lever adjustment hunts to both sides of the adjustment I want. Paul has a post where he just uses a 12 oz Stanley Warrington pattern
https://paulsellers.com/2016/08/tap-adjustment-set-panel-planes/
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