Plane Tune-up 7
Broken handles on these old planes are fairly common. Most often, there is a break about 1/3 up from the bottom. Almost as common is the missing top, as exhibited by this plane.
Here’s a detail shot:
To fix, I start by sanding flat the broken area using a disc sander. Using epoxy, I glue a new piece of rosewood into position:
The new piece is cut and sanded to shape.
Unfortunately, the old wood is much lighter in color than the new piece. Oh well…
When fully shaped, the hole for the handle attach bolt is partially covered. There’s not much material to remove, so I used a round file to re-create the hole.
When complete, I use shellac to refinish the surface. Here’s the completed handle, ready to install.
