Restoring a Stanley Bailey 4 1/5 Hand Plane

I've recently become quite enamored with hand planes and were given some old, rusty and dull ones that are in dire need of some TLC. I have used both hand planes and electric planes and can say without a doubt that I prefer the former significantly more and will only use electric if I absolutely have to.

This instructable provides an overview for restoring a Stanley 4 1/5 bench plane.

Small steel brush
Deruster (I used Diggers Rust and Lime remover, which I believe is an Australian product).
Elbow grease
Sandpaper
Autobody metal polish (any metal polish will work, though)

The plane was pretty rusty all over so the first step was to unscrew all of the components. Make sure you do this on a surface that will prevent any screws from surreptitiously rolling away; even better, put all the screws in a container. Plane screws are quite specific and you may have a hard time finding a replacement.

Next, soak all the parts in a solution of your chosen rust remover (check the label for instructions). Some solutions require a longer soak than others. This will also depend on exactly how rusted your parts are.
I took my parts out one by one and cleaned them using a steel brush. A smaller brush is better because it will be able to better get into nooks and crannies. Once they have soaked sufficiently, the rust should come off fairly easily with some dedicated elbow grease. Rinse and repeat for all parts.

I didn't take a picture of doing this with the frog of the plane (the part on which the blade rests) but the principle is the same. Cover all the areas not painted (untouched steel) with painter's tape. These areas should be easy to define simply by observation. Cover screw holes as well to avoid getting paint in them.

The original Japanning (a technique that can be considered a kind of black "lacquer") on this plane was still in decent condition but it was flaking around the edges. If you are going to respray the plane base (which I recommend because it will protect it against rust), make sure that you have stripped the previous paint (or any loose parts thereof).

After covering everything that should not be painted I applied several coats of matte black spray paint, allowing for drying inbetween. The type I used had added zinc oxide for protection against rust.

Before starting the restoration process, the handle (tote) and front knob were peeling the previous varnish pretty badly. The wood was stained birch, which Stanley switched to at around the time of WWII because the original rosewood the company used was too difficult to find. I manage to sand off the varnish and get through some of the stain but then stopped because I didn't want to reduce the size of either the handle or knob further.

After some thought about how I would restore these, I decided to use a Japanese technique called "yakisugi" in which wood is charred to make it water/fire resistant. Search for it on YouTube, it's pretty mesmerizing. This would help to give the wood a nice dark color. Burning the wood also raises the grain, which ended up giving it a really nice grip and feel.

While polishing the larger pieces, I placed the screws in a paper plate (biodegradable!) and gave them some squirts with mineral oil. This will also help to protect them against rust. Before putting them back on the plane where they belong, clean off the excess oil with a soft cloth.

I polished all the metal areas with autobody metal polish. I should also mention that the sides and bottom of the body of the plane can be sanded on wet-and-dry sandpaper (320-400-600) for additional aesthetic appeal, and to smooth out any scratches. Make sure you do this on a flat surface; something like marble/granite/glass. Now is also a good time to sharpen the plane blade (consult YouTube - that's a totally different instructable!).

After everything is polished to your heart's content it is time to put the plane back together. With a sharpened blade and it's parts de-rusted, you know have a fantastic tool that can be used again for years to come.