How long should it take to flatten a hand plane?

[Beechwood Chip]

Thanks!  I had put it aside for a while, but last night I went down to the shop and had another go at it.  I got everything "good enough" with 180 grit, and decided to leave it at that unless I have problems using the planes.  I sprayed some CRC 3-36 on a clean rag and wiped down all of the bare metal and called it a night.

[Chestnut]

I've flattened some planes and it does take some time. I agree 180 grit may be too fine. Also those PSA papers may not be the greatest. I have some from a different brand and i wouldn't call it good paper.

I used a diamond plate to do my flattening. The worse planes started on regular old 80 grit paper stuck down with spray adhesive.

When you do step up in grits step up as gradual as you can. it'll make the process faster in the long run as trying to remove 180 grit scratches with 400 grit takes a while.

I disagree with anyone that says it's nor worth it. I have some pre-WWI planes and a LN #4 bronze. I grab my pre-WWI Stanly planes more often than the brand new LN. Get a good new modern iron for it though. I did PMV-11 replacement irons and chip breakers for my planes. It really does make them that much better. I prefer the PMV-11 irosn over Hock A2 and Hock 01 Personally.

[Agrund]

On 12/31/2024 at 4:01 PM, fcschoenthal said:

Sort of off the topic, but sort of not. I had problems flattening the backs of chisels and plane blades, just being able to hold on to them securely. I ended up using a Magswitch magnet on the top to push it back and forth. It allowed me to keep better even pressure and keep it flatter against the sandpaper or stone than trying it freehand.

Curious of the magnet you used; or what you think would work? 
Using the mag switch interests me, as I’ve heard it referenced for this task before- so I just went and looked.    A 60 mag switch  is a heck of a lot cheaper than a 150 mag switch so if the lighter one could do the job just as well…

[fcschoenthal]

On 3/12/2025 at 6:07 AM, Agrund said:

Curious of the magnet you used; or what you think would work? 

I have a couple of each of the 60, 95 & 150, but any would work. You don't need to put much pressure on them and it's more about having something to hold onto instead of potentially buffing your nails.

[Ronn W]

I took a class on hand plane tuning.  We were perfected a brand new NO. 7.   We used 60 grit.  Yes, it left a scratchy surface but the surface felt smooth and was true.

[pkinneb]

On 4/27/2025 at 11:47 AM, Ronn W said:

I took a class on hand plane tuning.  We were perfected a brand new NO. 7.   We used 60 grit.  Yes, it left a scratchy surface but the surface felt smooth and was true.

Nice to see you back here Ronn!