Router planes

[Jfitz]

I finally got some vintage router planes - two 71's and one 71 1/2.  cleaned them up, and ready to use.

Picture is for fun   over a hundred years age difference from the oldest, to my LN 71.

serious question - any good advice on sharpening? i flattened and polished the bottoms of the cutters, but the bevels seem off.  looking for ways of grinding the bevel properly.

 

 

[Ron Swanson Jr.]

I sharpen mine by doing the majority of the honing on the bottom of the blade. The exact opposite of how you'd hone a chisel or plane iron. 

When it comes to the very short topside, i need to be patient because those very short strokes on the edge of the stone are not a lot of fun. 

[Ron Swanson Jr.]

On 5/12/2026 at 5:56 PM, Jfitz said:

I finally got some vintage router planes - two 71's and one 71 1/2.  cleaned them up, and ready to use.

Picture is for fun   over a hundred years age difference from the oldest, to my LN 71.

serious question - any good advice on sharpening? i flattened and polished the bottoms of the cutters, but the bevels seem off.  looking for ways of grinding the bevel properly.

 

 

Sorry i didn't read your post carefully and missed the issue. 

 

How do they seem off exactly? Skewed and out of square?

The only way to use a bench grinder that i know of is to use the side of the wheel, and that's pretty dicey. 

I would probably adhere some fairly course sandpaper to a flat substrate, put on a pot of coffee, sit down and try to gently coax it back to square. Which will be slow going and might take a few sessions depending on how far out of square it is. 

If i remember correctly, Derek Cohen rigged something up to do this with a sanding drum on a drill press, though i can't remember the specifics. His website is something like InTheWoodshop.com

Of course though the very first step should be to just sharpen and use it as is, to see if this is a problem worth sinking time and effort into in the first place. 

[Tom King]

For sharpening those small cutters, I turn my stones up on edge and use the sides of the stones to avoid any wear or gouging on the large faces.  For reshaping, I think I would try clamping it in a bench vise and use a file.  I don't remember ever touching one to a grinder.

[Immortan D]

This is a quick and dirty contraption that can help maintain the correct angle:

The blue thing is a chisel holder (Armstrong).

[gee-dub]

Kind of a shop made version of the same holding fixture.

This one is shaped for gouges.  Not specific to your needs but may give you ideas.

[Jfitz]

On 5/13/2026 at 8:14 AM, Ron Swanson Jr. said:

How do they seem off exactly? Skewed and out of square?

yeah, out of square.  various suggestions below, and I have some ideas.  But - maybe just a file and some patience.

 

On 5/13/2026 at 8:28 AM, Tom King said:

I turn my stones up on edge and use the sides of the stones to avoid any wear or gouging on the large faces

I like that idea.  thanks.

 

On 5/13/2026 at 11:27 AM, gee-dub said:

Kind of a shop made version of the same holding fixture

this touches on one idea I have...I have a worksharp I could pull out of storage, and see if I can put together a jig to help out.