The Record # 073, from the eBay posting
Another milestone in my lifelong quest for excellent hand tools: a Record #073 shoulder plane. A little rusty but complete and completely restorable, purchased from England via eBay. These are the classic production steel shoulder planes, made 1933-1994, based on Edward Preston’s design, that eventually became the model for the current Lie-Nielsen shoulder planes. Four pounds, eight inches in length and 1-1/4″ wide, with an adjustable mouth, these beauties are capable of of incredibly fine cuts. Arguably Lie-Nielsen has made some subtle improvements in their model, but functionally there is no difference — and at less than half the cost, I’m very happy with the Record.
The plane arrived with just a light coating of surface rust on part of the body (no pitting). After completely dismantling the few parts, and a thorough cleaning, the rust was dispatched with a bit of steel wool and lube — leaving the patina typical of a fine tool well used and cared for.
The Record 073 as-is upon arrival from England
A light coating of corrosion, very manageable
Record 073 stripped down for cleaning
Record 073 restored and ready for action