What's a "Frakenplane" and How Do We Know?

[HomerLee]

Ok, I know in at least one case. I picked up a bench plane for parts a few years ago. The frog had the parts for the frog adjuster and the sole didn't (no tapped hole for the screw), an obvious mismatch. But we hear quite often that a plane is said to be completely original. I'm not sure exactly what that means. That the plane has all proper parts for the type? But what of the fact that Stanley used left over parts from one type to the next? And if what is meant is that the plane has all the original parts as when it was first purchased, how could anyone possibly know that? A plane that is 100+ years old may have had any number of parts replaced by the original or subsequent users, after all, many of them were no doubt used often.

It seems the most that can be said is that it appears to be original or has correct parts for the type.

[Admiral]

Stanley often used up parts notwithstanding a slight redesign; the "type studies" are at best reasonable approximations. Your frog example shows up regularly as they made the transition from T16 to T17 during the war, I often find what are clearly all original planes with that feature, as the mating surfaces on the body were exactly the same from T16 through T19, and clearly they were just using up inventory. Some of the early T17 wartime planes did have a frog adjuster, but had hardwood tote and knob, and steel screws, some had a steel adjusting wheel before they came out with the Bakelite wheel.

That being said, a true frankenplane has parts cobbled together by a flea market vendor to make a plane look complete; generally the frog is mismatched and does not seat properly; or the lever cap is from a transitional, or the body is from a Handyman version, or they mix irons and chipbreakers from Dunlop, Ohio, or other makers where the chipbreaker slot does not match the yoke projection - and vice versa. These are the key indicia of the frankenplane, which are generally unusable, or useful simply for parts. The first thing I look for is whether the frog is correct to the body, as the mating surfaces vary through the Sweetheart vintage period. Next would be the iron and chipbreaker. Since I've been hunting rust for a long time, I can judge type and originality in about 90 seconds. The only times I get skunked with a buy is where surface rust obscures a hairline fracture in the cheek, or around the mouth, and they go into the parts pile, generally for the hardware given Stanley's eternal penchant for that bast**d thread size....

[Bill_Houghton]

Many of the parts for bench planes are interchangeable enough that a given Frankenplane may be perfectly usable.  Not historically correct, but the wood doesn't care.  So it all depends on how well parts match up.

I tend to think of Frankenplanes as having parts from different manufacturers, more so than from different models from one manufacturer.

[HomerLee]

The only times I get skunked with a buy is where surface rust obscures a hairline fracture in the cheek, or around the mouth, and they go into the parts pile, generally for the hardware given Stanley's eternal penchant for that bast**d thread size....

A+ on that comment. A few years ago I bought seven Stanley planes for $75 at a moving sale. In the bunch was a Bailey #2. When I cleaned it up a bit I found hidden by the "patina" was a hairline crack on the cheek. But I did OK since there was a core box plane in the bunch.

[Admiral]

Many of the parts for bench planes are interchangeable enough that a given Frankenplane may be perfectly usable.  Not historically correct, but the wood doesn't care.  So it all depends on how well parts match up.

I tend to think of Frankenplanes as having parts from different manufacturers, more so than from different models from one manufacturer.

A lot of the Stanley parts do match up, but for example the frog from a T11 smoother or jack will not match the body of a T16; they changed the entire design of the frog.  There are a bunch of other examples of this as well.  But once you get past T16, you are correct, as a T19 frog will work perfectly well in a T16.