Hi John-

   Thanks for the advice- as far as steaming, Tage Frid suggests wrapping 
warped wood in a wet towel and using an iron. Is this your method? I have a 
feeling this will do the trick, since the rail is warped so slightly that you 
can barely detect it by sight.


   There are screws in not only the plow plane, but on a few others with 
adjustable fences and metal parts. I tried all the methods you had mentioned. 
In most cases, it was the very tip of each screw that let go, so I think 
there's no way to get around snapping them. I had worked at the screw holding 
the rail,heating it and gently working it back and forth for a week, and I 
still lost part of it in the hole. I will also give the vinegar suggestion a 
try (thanks, Paul). 

 BTW, Paul, these may be Bailey planes, but they are Heaton Bailey's and not 
Leonard's. Tough break for me- I was hoping to fulfill my lifelong "famous 
ancestry claim" ambition.


Art