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keeping a new lathe outside on covered porch

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Been in contact with a new woodturner. He just got a new Rikon midi-lathe but his wife asked me if would be ok if, when not in use, he kept it covered outside on a covered porch. We live in Arkansas. My first reaction was NO WAY! Seems like, even with a cover, it's just not a good idea to keep it that way. the tempature (0 - 100), and humidity (40-100% when it rains) vary greatly here. Thought would be appreciated before I send her a reply.
 
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I totally agree with Richard.....outside, you may as well count on pitting, rusting and if used infrequently, seized up parts. My shop is only heated when I'm in it with a kerosene heater, and kerosene emits moisture in the air. I am able to keep my tools in good shape with regular maintenance. Just a couple of days ago, I noticed some rust on the bed of my jointer, which I promptly removed with some 220 grit on a random orbit sander, then used a synthetic 3M pad to even further smooth things out. I then applied some top coat to seal the surface, and it looks new now.

Outside is different as there is not any protection, and covered with a tarp or such it acts as a barrier to trap moisture against the tool surface.
 
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From the test lab: No problem IF it is taken care of, looked after, and used often.

My shop is under my house, has no walls, surrounded by Alaskan rainforest. I oil my lathe bed once a week or so with Aero Kroil at the end of the day. When I suspect driving rain or snow, I roll down a reinforced plastic tarp.

I find my bandsaw bed is more rust prone than the lathe bed...and I can't really tell you why, possibly because the bandsaw bed is junk cast iron?. I blow water off of each when green turning and sap is wet, so they get equal treatment, though my lathe gets much more use.

I am three years in, and as far as I can tell, my General is happy.

I've had my table saw outside for ten years under a very heavy vinyl custom made cover. It rains about 8 feet a year here, so that tells me if motors stay dry they're up for the challenge.
 

Bill Boehme

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The humidity here probably isn't as bad as Arkansas. A friend moved his older Delta lathe under a covered porch attached to his shop and it rusted like you wouldn't believe. He tried to sell it on Craig's list, but when potential buyers saw it, they declined. Too bad ... when it was in his shop which wasn't heated or air-conditioned it was in good condition. Outdoors, the wind and temperature and humidity swings are much greater than inside a building. If the iron gets cold and then there is warm humid air (typical morning weather in this part of the country) the iron will sweat. He had a tarp over his lathe ... I doubt if that made a bit of difference.

I think that the difference in weather in different areas has to be considered. While Alaska is always wet, I think that the temperature and humidity swings in the southern states makes things rust a lot faster than elsewhere. That's why we always have a rusty car on cinder blocks in the front yard here. :D

Think about it, does it make any difference if a car is parked outside or even under a carport as compared to being inside a garage? I really like Leo's solution. It makes a lot more sense to me. :D :D I'm sure that his wife would agree. Dining outdoors is really charming. Of course, sleeping outdoors gets old pretty quick.
 
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To make room in my shop I moved the (rarely used) mini lathe to an enclosed shed. It rusted bad and fast, so I moved it back into the shop. The humidity in Georgia maybe a little higher than in Arkansas.
 
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I wonder if there's not a way to make a climate-controlled cover for it. What about an insulated cover (or even a lift-able plywood box) that would enclose it when not in use? A small dehydrator in there might keep it relatively dry. If it's a space problem and she only has room on that porch, it might be worth a chance. Just thinking.
 
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Not a good idea, IMHO. Cast iron will rust even in low humidity conditions. A cover might be even worse as it could trap moisture that would condense and make things worse. Find a place inside and keep it there. My wife would keep the lathe inside and make me sleep outside.
I spent some time in Little Rock last summer. Miserable weather- hot and humid.
 
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Definitely no plastic tarps, the condensation may be worse than just letting it outside under cover

Absolutely. You want air to circulate. Stagnant air is where moisture accumulates and rust breeds like bunnies. A huge consideration in whether or not rust will accumulate is where the predominate breeze comes from, sun exposure, and such.

Not to argue with you too much Bill...but my Toyota has gone from shiny factory undercoating to rust coming through the body in ten years. And we only have salt on the roads sporadically in the winter. This is rust heaven, a temperate rainforest. You're right about lower temperature swings. The only place I've ever seen rust worse is the Amazon.

I feel confident that if a guy wants to turn outside and leave his lathe he can get away with it, but he just has to be smart and truly maintain it.
 
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As I understand it, bodgers would ply their trade right out under the trees in the misty forests of Great Britain. Granted their was less iron to their lathes. My neighbor's saw mill is just under a pavilion and the snow drifts right over the equipment during storms. It would not be my choice for storage. However, that said, I worked in a damp pole barn for two years. with condensation raining from the rafters. I put my lathe on locking casters and push it outdoors on nice days where I turn in the shade.
 
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Isn't the Amazon in southern Arkansas? :D

Come to think of it, I got an Amazon package from Kentucky. Is Kentucky in southern Arkansas?? :D

I should be careful. My sailboat is steel, and long before there was an internet, the designer call the line Amazon. I don't want that Amazon rusting! In fact I'll be doing paint touch up this spring.

My folks also had an Amazon sailboat. My dad asked the designer if it was after Amazon women or the Amazon basin, and to my memory the designer just smiled...
 

Emiliano Achaval

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I would not do it, but if more room is needed, than putting the dining room table outside onder a tarp would give you the room :eek: ;)

Just wonder where the wood has to go and the finished pieces, thinking ahead sometimes helps o_O
Classic!!! :p:p
 
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There wasn't any iron. See The Artful Bodger
I did see it and saw the same amount of iron, or perhaps a bit more than on other spring pole lathe designs That lathe is bolted together with metal bolts, although a peg and tennon system could be used. The poppet can be wedged in place with a wooden wedge system, but the centers are indeed made of metal on every pole lathe design I have seen. Although again not essential, the tool rest often sports a metal edge, for wear purposes, even if the rest is wood. When i said there is less iron, there was a lot of understatement intended, and there is indeed a pound perhaps of metal in nearly every pole lathe design. Then there were the tools out in the elements despite whatever crude shelter might exist. A schnitzlebunk requires no metal, the block knife, draw knife, froe, and lathe chisels obviously do. .
 

Bill Boehme

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I did see it and saw the same amount of iron, or perhaps a bit more than on other spring pole lathe designs That lathe is bolted together with metal bolts, although a peg and tennon system could be used. The poppet can be wedged in place with a wooden wedge system, but the centers are indeed made of metal on every pole lathe design I have seen. Although again not essential, the tool rest often sports a metal edge, for wear purposes, even if the rest is wood. When i said there is less iron, there was a lot of understatement intended, and there is indeed a pound perhaps of metal in nearly every pole lathe design. Then there were the tools out in the elements despite whatever crude shelter might exist. A schnitzlebunk requires no metal, the block knife, draw knife, froe, and lathe chisels obviously do. .

I think the real spring pole lathes were more primitive than the modern reconstruction featured in the magazine article with steel fasteners from the hardware store that have some corrosion protection. I was thinking of basic all wood construction similar to what @Andy Chen saw on his visit to a small village in China several years ago although those didn't have a spring pole. The bodgers may have used lard or tallow on any actual iron or steel implements.
 
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Cast iron rusts if you sneeze on it. Outside is a horrible idea.

That’s not true at all.
Cast iron is a lot LESS susceptible to rust.

I’ve got 8 cast iron machines, about 100 years old. Many have spent years sitting out in the rain , snow, spring mud.. you get the picture

Yes I buy the old junkers, dirt cheap.
And each time I’m amazed at how little damage there is, how easily they disassemble and how they can be restored.

Typical machine Steel is the opposite. Rusts much more easily.
Stainless is of course resistant. And there are many alloys in between.
 

Bill Boehme

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That’s not true at all.
Cast iron is a lot LESS susceptible to rust.

I’ve got 8 cast iron machines, about 100 years old. Many have spent years sitting out in the rain , snow, spring mud.. you get the picture

Yes I buy the old junkers, dirt cheap.
And each time I’m amazed at how little damage there is, how easily they disassemble and how they can be restored.

Typical machine Steel is the opposite. Rusts much more easily.
Stainless is of course resistant. And there are many alloys in between.

You might be right about steel rusting faster, but I think it depends on your local climate. .Where I live in the hot humid South, cast iron will rust pretty fast and so will steel.
 

hockenbery

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@olaf Vogel reminded me of the ironwork In Baltimore and other cities.
Around 1996 I went on an architectural city tour led by a Baltimore Sun Reporter.
He pointed out lots of ironwork and ornamental cast iron drain columns.
Iron that was painted but outside for 150+ years.
He claimed most of the old pieces were New Jersey iron that didn’t rust.
 
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On my first visit to the Crystal Bridges Museum I saw a new rusty foot bridge. Thought to myself they must not have been able to afford paint. As I found out later its a special steel going by the name of Corten. Its made to rust and supposedly that forms a protective coating. Never needs maintenance. Still looks like a rusty bridge to me......not art.

My friend keeps his Harley in the kitchen. A lathe is smaller than a Harley. My friend got rid of his wife before moving the Harley inside.
 

Bill Boehme

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On my first visit to the Crystal Bridges Museum I saw a new rusty foot bridge. Thought to myself they must not have been able to afford paint. As I found out later its a special steel going by the name of Corten. Its made to rust and supposedly that forms a protective coating. Never needs maintenance. Still looks like a rusty bridge to me......not art.

My friend keeps his Harley in the kitchen. A lathe is smaller than a Harley. My friend got rid of his wife before moving the Harley inside.

This might be a good time to mention that all views expressed here are strictly those of the person making the post and does not imply that they are endorsed or sanctioned by the AAW. ;) :D You're on your own when it comes to lathe location.

The Corten steel must be what was used in the construction of the domed skylight roof of the new student center when I was attending the University of Houston (aka in earlier years as Cougar High :D ). The problem was that the architect didn't consider the aesthetics of using it with limestone walls. It wassn't long before there were long ugly rust streaks down the pristine white limestone walls. That may have been the last contract for that architect. :rolleyes:
 
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I have seen a disabled person ramp at a house where the person had no disability other than being 65 yrs old. (If that is anything) It was so he could get the harley into the living room. His girlfriend kept hers there too.

When I first started building muzzle loaders, I had a special folding table that I would work on. before setting it up in the spare bedroom, I would line the floor with newspaper, set up the table, lay out the tools and put a draft blocker across the bottom of the door to keep dust in that room. When i ceased work for that session, it all was cleaned up again and the room vacuumed. Couldn't wait for nice days to work outside in the shade.

Even now, my HF lathe is one casters and I roll it outside on nice days for use. Having a walk out basement with no steps helps. I know couples who travel/live in a recreational vehicle and carry a small portable workshop in an underbelly of the camper. They set up under an awning to work. at camp grounds.
 
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You might be right about steel rusting faster, but I think it depends on your local climate. .Where I live in the hot humid South, cast iron will rust pretty fast and so will steel.

In retrospect, to be accurate, cast iron does get surface rust easily. But that layer of rust protects against the more serious more structural rust.
All my machines had the surface rust. Interestingly, bolts, nuts etc just don't seize / freeze into position.
My metal lathe develops a mild layer on the bed over the winter, but a quick scrub with WD40 and a Brilo pad, and its good as new.

WD40 was developed as a protectant / cleaner - but IMO is not the best solution (stinky, greasy and gets on the wood). A good coat of carnauba was is better (clean, doesn't smell and you might as well get it on the wood! :)

So IHMO keep a lathe on a porch is feasible. I can't vouch for any electronics though.
Since you are buying this, just test it out and see if it all works. If there's no issue now, I doubt any will appear in the future.

My friend keeps his Harley in the kitchen. A lathe is smaller than a Harley. My friend got rid of his wife before moving the Harley inside.

So Harleys are made of cast iron? No wonder they're so bloody heavy.... they don't call it Pig Iron for nothing. :)
<j/k>
 
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WD40 was developed as a protectant / cleaner - but IMO is not the best solution (stinky, greasy and gets on the wood). A good coat of carnauba was is better (clean, doesn't smell and you might as well get it on the wood! :)

<j/k>
As a note WD40 can be used on wood and it will still take a finish
 
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thanks to all who replied. I told them I wouldn't recommend it. I doubt you could stop the rust from happening. Haven't heard back but the question came from the wife. I'm thinking she thought that would work, when he wanted to move her car outside! hope he got his way!
 
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Well, I was in the same question camp a little over a year ago, and a lady turner referred me to Darbin Ovar on YouTube, she is impressive in all she does and she keeps all her major woodworking tools-table saw, bandsaw, lathe and others in a carport shed open on 3 sides. Check her out, I have had my table saw and bandsaw and drum sander out under the deck for a year, and have no issues. I bought tarps from Ze-Rust that emit a anti-rust gas as they lay over your tools--I highly recommend them. I'm in Georgia, the northern Burbs of Atlanta, and we have a WIDE range of temps around here--lows in the low single digits to occasional sub zero's and summertime highs in the low 100's, I would say we are a higher humidity zone--not as high as Houston, but pretty damn high. I keep my tools coated with BoShield and wax--Turtle wax hard shell-(read Carnuba) and I can say it's OK to roll this way.

Best luck whichever way you go, check out the ZeRust stuff--I know they carry at least one tarp from them at Rockler.
 
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