Rusty ways

[Hugh]

I have been to the John Jordan school of taking care of my lathe. What John taught me was to use WD-40 on the ways of the lathe every day - after clean-up. It works. But this last week I got into some Valley Oak wood. There is so much tannin in it that it makes the ways of my lathe turn rusty in a matter of minutes. I start out with a fresh coat of WD-40 on the lathe and still it rusts. I realize that it is only minor rusting as I clean it up quickly. But the question here is: Does anyone know of something that I can put on the lathe that will protect it from wet oak shavings? Or am I stuck just to clean up after I finish turning? Thanks for the help.
Hugh

 

[arbud]

Yep!

Hugh, lose the WD-40 and apply a coat of paste wax. That will protect the iron/steel from rust, tannin, etc. and things will slide more easily. In fact, I wax my tool rests as well.

 

[Jim Becker]

WD40 is great for cleaning, but it's not a protectant. Paste wax or a commercial preparation, such as Boeshield, is essential to keeping rust and corrosion at bay on your bare cast iron.

 

[-e-]

hold your horses!

when i have been overly type-A with my cleanup on the oneway, my ways get so slick that the tail-stock slips ...

for day-to-day operation, the valley oak (and anything else) needs moisture to do its dirty work, so i make certain i blow every thing dry at the end of my turning day -- i used a piece of sheet-rock abrasive to scuff off any tarnish.

i use the empire topsaver to protect the other surfaces and on the lathe when the studio goes into hibernattion. the key to the topsaver is to let spray and let it dry w/o wiping.

 

[Gynia]

I have tried a bunch of different things. Right now I am using Renaissance wax. This has been my lathe way treatment of choice for the past year.

Prior to using Renaissance wax I used a lot of different things. Various different paste waxes, pledge wipe sheets, motor oil... They all work to a degree but the Renaissance wax has been better for me in a few ways. First, it takes less of that wax than any other product I have used. Second, it applies faster than any other product I have used. Third, it last longer than any other product I have used. Fourth, I have had zero rust since I started using Renaissance wax.

I have not tried one of the products specifically designed for rust protection, like Boneshield or TopCoat.

I would not suggest that you buy Renaissance wax for protecting you lathe bed. I bought the wax for use on some of my turnings. If I hadn't already had a can of the wax I wouldn't have considered it an option.

Good Luck

Richard

 

[Wilford Bickel]

Another vote for paste wax - I use it on my lathe and all the other tools in the shop (table saw, band saw, etc.). Rub on a good coat, let dry and then buff off with clean rag or paper towel. Will give much more protection against rust than WD40.

Wilford

 

[Hugh]

Thanks Everyone for the input. It seems that paste wax is the thing to use. I will try it. I have used paste wax on my table saw when I was in a damp garage. It has been a few years since then and I forgot about paste wax. The oak wood just seems to cause rust very fast. Anyway - thanks again. Paste wax it will be.
Hugh

 

[Whit]

For years I've used paste wax (Johnson's) on machine tables such as table saw, band saw, jointer, planer and scroll saw where I want the workpiece to slide around freely. On the lathe, however, I want the tailstock to stay put. Therefore, when I turn high tannin woods like oak or walnut, as soon as I'm finished I clean up the inevitable staining (rust) with a 000 Scotcbtite pad and apply a liberal coat of WD-40. I let it dry for 30 minutes or so and then wipe it down. Works for me.

Whit