Replies

1. 
   Piffin | Jul 04, 2006 04:14am | #1

   I use white vinegar with steel wool

   Then after wioping it down good and letting it dry or rinsing wittha wipe of WWD40, and drying, I use a rubbon finish called " slip-it"

   For a quickee finish, I spray on boeshield b-9 and let it stand a few minutes before buffing it in

    

    

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2. 
   JonE | Jul 04, 2006 04:50pm | #2

   I had a pretty substantial amount of rust on the tables of a Powermatic planer and a  Unisaw I bought recently.  The best way I've found to get it off is to scrape it off.  Seriously.  I took a good-quality utility knife blade (Lenox Gold) and clamped it in a large pair of Vise-Grips so it resembled a razor scraper, and had at it.  I've heard of people using single-edge razor blades but I don't think they're tough enough.  After scraping 95% of the rust off, I scrubbed the rest off with some Scotch-Brite pads and a bit of machine oil.

    

1. 
   EdHarrow | Jul 04, 2006 05:17pm | #3

   I can't speak from direct experience, but I do know people who've used this stuff and swear by it.  I don't know what the item looked like before, but I saw what it looked like after.

   http://www.evaporust.com/evaporust.html

    

   Edited 7/4/2006 10:17 am ET by EdHarrow

3. 
   highfigh | Jul 04, 2006 05:42pm | #4

   3M makes Scotch Brite pads for metal. It's reddish-brown and they work great. I made the mistake of not waxing or otherwise protecting my jointer (even though I though I had) a couple of years ago and when I wanted to use it, the horizontal surfaces were covered in rust. It took about 10-15 minutes and it was completely clean. If you do this without anything to keep the dust down, wear a mask- you really don't want to inhale the rust. I used penetrating oil, wiping it off occasionally.

   On my table saw, the extension wings are flat on top with no holes and I have used the Scotch Brite on them, too. I went to Harbor Freight and bought some moving blankets and cover my machines in winter now. They work and I had minimal cleanup this spring. The main reason my tools rusted is from using a propane heater, which puts out hot, wet air and anything that is really cold in winter ends up with a lot of condensation.

   "I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
1. 
   BruceS | Jul 04, 2006 06:41pm | #5

   I uses NO acids or caustics on any metal surfaces,  They can really stain, especially cast.   Depending on how far gone the rust is,  determines my process.  But generally a White Scotch Brite pad underneath a ROS does a fine job, If things are really ugly I may start with 120 paper and work up in steps to 600 then wipe down with lacquer thinner  and finally a coat of good paste wax and buff it out.Work Safe,  Count to 10 when your done for the day !!

   Bruce S. 

    

4. 
   frenchy | Jul 04, 2006 06:59pm | #6

   Wanda,

     Stop overthinking a minor problem.. Grab your DA and stick a pice of 220 on it and buzz away.. 5 minutes and I can get my whole saw top fine looking!  Once derusted grab some wax and polish it..

     If you've spent more than 10 minutes at the keyboard you've already taken more time than the job requires!

    

    

5. 
   fingerlessHack | Jul 04, 2006 09:50pm | #7

   I had good luck using TopSaver, purchased from Woodcraft. No heavy ugly smell exist while applying and rubbing.

   Moisture from my truck's exhaust found its way ontop of my bandsaw table. Unknown to me table was uncovered and in direct contact with the exhaust for couple months. TopSaver cleaned table up very well.

   For protection I always cover cast iron tops with heavy cloths... towel, blanket, shipping type cargo blankets, or etc. After blanket is in place I put huge plastic sheets over blanket. I have found the plastic and blanket approach very, very, effective. I have lived in humid areas and my expensive equipment has always been stored in a garage... non air controlled environment. In addition, I use Boeshield T-9 and paste wax. I guess I use the paste wax because it's less expensive. I think the T-9 is probably a better protectint, but quite a bit more expensive. Between the two I think I get a little more cost effectiveness. But I am not sure about the effect if I spray T-9 ontop of an old previous treatment of buffed on paste wax. It appears that T-9 smears previous wax treatments; thus not certain of possible negative effect from said reaction. But have yet to see any rust using all the above methods.

   I do not like the idea of using sand papers, or non polishing approaches. To extreme for my taste and stands a good chance of killing table's flatness. If table is that far gone have it ground flat and polished by a pro.

   Cheers