Depending on temperature and humidity, this may or may not be an issue for you. If the air is cold and damp, the wax may not haze over as quickly as you think. In this case, give the wax more time to dry, and buff the surface a second or third time as needed. Tough Spots. When working tough stains and rust spots with a green Scotchbrite pad, you may notice it changes the sheen of the tool surface.
To even out the sheen and give the tool a like-new appearance, try one additional buffing step. Attach a fine grit Scotchbrite pad like white or light grey to an old orbital sander, and work the entire tool surface. Keep rust at bay and enjoy your shop more with a fresh coat of wax or spray-on protectant on all your cast iron tools! Willie Sandry is a freelance writer for all the major woodworking magazines, blogger, crafter and upholsterer. See more woodworking posts at the Thoughtful Woodworker YouTube channel or check out projects, blogs and reviews at Lumberjocks.
This should help protect it during the next step. Next, I apply a generous coating of WD to the entire table top. You want to let it sit for a while so it can penetrate the iron and start to break apart the rust and even some of the slight discoloration that cast iron can sometimes get. I will typically let it sit for at least 15 minutes but in this case I let it sit for about an hour and a half. After it has sat like this for a while, I take my grey Scotch-Brite pad and a hand pad holder , or in my case I just use a scrap block of 2 X 4 and start scrubbing.
You should scrub in a front-to-back-to-front motion. Try not to focus on one little spot since that will lead to an inconsistent shiny spot. Instead, use some elbow grease and cover the entire depth of the cast iron. I like to scrub until I at least get a dark slurry started. It will typically require more scrubbing if your table top is as rusty as mine was. After tackling the entire table top, I do the bulk of the clean-up with blue shop towels.
The table top should look a lot better at this point. If rust sits for a while it can permanently discolor the cast iron. You can see this here. The rust is gone but the iron is stained. The hand print is mostly gone. Then I use a spray of topcote and finally paste wax. I wax my tables when they're not slippery anymore, and that happens often enough to prevent most surface rust. Not sure why any more than that is necessary I think I'm in the last category.
Wax when I remember to, clean when it gets too deep, calibrate when I'm working on something that demands precision. Find most of the time that's just enough. You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account. Paste as plain text instead. Only 75 emoji are allowed. Display as a link instead.
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Reply to this topic Start new topic. Recommended Posts. Posted December 31, Hello all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options Cleaning and waxing the work surface on a regular schedule will keep it looking and performing like new.
Keeping the surface clean and waxed also helps improve safety. Once a month is the most common cleaning schedule and should suffice for most hobbyist woodworkers. If you use your equipment frequently, shortening the time between cleaning and waxing might be necessary. If you notice work pieces beginning to resist sliding, stop, clean and wax the surface before something bad happens.
Remember that any work surface on which you slide wood will benefit from waxing. I regularly clean and wax my aluminum jointer tables at the same time I maintain my drill press, band saw and table saw tables. Also, see our review of the TopSaver System!
Do you have a comment about this page? Back to the Tips, Tricks List. Follow NewWoodworker. This is a Veteran Owned site. The "Mouse" sander you may have chuckled at can save lots of elbow grease when cleaning your table saw top! Click image to enlarge. The "Mouse" sander comes with a nylon scrubbing pad that with a shot of WD oil, does a great job of cleaning cast iron.
After scrubbing, clean the table with a good household cleaner to remove all the oil. I clean the parts at least twice to be sure the wax goes down properly. Remember to clean the miter grooves! Buildup occurs there as well.
Rub a thin coat of wax into the surface, let dry to a haze, then buff with an old towel or cheesecloth. If the shop is cold I shine a couple of halogen lights on the table to take the chill out.
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