Lubricating wooden table rails

[Shaun Mahood]

We've got a wooden table that has wooden rails that slide open to add a couple leaves. They are quite stiff, and I was wondering if there was a good way to lubricate them. Let me know if my explanation makes no sense.

[Zach Dillinger]

For lubricating moving wooden parts, I prefer to use paraffin canning wax. Just rub some on the slides and you should be good to go. Same stuff I use on the soles of my wooden planes.

[Dale Cruea]

I use bees wax. I was told years ago you could use soap. I have found it some cases that soap has water and the water makes to wood swell.
I usually apply the bees wax and buff it a little. You don't have to buff but it helps so that it does not get all over everything.
I bought a 1/2 pound of bees wax from a bee keeper around here. Shave it into an air tight container and add some turpentine.
Add more until it is a nice thick paste. I also use it to lube screws on hard wood.
Turpentine is the only thing I know of that will dissolve bees wax.
When the turpentine evaporates it leaves the wax and a nice slick surface.
Good to wax some finished surfaces also.

[ray hampton]

Turpentine is not the only thing that will dissolve bee wax, stomach acid will dissolve the beeswax too

[Shaun Mahood]

Thanks for the help, I rubbed some paraffin on there and it really improved things.

[Dale Cruea]

Thanks ray. That is good to know. :)
I think bees wax is what they put on M&Ms, or did at one time.

[ray hampton]

SO, they will melt in your mouth , not in your hand

[Bill Houghton]

furniture paste wax is my preference: nice balance of hardness when dry and ease of application. And one can will last you for years and years. At your local hardware store or big boxy store.

[Jim Matthews]

+1 on paraffin. I keep a bar on my bench for handplanes. It's cheap, it's effective and it uses no solvents.

The problem you will face (provided the slides are like the ones I use) is getting the material into the grooves.
It's not easy to manipulate the wax when the slides are installed. Slip-It (http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=213) is intended for this application and is applied with a small brush.

It's not cheap, but it really works. I applied some to my mechanical planer table and things scoot through, now.

[phil harold]

or
you can use a product called slip-it (http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=213)