Waxing saw/jointer tops

[Sammy Shuford]

I have a rust spot on my jointer table, I can clean this off. I have heard about waxing saw and jointer tables. What kind of wax should I use. I have some bees wax for wool slides and stuff. Automotive car wax?

[Tom Pritchard]

I have a rust spot on my jointer table, I can clean this off. I have heard about waxing saw and jointer tables. What kind of wax should I use. I have some bees wax for wool slides and stuff. Automotive car wax?

Sammy, avoid anything with silicone in it. I use Johnson Paste Wax (they have it at Lowe's in with the cleaning stuff), and it works great on any metal surface. I'm sure you will get a bunch of recommendations that will work from the others here at SMC!

[Kurt Aebi]

I use Butcher's Bowling Alley Wax on my cast iron surfaces, it also does not contain any silicone.

Just another possible source for you.

I have used Johnson's as well and they both work about the same.

Either one will last a long time, if this is the only thing you use it for. They both work nice as finishes on other woodworking projects as well.

Here in Vermont, I usually do my waxing quarterly, but my shop is only heated when I use it and the summers are usually humid. Generally twice a year is all you should need.

[Sammy Shuford]

I'm heading to downtown anyway, so off to Lowes I go.
Thanks for the responce!

[Jeff Sudmeier]

I just did this last night. Just a tip, when it is hazed over, start buffing. The longer you wait, the harder it is! Darn it :)

[lou sansone]

I also use wax... skip the top coat stuff that they try to sell in ww stores. it is junk IMHO

lou

[Greg Scott]

Be careful... After you wax those guys your wood will slip across those surfaces very easy, you wont beleive how much easier your jointer is to use with a fresh coat of wax. I just use Johnsons Paste Wax and it works great!

[John Weber]

I like Boeshield or Topcoat.

John

[JayStPeter]

A little 600 or 800 grit on a MDF block lubed with WD40 will take care of that rust spot before waxing.

Jay

[Ken Waag]

I've tried quite a few products, but found the best solution in an article several years back. It recommended a product called Rennaisance Wax. It's a micro-crystaline wax used by museums and restoration specialists. Expensive at $20 for a 7 oz. jar, but I have never regretted the cost, and highly recommend it. The cost is a bit misleading in that you need to use very little of it. Do to it's micro-crystaline composition it spreads like crazy. A good pea sized bit of wax will do your entire tablesaw top. The second time you use it you'll notice it takes even less as the wax fills microsopic pores and that portion tends to stay put. All you're replacing is the surface layer.


It is easily the slickest of anything I've tried. Your boards will skate on this stuff. Paste wax is good, but thick compared to this, and as a result paste wax is sticky in comparison. I'd always liked the protection/lubrcant combination of top-cote, but again after using this wax, it has twice the drag.

Woodcraft carries it, I just checked their website. My little $20 jar is now 5+ years old (and I polish all my machine tops plus other items with it). I'd bet if you try it you won't go back.

Naysayers try this test: Polish a cast iron top nice and shiny with whatever you use (I see paste wax mentioned most often here). Get it nice and glossy and slick. Then push a thumb or finger firmly on the surface and see if it leaves a print. If it does, it means you have a layer of wax there thick enough and soft enough to take a print. While it is slippery, you have to realize that if there's a layer there that takes a print, there is friction in that layer. If you do the same with the Renaissance Wax, there will be no finger print. It leaves a layer so thin and hard that it will not even show fingerprints.

Since using this wax I've had no rust occur on any of the treated surfaces. My shop is relatively well controlled, however, so it is not a brutal test. But I did get occasional rust before. According to the article, because of the ultrafine nature of the wax, as I said it gets into microscopic pores, and the more times you use it, the more it gets worked in and it creates a subsurface protection. I used it every few months at first. Now I forget about it until I notice that a table is not super slick. Then I apply a coat. For me it averages around every six months to a year depending on the machine. Factor in that I am a hobbiest/weekend woodworker. If you're on your tools every day I would imagine every 3 mo or so would be appropriate.

Well there's my long winded recommendation

[Dennis Peacock]

I have always used Johnson's Paste Wax on all my cast iron. No rust and no problems. Cheap, local supply and takes minutes to apply and buff off. :D

[Lee Schierer]

Wood Magazine did a test over a year ago and they found that Boeshield T-9 offered the best rust protection. It was several times better than wax. Where I work, we build lots of machines with cast iron surfaces. Rust has been an ongoing battle here. We used to wax everything. I finally convinced my boss to use T-9 and it has stopped the rust. HOWEVER, we don't do wood working on our machines. In my experience, the T-9 tends to leave a residue that becomes sticky and attracts dust. I think this would be a prolem in a wood shop.

In my wood shop at home, I use Johnson paste wax more for the slick surface benefit, since I don't seem to have a rust problem. The quarterly waxing makes things slick and rubbing everything down with steel wool does remove any light surface rust there might be.

On a side note, we've noted here at work that workers that drink alcoholic beverages seem to have an acidity on their skin that causes rust. The more the individual drinks the worse this problem becomes. We've seen rusty hand prints form in the same day when certain people handle the steel. When one person went on the wagon, his problem with rusty hand prints on his work also went away.

[Jeff Sudmeier]

Lee,

Wow isn't that something! I have never heard of alcoholic Beverages causing that :)

Most of the time it is the sweat rings that worry me. (When you set the can on the TS) DOH!

[Brian Hale]

I'm with Ken Waag on this one! I've tried paste wax and T9 and several other spray stuffs but Rennaisance wax is amazing. Strip the other wax off with mineral spirits and scotchbrite and then put the wax on. Come back a day or two later and do it a second time. It's slick hard and wears great. It's even better on my truck!

Brian

[Michael Perata]

If you want rust protection - Starrett M1 (hard to find but it shouldn't be - beats everything on the market.)

If you want a slick surface - Johnson's or BriWax Clear.

[Dean Baumgartner]

I started out using just Johnson's Paste Wax and the surface was great but the surface protection wasn't quite up to the task. My shop is only heated when I'm in it so the temperature swings are pretty extreeme here in Wisconsin. So tried Boshield and the rust protection was great but the surface wasn't as smooth as with the paste wax. As the last step I now apply the Boshield and then 2 coats of paste wax on top. This combination gives great rust protection and still has the really smooth surface from paste wax. The Rennisance wax does sound intersting though.


Dean

[Chris Padilla]

Dissolve some of that bee's wax you have in mineral spirits to soften it up just a tad and you'll have a great wax.

But, first, clean the rust off, then use the Boeshield T-9. Wonderful product. After the T-9, put your bees wax on top and you'll be good to go for a while.

[Bruce Overholt]

Yesterday at Woodcraft Supply, and they turned me on to the Boeshield kit. I thought I'd get the small trial kit because I might not like it.
Well...I was surprised and delighted. I used the Rust Free to clean my New Grizzly table saw. Using a clean white terry cloth towel, I got off so much gunk, that I used the whole 4 oz bottle.
I though I did a good job prevoiusly, I didn't have any rust, but it must have had a sealant of sort, that had a high gloss sheen that was turning brown. Rust free was great and I now have a clean slate grey cast iron table saw table for use. I'm going to use up my Boeshiled kit before I try Johnsons Paste Wax.

Bruce

[Mike Ramsey]

Tom, was wondering why you shoud not use anything with slicone? What problems
will it cause? I remember watching David Marks spraying his saw table with it.

[Kurt Aebi]

The Silicone can and I repeat CAN cause issues when applying a stain or finish on your project.
It is often the culprit when you get fish-eyes in your finish or splotchiness with your stain. It doesn't do this an ALL cases, but it can lead to problems down the road and I for one, like to head things off before they become an problem.

I am sure that the Rennisance wax does a great job, I just go for local and inexpensive. I use Turtle Wax on my cars rather than Mother's as well. They all do a great job and If I had a showcase shop (real expensive tools) or show car for that matter, the more expensive stuff would be my choice, but all my stuff is for using, not for show.

Just my $0.02, not to offer any opinions on anyone or what they use or why they use it. Nor is it my intention to offend anyone in this thread. All the products mentioned are quality products and are fine to be used, just offering other alternatives.

[Alan See]

Call me low tech, but I've always just rubbed my tops with a sheet of wadded up wax- paper. Is this a no-no for some reason? Seems to work pretty well, And I've never had any finish problems. But I'm mostly a BLO guy when it comes to finish.

[Ken Salisbury]

Since I am partial to Minwax Finishing Wax which is my wax of choice for most of my projects I simply use it to wax my tool surfaces - works just fine.

[Joe Mioux]

On a side note, we've noted here at work that workers that drink alcoholic beverages seem to have an acidity on their skin that causes rust. The more the individual drinks the worse this problem becomes. We've seen rusty hand prints form in the same day when certain people handle the steel. When one person went on the wagon, his problem with rusty hand prints on his work also went away.

I'm going to start waxing my hands;)

Joe

[Boyd Gathwright]

Ken,

.... I am very much interested in your discovery and I, for one, appreciate your posting here. From your article, I am very willing to try this product. I have tried most of the others and have settled down on the JOHNSON'S PASTE WAX and the like and yours is one that as escaped me. Can you give us a pic or two of what the container looks like. I may have seen it and passed right over it. Where did you buy yours.

.... Thank again for posting ;).

Boyd

.


I've tried quite a few products, but found the best solution in an article several years back. It recommended a product called Rennaisance Wax. It's a micro-crystaline wax used by museums and restoration specialists. Expensive at $20 for a 7 oz. jar, but I have never regretted the cost, and highly recommend it. The cost is a bit misleading in that you need to use very little of it. Do to it's micro-crystaline composition it spreads like crazy. A good pea sized bit of wax will do your entire tablesaw top. The second time you use it you'll notice it takes even less as the wax fills microsopic pores and that portion tends to stay put. All you're replacing is the surface layer.


It is easily the slickest of anything I've tried. Your boards will skate on this stuff. Paste wax is good, but thick compared to this, and as a result paste wax is sticky in comparison. I'd always liked the protection/lubrcant combination of top-cote, but again after using this wax, it has twice the drag.

Woodcraft carries it, I just checked their website. My little $20 jar is now 5+ years old (and I polish all my machine tops plus other items with it). I'd bet if you try it you won't go back.

Naysayers try this test: Polish a cast iron top nice and shiny with whatever you use (I see paste wax mentioned most often here). Get it nice and glossy and slick. Then push a thumb or finger firmly on the surface and see if it leaves a print. If it does, it means you have a layer of wax there thick enough and soft enough to take a print. While it is slippery, you have to realize that if there's a layer there that takes a print, there is friction in that layer. If you do the same with the Renaissance Wax, there will be no finger print. It leaves a layer so thin and hard that it will not even show fingerprints.

Since using this wax I've had no rust occur on any of the treated surfaces. My shop is relatively well controlled, however, so it is not a brutal test. But I did get occasional rust before. According to the article, because of the ultrafine nature of the wax, as I said it gets into microscopic pores, and the more times you use it, the more it gets worked in and it creates a subsurface protection. I used it every few months at first. Now I forget about it until I notice that a table is not super slick. Then I apply a coat. For me it averages around every six months to a year depending on the machine. Factor in that I am a hobbiest/weekend woodworker. If you're on your tools every day I would imagine every 3 mo or so would be appropriate.

Well there's my long winded recommendation

[Brian Hale]

Boyd
Not to steal Ken's thunder but i order it from Highland Hardware.

http://www.tools-for-woodworking.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1304

Brian :)

[Tom McDermott]

Sammy:

I have tried paste wax, Renaissance wax, and TopCote for rust prevention on a tablesaw. Depending on the time of year (and thus humidity) I got about 1-2 weeks of prevention using either of the waxes, and about 8-10 weeks using TopCote. The article from Wood Magazine rated the waxes as poorest, TopCote in the middle, and
Boeshield T-9 as the best for rust prevention.

-- Tom

[Kent Cori]

I'm another T-9 fan. I put wax over the top to make is slippery. The wax alone has never worked well for me but the T-9 has lasted for up to ten months in my hot, humid Florida garage shop. My climate is pretty close to that of Summerville. (Nice place to live. I worked on a project for the City about five years ago.)

I've been using Minwax but will try my microcrystaline wax based on Ken's tip.

[Jay Albrandt]

I just use Johnson Paste wax and a white scotchbrite pad on my ordital sander. Just let it start to dry and go to town. Produces a near mirror finish and I have had good luck with it holding up to use.

Have fun.

Jay

[Rick Lizek]

Kurt...You might try waxing more often for increased performance of your tools. If jointing all day I might wax the jointer a dozen times. I think the ultimate jointer table would be an air hockey table. In our commercial mill shop we wax the tables often to keep wood sliding easier. Planers, saw fences, ways, etc. Much safer to have the wood slide than to struggle with a sticking surface. Just about any wax will do the trick. I've been using a car wax with silicone for years and have had no problems with fish eyes. Spraying regular silicone in the shop is what causes fisheyes and the only cure is to add silicone to your lacquer but it's a big myth that auto past wax with silicone causes fish eyes. Better to be safe than sorry I would say but in my experience it's just one of those urban legends that is unsubstantiated with any documented proof.

Also on a related note a silicone bed lube for moulders is available. It actually evaporates over a matter of hours. http://woodtechtooling.com/ ...it's under moulder bed lubricant.

[George Summers]

Much has been said about waxing and rust proofing and it is all good information. I use Johnson's Paste Wax and have been satisfied, but will give the Rennaisance a try. But that is not why I responded. Even though I do wax often there are times in the middle of milling that things start getting sticky. Rather than stopping and waxing at that point, and taking up the time, I simply sprinkle some baby powder and spread it around with a chalkboard eraser. Slick as snot. After the milling is done and at a more convienent time, I apply a new coat of wax but I didn't have to stop in the middle of milling to apply wax.

George

[Harry Goodwin]

I go with Ken and Brian and the Renasaunce wax. (Spell) A small can lasts forever and use it on everything wood, metal , whatever. Great stuff. Harry

[Bart Leetch]

Where did you buy

Ken Waag "Woodcraft carries it, I just checked their website. My little $20 jar is now 5+ years old (and I polish all my machine tops plus other items with it). I'd bet if you try it you won't go back."

[Per Swenson]

You can get yer wax right here.
http://www.finishsupply.com/RenWax.html
Check your mail.
Per