Bah! Nobody has any kerosene! Alternative cleaner?

[Aaron Buys]

Well after visiting 3 different gas stations and two different hardware stores I still can't find any kerosene to clean the grease off my new lathe. What else can I use that won't hurt the bed of my lathe or damage the painted surfaces? A guy at Woodcraft said I can just use mineral spirits but my manual says "no paint thinner" and I always thought mineral spirits *was* paint thinner. It was also suggested I could use an orange based cleaner to remove the grease. Any suggestions?

[Mike Vickery]

I would use Mineral Spirits.
FYI - both Home Depot and Ace usually carry Kerosene (at least in my area).

[Bob Childress]

Well after visiting 3 different gas stations and two different hardware stores I still can't find any kerosene to clean the grease off my new lathe. Any suggestions?

Go to a fourth station? ;) :D

[Bruce Smith]

Mineral spirits or varsol will dilute the grease and make for a speedy clean up. You should be able to find either at the Home Depot.

[Aaron Buys]

Mineral spirits or varsol will dilute the grease and make for a speedy clean up. You should be able to find either at the Home Depot.


But is the mineral spirits safe if the instructions say no "paint thinner?"

[Hilel Salomon]

Hi,

Mineral spirits are safe for your lathe but not for you. If you inhale the stuff it's deadly. If you do go that route, wear gloves and some respiratory protection. I know lots of people-myself included- have used the stuff for years with no apparent ill effects- but the operative word is "apparent." There are lots of people who have suffered dramatically from inhaling the stuff.

[Gary Herrmann]

I picked up a 2 gallon container of kerosene at an Ace hardware last year.

[Mark Pruitt]

I like to clean with naphtha, because it dries far more quickly. Stinks though.

[Jim Johnstun]

use diesel. It is the same as kerosene for cleaning purposes.

[Kenneth Hertzog]

when I cleaned mine I used degreaser. get it at the auto parts it comes in either a spray or pump container. in the hard to get to area I sprayed it on the rag and worked it back and forth till clean. My paint is still good as new.
ken

[Doug Shepard]

I did the same as Kenneth when I got my MM16 except I got mine at the Borg. It worked great.

[Bob Noles]

If you want to play is safe, and you should, get a bottle of Simple Green and use some elbow grease. Works great!

[John Daugherty]

I've always used WD-40

[Bill Wyko]

Here's your awnser. I use a product called wax and grease remover. It's available at automotive paint suppliers. It won't hurt paint because it's made to clean paint surfaces before prep and it won't discolor anything and I mean anything. I use it on leather, cloth, wood, plastic pretty much any surface. I'd state my reputation on it. (7 time top 100 installer of the year) It's cheap too around 15 bucks a gallon. It's great for removing spray glue as well. Weldwood spray adhesive comes right off and the surface it's on will be just fine. If you do use it on material though it does remove oils so you would want to treat it with what ever you normally would treat it with like armoral or your preference. I hope this helps. :) It's what I used on my new lathe.

[Aaron Buys]

Thanks for all the info as usual guys. I'll see if I can get my hands on one of those solutions.

Aaron

[Matt Meiser]

I can't see why kerosene would be OK, but not Mineral Spirts. Maybe they say paint thinner so no one uses laquer thinner which would damage the finish and the plastic parts?

[Jim Becker]

I can't see why kerosene would be OK, but not Mineral Spirts. Maybe they say paint thinner so no one uses laquer thinner which would damage the finish and the plastic parts?

I suspect you're correct, Matt. I use mineral spirits (the proverbial paint thinner) to clean off the kerosene residuals...

BTW...thanks to Robert Tarr's quick thinking, we found that wetting with Kero, waiting a few moments and then using a flat cabinet scraper removed most of the cosmoline when we were doing my slider not long ago. No damage to the cast iron, either since we were not bending the scraper like we would on wood, as it were...

[Steve Schlumpf]

I use mineral spirits and have on everything in my shop. Never had any problems.

[Danny Yarbrough]

No one has mentioned a product called Goo Gone. (http://www.magicamerican.com/index.aspx) ... I've used it on all my newly unpacked power tools to remove the grease from the machined surfaces. It seems to work well for me, and has a pleasant orange smell. Their website says it's availble at Lowe's, Home Depot, Ace hardware, and many other places.

I've just used the liquid, none of the sprays or gels.

Good luck (I'm so jealous of all these new lathes... I have PM3520B lust :()

Danny

[Jim Becker]

Danny, yes, Goo-Gone can be very helpful, but is pretty expensive for the large areas that need cleaned on a major power tool. I'd consider it for final cleanup after getting the majority of the gunk off with kero and elbow grease, however.

[Daniel Heine]

Hello,

I have found this product at my local Ace Hardware store. It is called Goof-Off. I have found that it cleans spots that nothing else can touch. When I change my city sticker every JUne, it leaves a sticky residue on the windshield that takes forever to scrape and clean off. One swipe with Goof-Off, and it's gone. It has a bit of an odor that does not bother me, but my wife will not allow me to bring it into the house. I have also found that WD-40 + and abrasive pad work very well for cleaning and light rust removal.

Good Luck,
Dan Heine

[Ron Chamberlin]

One word. WD-40.

[Jim Underwood]

Be careful with the Goof-Off. It's a strong caustic. It'll take the skin off if you're not careful. Works good for taking paint out of brushes though...

I'd use WD-40 or Diesel fuel. (WD-40 smells better - it's practically kerosene anyway.)

[George Tokarev]

Be careful with the Goof-Off. It's a strong caustic. It'll take the skin off if you're not careful. Works good for taking paint out of brushes though...

I'd use WD-40 or Diesel fuel. (WD-40 smells better - it's practically kerosene anyway.)

Sort of like the genuine article TSP, versus the modern metasilicate types. Might take the paint off the tool, too.

WD 40 is much more volatile than kerosene fractions. Shows Stoddard solvent, I believe, on the MSDS. Those of us who have oil backup heat have plenty of cleaning and honing oil dripping everywhere. Which is why we can't afford new tools covered in Cosmolene.

[Bill Wyko]

Guys take my word for it. wax and grease remover is the only way to go.:)

[Steven Wilson]

Use Kerosene or diesel. You really want to use something that doesn't flash off quickly (like naptha, acetone, wd40, yada, yada, yada) and you want to remove the cosmoline/grease and not lubrication in bearings, so I would avoid wax and grease remover. Apply a little kerosene let it sit for a minute or two and then scrape off most of the cosmoline/grease with a scraper (painters 5 in 1 tool works good). Then wipe down with clean kerosene, and finally you can use a more volitle substance like WD40, naptha, or alcohol to clean up any residue.