Do you baby your TS?

[Roger Warford]

I read in the manual for my new TS (official gloat coming as soon as I put it together and get pictures) that taclum powder was recommended as a rust deterrent and should be applied weekly ("rub vigorously with a blackboard eraser"). The manual said paste wax could affect wood. How do you maintain your TS table?

[scott spencer]

Never tried baby powder, but have had excellent results using Boeshield T9 and Johnsons paste wax. Wax is fine as long as it doesn't contain silicone....pure paste wax, not car wax.

[Anthony Whitesell]

I would be afraid that the powder would absorb and hold moisture, especially if it got wet. Automobile paste wax is a no-no, floor paste wax (johnson's, etc) would be fine. I use Johnson's and Boeshield as well. If anything gets sticky (I practice on pine a lot) I clean with lacquer thinner and let dry. When I'm done for the night, I apply the Boeshield and smear around. Before I start the next dry, I 'polish'/wipe off the Boeshield which has become very sticky and apply a quick coat of Johnson's.

[Mike Heidrick]

Never tried baby powder, but have had excellent results using Boeshield T9 and Johnsons paste wax. Wax is fine as long as it doesn't contain silicone....pure paste wax, not car wax.


QFT

Rust free if needed, Boeshield T-9, Johnsons paste wax in that order.

[Brian Penning]

I've always wondered about applying paste wax to a saw top. Is it not possible for the wax to be transferred onto the wood thereby causing problems for finishing? Though I suppose the usual sanding prior to finishing would take care of this.

[Jim Becker]

Properly applied paste wax is not going to affect finishing as any amount that "rubs off" is going to be extremely minimal and go away during sanding, especially if you are cleaning the workpiece between grits with something like mineral spirits. (To get rid of large grit that can scratch when you move to the next smaller abrasive size) I've always used paste wax on my cast iron surfaces with zero issues and zero rust.

[Jim Dunn]

Some paste car wax's contain water. My good friend had a whole Delta top that rusted overnight after applying car wax. I don't remember the name of the wax but I'll try to find out and post here.

I use Meguiar's and have never had a problem.

[Peter Quinn]

I apply Butche's bowling alley wax with 0000# synthetic wool (a johnson product I believe), let it haze, buff it out. Its pretty inert once hard, never had any problems with transfer to wood that affected finishing.

I've used boeshield at work where the sheer volume of wood passing over the machines made the wax routine too time consuming, boeshield works great but is a bit pricey for my cheap yankee bones. I'm going on 4 years from the same $3 can of wax, no rust, no sticking.

[Jim Summers]

The instructions in my manual also was for the baby powder routine. It was a PIA / constant battle. I would frequently notice some discoloring starting and have to address that. I finally got tired of that and went with SC Johnson paste wax and have not had an issue since. Now that I think about it, I haven't even had to hardly think about it since switching.

HTH

[Jeff Duncan]

Yup, I'm with the bowling alley wax camp, put it on as often as needed. For my shop it's needed about every month, I put it on every 2-3 months:(
For a hobby shop I would think you would get quite a long ways on an application.
good luck,
JeffD

[Brian Kent]

I use Boeshields T-9 from a bicycle shop. It's the squirt bottle rather than the aerosol spray. I've have been using one small bottle for the last two years and my son still hasn't noticed that any is missing.:rolleyes:

I squirt it on, spread it around, then wipe it off in a few minutes before it is sticky.

[Roger Warford]

Thanks for the replies! I had never heard of the baby powder approach before - it seemed a bit far fetched to me, but then what do I know?! Wax it is. Wax on. Wax off. Look out Karate Kid, here I come! :)

[David DeCristoforo]

Ha! I'm crackin' up here.... Yeah...I powder my TS all the time. And don't forget the baby lotion after each diaper change to prevent rash....

:rolleyes:
YM