Protecting Bare Metal on a Bench-Top Drill Press?

[lbperry]

I received an 8" Delta Bench-Top Drill Press in exchange for some work I did.
I have a drill press so I thought I'd freshen this one up and give it to my son.
Most of the drill press will clean up with standard clean-up/lube-up techniques but I have questions about parts of it. The base, table, and column are all bare metal and have a pretty heavy coating of surface rust on them. I figure that I can clean them up pretty good with #0000 steel wool and WD-40 but need some advice on what to put on them to keep them from rusting again but that won't be a sawdust magnet. Any good suggestions that you guys have used would be appreciated.
Thanks,

 

[Laker]

I use wheel wax on the bare metal on my restored vises, included the jaws



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http://www.wheelwax.com/

 

[jtbinvalrico]

Johnson's paste wax. It's in a yellow can.

 

[lbperry]

Wax sounds like a good idea. I'll give it a try. Thanks for the idea.

 

[nine4gmc]

Johnson's paste wax. It's in a yellow can.

I use it on all bare metal.

 

[I van putski]

Boiled linseed oil

 

[LutzTD]

i always use light machine oil, wax is too messy for me getting the overages

 

[srmofo]

Johnsons paste wax is used by woodworkers because it will not screw up the finish on wood. If its mostly being used for metal then its not as big of a deal

 

[Norcal]

Johnson's paste wax. It's in a yellow can.

This is recommended at the OWWM, Old Wood Working Machines forum also.

 

[HMCFab9]

I've been told to use something called: "Boeshield". I guess it was made for / by Boeing for use on planes.
Amsoil also has something they call Metal Protector. I've never used it, but a friend is a dealer & he uses it in his wood shop for his machines.

 

[kd4gij]

Brakefree CLP works great

 

[Tim The Tool Man]

+3 on the Johnson's. I use it in conjunction with 000 steel wool if there is light surface rust. For heavier rust I use valve lapping compound + 0 steel wool followed by the paste wax.

 

[darkk]

Johnson's paste wax. It's in a yellow can.

X2 that's what I use on my shop tools. works very well, it's what an old woodworker told me he uses. You can buy specialized protectants, but why spend extra for fancy named stuff that doesn't work any better.

 

[LutzTD]

Johnsons paste wax is used by woodworkers because it will not screw up the finish on wood. If its mostly being used for metal then its not as big of a deal

ahh I forget that not everyone is a machinist, I guess oil is not so good for wood. nevermind.....

 

[GarageWarrior]

For metal working I would use Eureka Fluid Film (corrosion prevention spray). For wood - wax

 

[djjsr]

I use some stuff called TopCote that is specifically made for that purpose. I got it for my tablesaw because I didn't want any oil or wax to transfer onto the wood, but use it on anything that's bare metal. Spray and wipe.

 

[Falcon67]

I rub my stuff down with ATF. Wax on the band saw, the rest ATF. I have a lot of ATF around and it's a good cleaner and leaves a oil film.

 

[Davefr]

Tung Oil Finish (or Varathane #66 natural Oil). Wipe it on and wipe it off. It's just a very thin varnish.

It'll last much longer then wax and prevent rust.

 

[GarageEnvy]

Another vote for Johnsons paste wax. I've heard (but not used) that Boeshield is very good too.

 

[OctoMan]

Motor Oil. Works well and it's cheap.

 

[Graham08]

LPS-2 here. I do metalworking, so having an oil film on the drill press table isn't a big deal. If I was going to put it in longer term storage, I would use LPS-3, but it dries to a sticky film that can be tough to remove.

 

[Jim B]

Boeshield protects metal very well but leaves a waxy coating (think parafin). I'm not sure that would be good for wood but for surfaces not contacted by wood it will prevent rusting. I use it to help prevent corrosion on electrical wiring connections in a marine environment and it works well.

 

[Okie Pete]

Motor Oil. Works well and it's cheap.

My Grandfather used 30wt to put a shine on his 720 John Deere tractor . The paint on it looked new till the day he passed.
I know not a drill press.

 

[#1SomeGuy]

I would use fluid film as that's what it's meant for. It does leave quite the film though which could get annoying. Could you paint or powder coat any of the surfaces that won't see abbrasive use?

 

[machineshop]

hello, here in germany i have the same problem. half of the year we have wet weather, so its only a question of time till the bare metal parts of my drillpress, lathe, millingmachine and all the other stuff begins to rust.
First i used motor oil for several years but from time to time you have to reapply oil, otherwise the stuff begins to rust again because the oil seems to run down very slowly and the oil film gets thinner and thinner. So every month i had to wipe everything down, remove new surface rust and put motor oil again on all metal parts. Very annoying to do this when its cold and wet.
A friend of mine told me to use grease in spray cans for motorbike chains. its quiet cheap and he uses it for the hollow parts of his car frame and he says that its better than wax because its very liquid first and creeps in every corner. after a few minutes it gets very sticky like glue.
I applied it one and a half years ago on my machines and no rust till now. You can quickly remove it with a cloth and denaturated alcohol. My non treated metal parts begin to get surface rust within 2 weeks.

greets paul

 

[NJJer]

I would use fluid film as that's what it's meant for. It does leave quite the film though which could get annoying. Could you paint or powder coat any of the surfaces that won't see abbrasive use?

This ^^^^

I buy it by the case as we use it for so many things in the shop. I also use it on my fleet of PWC to keep corrosion from even starting.

Contact them as sometime you can get deals on cases that have been shipped and maybe one can leaked. Not many people want a "greasy can", so they ship it back and Fluid Film seems them at a pretty good discount.

 

[jazzbug8]

Pledge furniture polish in a spray can.

 

[volaredon]

need to do that with my floor model 1970 Rockwell/Delta drill press, the column looks uggly.

 

[Modifieddriver]

RustLick. Buy it at Graingers.