Let's see your "patina"!

[Scimonetti]

Post up any photos of old tools you have that you think have aged well along with how you maintain them!

 

[drivesitfar]

SC: i love "naked" steel and am planning on not doing a whole lot of painting of my vises and tools. i also like the Boiled linseed oil (BLO) and i'm hearing wiping down with a bit of fluid film, mineral spirits, WD40 and a few other things should keep my steel from rusting in my unheated shop.

here's my Reed 4C that was sandblasted and had 3 coats of BLO put on it last summer by one of our talented members who restored it for me. the other vises on the shelf are all over 150 pounds and have various shades of rust on them currently waiting to get spiffed up.

thanks for starting a thread like this.

 

[Alan Douglas]

Far as I know this Parker 953 has its original finish. I use it every day but try to be as careful as its previous owners were.

 

[Fretters]

Agreed, painting looks nice but on a real user I would want it raw. Scratches and chips in paint don't look good but even wear on steel does.

Depends on each piece, IMHO. Pristine original is always good, but sometimes raw is good, sometimes a full repaint works better and occasionally just leaving a piece as is, even with patchy paint, works. I've always found it quite piece specific. These two pieces are both sporting original, untouched paint, even though it's patchy as hell, they just seemed best left as was.

 

[Fretters]

I thought it seemed the best choice with those two two, even though the paint is scabby. Those are both coated with Linseed oil, for rust protection.

I tend to class rust as the driving factor in whether to refinish or not these days. A smidgeon of rust or light rust is of no detriment, whereas if one part or more of something is badly enough rusted that it needs some deep removal method, that's what seals the fate for the whole machine, in my book. If it can feasibly be removed or minimised by hand methods, (scrubbing, scraping etc.), then I'll use those and leave alone otherwise and just finish with oil for protection. If any part needs to go in the electrolysis vat though, then it all gets stripped, derusted and repainted.

 

[Fretters]

This is one piece which was derusted and then just coated with Linseed oil instead of paint.

 

[drivesitfar]

SC: thanks for thinking of my big 190 pound Reed 4C when starting this thread. when JasonEOC asked me what color i wanted it before he restored it and shipped it to me i didn't have a second thought about asking him to use the BOL. i can hardly wait to get the spot clear for my 1000 pound steel bench that i'm going to mount it on in my garage so i can start using it. it's not an everyday vise, but if you haven't turned the handle on a well greased 150 plus pound vise you are missing something so do when you get a chance to.

ALL: here's two vises i'm not going to strip the original 70 plus year old paint and i'll just put some BOL on them just like Fretters has done with a few of his machines that still have some of their natural color. one is a Reed 2C which is also going to be mounted along with my Prentiss 19.5 with a swivel jaw vise for those odd shaped jobs.

 

[sometoyotaguy]

 

[3baygarage]

Your stuff looks nice Scimonetti. Not to get off track but what's the name of that double handle plane. i saw a Stanley this weekend and the wood handle was ten feet away but i thought they went together. The screws must have been lost. I hope somebody married them up.

 

[3baygarage]

Thanks and too bad it wasn't a couple days earlier. Maybe someone on he forum has a blade.

 

[Alamedasam]

Old socket box.

 

[McBrownie]

ALL: here's two vises i'm not going to strip the original 70 plus year old paint and i'll just put some BOL on them just like Fretters has done with a few of his machines that still have some of their natural color. one is a Reed 2C which is also going to be mounted along with my Prentiss 19.5 with a swivel jaw vise for those odd shaped jobs.

Drives,

Good call on the light restoration for those two, especially the Prentiss. It took a long time to getting it looking like that. My Prentiss 19 had broken jaws, a missing pin, and had been painted white. (don't tell anyone, but I got it for $11) Another month and it will be warm enough to finally finish it.

 

[sometoyotaguy]

That is really cool! How do you have it set up right now and what size is it?

Perfect. Is that part of your everyday users?

I just bought off CL a few weeks ago. It appears to be functional, but hasn't been used in a long time. The seller oiled it, and made sure it was free. It was connected to a motor via a leather belt, but I'd like to restore it to hand operation.That's what the large wood pulley on the side is for.

So far, it's just made it into the basement until I have time to do a restoration, and set it up for use.

It's one of those things that have been on the wish list for a long time to add to the hand tool collection, and it came up at the right price. It cost more in gas to go pick it up 2 hours away.

 

[drivesitfar]

Alam: how did you prep that little metal box before you pin striped it? also do you do pin striping all the time and do tell how you did that because i think it looks pretty cool and i have a ton of those little metal boxes now.

SC: are you saying you are using motor oil to rub on those vises? i'm not sure I've ever heard of motor oil that weight so is it for heavy machinery or can you take a picture of the container? also how many coats did you use, does it dry nicely and any smell?

nice job on the vises

 

[wiwest]

Everything gets wiped down with some type of oil (whatever really, BLO, gear oil, mineral oil) and used/fondled weekly in a heated basement.

What do you recommend for a "normal" garage. Dry Central Valley in CA? Periodically wipe down with oil? I'm restoring some tools and want to take care of them.

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: just an FYI that you'll need to wipe on BLO (boiled linseed oil) fairly often to keep the rust at bay on your naked steel tools and machines. i'm very curious how your gear oil works SC so give us a report in a few months with details and conditions of your shop/garage.

i was at another GJ member's home yesterday and he showed me a little can of Por 15 paint that he swears by. he is also a member of PM (Practical Machinist) and they say you can't even chip it. the little can which maybe was 2 inches in diameter and height had a $9.95 price tag on it. he said when he uses it he syringes out enough paint to do his project and wipes the rim very clean before closing it or the can will be sealed forever. also he never puts paint back in the can once its out and doesn't leave the can open except for a couple minutes. i might try a can of green on my baby Wilton bullet and see how it works.

 

[rabies]

does this count? my truck

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: i just discovered a paint that might also be known as an epoxy with color called Por 15. anybody heard of it or used it on their tools or machines. i hear it's also a great way to keep a bolt in it's place so you'll have to torch it off for it to move after applying this product.

i saw it in black on a Bridgeport mill and an old vintage hack saw at another member's shop, but it isn't cheap or real easy to work with.

 

[classicJackets]

I know that a fair amount of guys use it to stop rust on their cars/trucks. mixed reviews (mostly good, from what I've heard) but supposed to tough

 

[rabies]

por15 is amazing. so worth the $. i think i paid $26 for a pint of it. used it on my jeep. it turns rust spots or really anything into a hard surface that rust doesnt coem through. its like it solidifies it and idk. you have to try it.