Rust! - How do you protect your tools?

The Glass Key

I can't imagine that too many woodworkers have fully heated workshops so how do people cope with rust on tools or am I the only one in this damp island that is affected?

I use loads of white spray grease on items that will rarely get used and have just started using a couple of Zerust boxes for smaller expensive tools. For general everyday use I've moved over to as many good quality plastic tools as possible so I use a yellow plastic roofing angle square instead of a trisquare and even found a plastic marking gauge (Stanley), the wood on wooden marking gauges sometimes swells up making them unusable. I've just about given up on handsaws and now just buy a new fine Stanley hard point saw whenever I need one rather than trying to keep the rust off a traditional saw, same with a back saw there's a very fine Irwin hard point one I like. Tools that are used all the time aren't too bad but anything steel that's not been used for a few months tends to suffer if I've not take some fairly extreme measures to protect it.

So how do you keep your tools protected?

endacl

Pretty much what you're doing. I find oily rags, like old tshirts soaked in linseed, are a good way to store wooden handled tools. Also good for the handles!

Doesn't get away from regular maintenance though. The linseed will stiffen up over time too. Has to be unrolled regularly We're fighting a running and ultimately futile battle with oxidation....

Carra23

endacl wrote: »

Pretty much what you're doing. I find oily rags, like old tshirts soaked in linseed, are a good way to store wooden handled tools. Also good for the handles!

Doesn't get away from regular maintenance though. The linseed will stiffen up over time too. Has to be unrolled regularly We're fighting a running and ultimately futile battle with oxidation....

Is there any way to have tools restored that have been destroyed by rust ? I have a lovely jack plane no.5 and block plane that are in bits from lying idle.

The Glass Key

Carra23 wrote: »

Is there any way to have tools restored that have been destroyed by rust ? I have a lovely jack plane no.5 and block plane that are in bits from lying idle.

Often they are salvageable because they are made of cast iron which is very durable. Only place the really gets hit bad with rust is the back of the plane iron (the blade) if thats badly pitted and the pits can't be polished out during sharpening then it will need replacing.

Carra23

The Glass Key wrote: »

Often they are salvageable because they are made of cast iron which is very durable. Only place the really gets hit bad with rust is the back of the plane iron (the blade) if thats badly pitted and the pits can't be polished out during sharpening then it will need replacing.

Where should I go though ? Anyone to recommend ?

The Glass Key

Easy enough to do yourself. I'm sure you can find a youtube video on the whole process.

tbh they aren't worth a huge amount in good condition and you won't be doing anything you wouldn't do with a brand new one to tweak it up to get the best out of it.

Basically you strip it down and true it up against a flat surface then if necessary play around with the adjustment of the way the iron is held in place, occasionally that needs a little bit of truing up. Cast iron is a material that moves a bit with age ideally its cast left out in a field for a couple of years to settle before its machined to shape, that never happens so after machining even the best quality tools need some work.

As I said if the iron is pitted on the back it will never take a good edge unless you can polish the pitting out but they are easy enough to come by.

You rarely see a No 5 plane thats gone far enough to think of throwing out, someone might have gouged up the base planing over nails or dropped it and split the casting at a weak point but provided the base and saddle are OK then everything else is replaceable.

Try googling for stuff like cleaning up an old plane I'm sure you'll find all the info you need.

woodturner

Camellia Oil

colin29

Wd40

jack of all

I used to throw some moth balls (camphor) into all my tool cabinets and boxes to ward off rust, it worked somewhat but then the traditional moth balls were taken off the market a few years ago. I tried that camelia oil too but it didn't work for me. Now I rely on SAE 30 oil applied liberally with a rag! Messy and has to be removed before I use the tool but it's the only thing that keeps the blasted rust away in workshop (especially during the winter months). For machine table surfaces I've used "ProTec" tool and wax polish, it's expensive but work great. I "feed" any nice wood tools with boiled linseed oil thinned with some turps (not white spirit), does a nice job on wooden planes, handles etc. Plenty of stuff online about cleaning up rusted tools. I've used electrolysis to good effect on some really badly corroded tools, it's very messy and will remove any paint finishes. Acid will also work (good for rusty blades). For light surface rust I use Autosol Chrome/ Metal polish and a nylon pot scrub. It's aggressive enough to remove light surface rust without scratching the steel. Prevention is certainly better than cure and oil is the best one I've found.

The Glass Key

I use a lot of WD40 (about 4-5 cans a year) but I definitely do not rely on it because it tends to let you down in the long term, I use it for stuff that I intend to use again fairly quickly and that's the problem. If I leave a tool protected with WD40 and don't use it again for a while the protection soon wares off. For longer term storage I use White Lithium spray on grease it goes on really well and stays in place, it also has the advantage of being white so you can see where its gone and where it is so cleaning up before use isn't too bad.

What I am trying to avoid is putting off doing work because it takes so long to clean off the necessary tools and put them away again. I'm just about to order 2 of the Waterproof Stanley Fat Max 23 inch tool boxes. The idea is that I'm going to move the workshop around a bit so those 2 boxes filled with my main tools are easy to get at and can be left open when I'm working and quickly closed up when I finish.

The Zerust waterproof boxes I have work really well but they are just too small and I can't get them anymore (not at a reasonable price). There is also a Zerust block/bar/thingy that's supposed to give off a rust protecting vapor and might be worth a try in the waterproof tool boxes.

I must take a look at that Protec, its defo the winter months that are the killer.

As for removing rust of planes I've recently cleaned up a good but rusty Record No4 (car boot £4 - was in UK) with a Lidl Diamond sharpening block; loads of honing fluid, starting with the 200 grade and finishing on the 600 it came out wonderfully. I then compared it too my Stanley No4 after shapening them both and kept the Record and gave the Stanley away.

D-OLEARY

endacl wrote: »

Pretty much what you're doing. I find oily rags, like old tshirts soaked in linseed, are a good way to store wooden handled tools. Also good for the handles!

Doesn't get away from regular maintenance though. The linseed will stiffen up over time too. Has to be unrolled regularly We're fighting a running and ultimately futile battle with oxidation....

tshirt socked in linseed oil is a bad idea youtube some videos they can catch fire by its self

Theta

D-OLEARY wrote: »

tshirt socked in linseed oil is a bad idea youtube some videos they can catch fire by its self

Linseed soaked rags can ignite from radiant heat yes.

knipex

Try gun oils and greases etc..

Relatively easy to come by, pretty cheap, easy to use and a large range of products that offer, short medium and long term protection.

endacl

Thanks for the heads up lads. Will stop that now...

:eek:

tabby aspreme

its not just the damp that rusts tools, the salt in the sweat on your hands also plays its part , the sides of block and rebate planes I find the hardest to keep clean

stoneill

3-1 oil.