I've been doing it all wrong

In this video I will show you the easiest way to clean your cast iron tool surfaces such as your bandsaw, table saw, jointer, or planer. I will also demonstrate application of a new product called Carbon Coat from a company call Carbon Method. It is a nano coating that is applied over the cast iron surface to eliminate rust.

For more information on Carbon Method, visit their website listed below.

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These videos are for entertainment purposes only. Bent's Woodworking is not responsible for any viewer trying to recreate something demonstrated in this video. Attempting any of the techniques shown are at the viewers own risk.

[choprpilot]

I was just commenting on The Wood Whisperer video where he applied it. I just applied it to my brand new Sawstop a couple of weeks ago and I know it’s too soon for long term review results but I can already tell it’s awesome. I live in southeast Alabama, and my last saw was a Grizzly G0691 and I ALWAYS had to re-clean it. I coated that with T9 Boeshield and paste wax and I would still get rust and oxidation very quickly afterwards, even just finger prints. So far this new saw with the Carbon Method is extremely noticeably better, super smooth and I’ve been using it while sweating my butt off, changing blades, touching the cast iron, not a single blemish yet. I love it. I found their application video to be perfect, I followed it to the letter and it went on as advertised. I also applied it to my bandsaw and jointer. Their customer service is top notch. I called late on a Saturday to find out their hours on a recording so I knew when to call back on Monday, to my surprise Dan answered the phone and talked to me for awhile and answered all my questions. I’d post a pic of my saw if I could.

[PoeticJusticeSC]

I don't even own a table saw, so I really don't know why I'm watching this other than to make me wish I had room for one. Great explanation and demonstration. Thanks!

[fredsasse]

I've done similar prep work (Scotch Brite pad on an orbital sander with WD40 followed by a wipe down with mineral spirits) one time on my cast iron table saw top. Instead of using the carbon coating I then used Johnson's paste wax. By reapplying it once every month or so I've never had to clean rust off the table saw top again, it remains rust-free.

[TheNewenglandboys]

220 grit sandpaper, wipe clean, follow with car wax. Top doesn’t rust and wood slides super smooth. My 1990 craftsman cast iron table saw sits in my unheated garage year round in NH and is in perfect shape. It has done a lot of work.

[apswirl]

I actually thought I was doing something wrong with the Boeshield lineup so I’m glad several others have experienced the same disappointment. Time to step up my game. This process sounds like a winner,

[DennyMK]

I’ve used the maroon Gator 6x9 scuffing pads (synthetic steel wool) 360 grit from my local Menards. Cut a circle to match my orbital sander and voila, day and night difference. Looks like new in comparison of the before and after pictures. Used denatured alcohol to remove the WD40, then sealed the surface with paste was. Thanks for the video.

[montecarlo]

There is a reason most wood workers and Auto Body Shops only use a Carnuba Wax. These other Automotive silicon, graphine, Ceramic, Teflon type product can transfer to materials that can make it impossible to put on a finish / repaint without issues. Just like nothing stuck to your truck, if it transfers from your tools or hands, paints and stains will no adhere proper for a new finish. Having 20 years in automotive refinish, this would be the last thing I would recommend putting one as a final coat. You are spot on with your cleaning steps, 3M Scotch Bite Res is a 320-400 grit equivalent grit which is very good with WD 40 and Acetone is a very good final wash product that evaporates fast and leaves no residue prior to a Carnuba Wax finish for tools IMHO

[ravenheart]

Got a used table saw that was neglected, what I did was sand top with 220, cleaned with mineral spirits and waxed it..I'm telling ya it's the smoothest most buttery top ever...worked amazingly well and simple...seems there's several ways to do it...your way definitely works as well...

[joer]

It’s time to clean my Grandad’s 1963 craftsman tablesaw, my 20 year old delta bandsaw, and my new 8” jointer. I don’t want to think about all the hand planes needing this. Glad I found your video.
It’s nice being in the shop thinking about those now long gone who used many of the tools I inherited.

[Mainbusfail]

3M Maroon Pads AKA SPP pads {surface preparation pads}. Are phenomenal for polishing many surfaces especially aluminum/ steel etc. Its grit factor falls around the 320 - 400 grit area and if washed out properly, can be reused a few times before it's degraded. And it can be used wet or dry.

[wonkywoody]

I used the same T-9 rust product you described and got the same undesirable staining result. It hasn't been a high priority for me to fix, but I'm glad you dropped an easy solution in my lap...top. Now I can skip the research and gitt'r done! Thanks.

[RobertKarlBerta]

Good process. I found that if you live in humid areas or have differences in temperature in your shop you can get some condensation on those Iron table tops. To prevent that and also to protect against any contamination or worse....dings from stuff dropped on the ast iron I make covers out of 1/2" thick OSB that sit on top of the table tops. have been doing that for my band saw as well as metal lathe and milling machine ways. The OSB prevents condensation and provides great protection. Defintely very important to preserve your machinery. While this is imporant for saws....it is extremely important for metal lathe ways as they are finished to much finer and accurate tolerances than the saw tables. The OSB can be removed and reinstalled quickly and if it gets dinged or contaminated, it is cheap to is why I don't use plywood for the same purpose. I have been using his method since 2005 and it works great. The wood covers breath whereas a plastic cover whould not and may cause conensation and rust damage.

[stereodreamer]

I used this same technique to clean and restore the bare-metal parts of several old letterpress printing presses, including a Kelly-B and a C&P Old Series 10x15 from 1911, but with an extra step. After the Scotch Brite bads with WD-40, I went over the entire thing again with a finer grade of Scotch pads, and used Marvel Mystery Oil. That gave me a nice bright finish.

I also used mineral spirits to clean everything off, I sealed it with 3 coats of Nu-Finish NF-76 polymer car wax, applied over several days. That worked amazingly well. Maybe not as long-lasting as your ceramic product, but it costs less than $10 a bottle, and that bottle is enough to do every press I own a dozen times, which is 5 or 6 years worth of applications...

[larrycoughenour]

I’ve done my unisaw this way for years, i finish it with food grade silicone, and put WD40 on when putting it away. The red pads are key.

[chipped]

I work at a small sized non-climatized cabinet shop in coastal GA.
To keep rust away, we coat 2 tablesaws, 1jointer, 4 shapers, and 1 edge sander twice a week with Johnsons paste wax.
It takes a good 30 minutes each time, am thinking this would save a lot of time.

[stevennachlas]

Jason, this was excellent and exactly what I needed. I had the same problem that you did. My tablesaw top and my 6 inch joiner top were basically in great shape except for a few very small surface rust spots that look like little black worms! It sounds like you, I made the mistake of spraying Rust Free directly on those surfaces. Of course, you shouldn’t do that and it made them cloudy and dull. I’m going to use this method and I believe that the maroon nonwoven pads will be the key to success. I’ll try to post a picture after I’m done!

[willbraswell]

Saw TWW's video and considered purchasing the kit and now after watching yours I'm going to give it a try myself here in humid Central Florida. Thank you!

[amjedalattas]

Exactly the step I did last week and I can verify this is by far the best method for cleaning cast iron surfaces

[arthur]

So, I've been doing it like this for 20 years or so. The one thing I would recommend is to not use that sander with the vac, but instead get a random orbital 6 inch buffer and use that. You don't want WD40 in your good festoon sander hose and vac.

[richardcooke]

I learned years ago to use automotive paste wax on any surface that wood slides on. It prevents rusting and helps the wood move easier.