13 replies to this topic

[42andrising]

Hi folks,

I'm very new to woodworking and in fact my wife is pretty sure I'm just a tool collector...below is some background, but the question is after that...

Anyway, my wife's grandmother gave me an old saw that belonged to her husband. After realizing that getting a table saw in my little space is probably not going to happen, and I'm convincing myself more and more that I want to use handtools as much as possible, I decided that I need some saws. After listening to old episodes of Woodtalk Online (Radio) I heard Shannon mention that he sent his Disston D7 off to Bad Axe toolworks. I checked out the saw that I got and lo and behold...it's a Disston D7 crosscut saw from somewhere around the 1950's. So I'd like to keep it and restore it if possible...

I went to Bad Axe Toolworks' website and he recommends that I clean it up before sending it out for service. I (sort-of) followed the directions he has (http://www.badaxetoo...a-sawplate.html), but am still left with a black gunk over a lot of the sawplate (see the photo for a sample before cleaning). I don't think it's rust; I used naval jelly and that seems to have gotten rid of a lot of rust, but the black stuff remains. I can't seem to scrape it off with a razor blade and it doesn't seem to be coming off very much by scrubbing with sanding sponges or scotch brite pads. I don't want to scrub so much that I put scratches in the saw plate. I started to uncover some old etching and I'd like to be able to see it when I'm all done...I'm afraid of scrubbing right through it.

So three part question:

1) Instead of Naval Jelly should I use something else like Evaporust or Rusterizer (I couldn't find either at my local hardware store, didn't try big box yet)?

2) Is this black stuff old pitch or resin?

3) How do I remove it safely?


Thank you for your help!

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[duckkisser]

for my table saw blades i just clean up the resin and pitch with baking soda and warm water and a fine steel whool. and i use soda on my stove glass top so that might work to help eat it up.

[Roger T]

I normally use 400 grit wet/dry paper and use mineral spirits as a lubricant. Use a backer block for the sandpaper, a piece of wood, or if you have one, a cork faced piece of wood. Be careful around the etch, as this will take the etch out if you over do it. Take the handle off first, so you can get the plate laying flat. It should come pretty clean just using some elbow grease and a bit of time.

Roger

[Roger T]

This link will give you a pretty good rundown of cleaning a saw plate.

http://www.wkfinetoo...tSawBlade-1.asp

enjoy!

[42andrising]

Great thanks guys! I'll give those a shot.

Any tips on a bent saw plate?

[Roger T]

42,

If you dig back to the root of that website, you will see menu's with all kinds of information there. You could read for days in there. I believe there was info on straightening out a bent plate.

Roger

[42andrising]

Found it: http://www.wkfinetoo...trSawBlade1.asp

Looks like maybe I should leave that to a pro, or just accept the fact that I'll probably ruin a few saws before doing it right.

Thanks again.

[RenaissanceWW]

I'm pretty sure the black spots are a product of the oxidation reaction that occurs when you use a rust remover. I have used Naval jelly to clean saw plates and it is great when you have a really rusty plate. These days I stick to Evaporust for everything as it does a great job. I also reuse it quite a bit and haven't a loss of effectiveness yet. I let the plate soak a bit in Evapo Rust then I scrub it with fine steel wool to remove the black spots. then I rinse under the faucet while scrubbing with steel wool again. Finally I use a metal polish to shine up the plate and add some slickness back to it. Paste wax will work too but you end up reapplying it too much due to heat built up. It is best to polish the plate rather than coat it.

[Jodavis]

use electrolosys

[jwatson]

Jodavis, on 08 February 2012 - 05:35 PM, said:

use electrolosys

why exactly would you use electrolysis when there are much more safe ways of removing the corrosion?

[Jodavis]

its very safe its by product is hydrogen unlike the other options wich use acids of various types or require ventilation due to hazardous fumes.
also its the cheapest provided you have a 5 gal bucket, battery charger, a little bit of copper wire, a couple of pieces of angle iron or rebar or regular steel
and some arm & hammer washing soda wich is only about $7 a box. most of the other things are floating around most garages.
it also does not remove any metal, leave any scratches and requires minimal elbow grease.
ive restored over 100 individual pieces using this method and compared to buying naval jelly or or evaporust its waaay cheaper and its 0% toxic as long as you do not use stainless steel for your sacrificial anode. there is allot of resources online but if any of you want info ill be glade to walk you through it.
if your a hand tool person like me you do not buy all new tools theres allot of vintage stanley, millers falls, buck bros, diston ect. that you can buy and restore that are just as good if not higher quality than whats available new and you can restore them on a budget. using this method without danger or damage to the items.
the only 2 ways you can get hurt with electrolysis is getting some of the alkaline water in your eyes or shocking yourself but you can avoid the latter by not putting your hands in the water when the battery charger is plugged in.

[jwatson]

Jodavis, on 09 February 2012 - 07:13 AM, said:

its very safe its by product is hydrogen unlike the other options wich use acids of various types or require ventilation due to hazardous fumes.
also its the cheapest provided you have a 5 gal bucket, battery charger, a little bit of copper wire, a couple of pieces of angle iron or rebar or regular steel
and some arm & hammer washing soda wich is only about $7 a box. most of the other things are floating around most garages.
it also does not remove any metal, leave any scratches and requires minimal elbow grease.
ive restored over 100 individual pieces using this method and compared to buying naval jelly or or evaporust its waaay cheaper and its 0% toxic as long as you do not use stainless steel for your sacrificial anode. there is allot of resources online but if any of you want info ill be glade to walk you through it.
if your a hand tool person like me you do not buy all new tools theres allot of vintage stanley, millers falls, buck bros, diston ect. that you can buy and restore that are just as good if not higher quality than whats available new and you can restore them on a budget. using this method without danger or damage to the items.
the only 2 ways you can get hurt with electrolysis is getting some of the alkaline water in your eyes or shocking yourself but you can avoid the latter by not putting your hands in the water when the battery charger is plugged in.

mainly i asked because i wanted the better response, thanks for more detail. i am a antique collector my preferred method is evaporust but if this thread is going to be informative more options are handy.

[Jodavis]

sorry if i came off in a defensive manner it was not my intension
this is the setup i use
the red wires on the right go to the positive lead on your bat charger from the sacrificial anodes in the water
the bare copper wires are to hang your parts to be cleaned from in the solution and connected to your negative lead
you need about 10 tablespoons of washing soda per 5 gal of water
this solution can be reused until your sick of looking at scummy water =)
any 6 or 12 volt charger will work but the newer ones with the smart charging tech tend to not want to start because they think they are not connected to anything
if its working you will see little fizz like bubble rising in the water from the items being cleaned
2 hours - overnight (cation this will remove paint and japaning if left overnight) for japaned or painted items i recommend 6 hours or less
after you take them out use hot water( hot water evaporates quickly in hard to reach areas for drying) and a soft brass brush or similar to brush off the black oxidization then coat with camelia oil or whatever you like to protect agains rust

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[jwatson]

nah not offensive