Gettin' fixina tune up my Unisaw #9: Saving the top

The top of the saw is looking pretty good. I think you chose the right route to go on this clean-up. Electrolysis would have been less labor intensive but you would have had a hard time finding a container big enough in which to submerse the top. And, for that volume of rust, it would have taken awhile to complete the rust removal.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

if you want to get it a little cleaner i used navel jelly on mine and it worked wonders for the dinge areas i think electrolysis would be a bit over bored for what you have there.

-- I buy tools so i can make more money,so ican buy more tools so I can work more, to make more money, so I can buy more tool, so I can work more

I agree with Scott , the top is looking great. Electrolysis is a lot less labor intensive but its also very slow. You dont stike me as a very patient person…..lol Make sure you get some kind of a protectant on that nice clean metal before it flash rusts on you again!! Johnsons paste wax is really good.

I would stay away from naval jelly…..I dont like the stuff. WD40 and a scothbrite pad works well also.

-- My job is to give my kids things to discuss with their therapist....medic20447@gmail.com

I use an cheap 1/4 sheet sander or ROS I bought from Harbor Freight just for the intended purpose of removing rust from cast iron. You can use automotive sandpaper or a scotch brite pad. Just keep the sander moving. I use WD40 and brake cleaning fluid. Cast iron is porous and afte rust removal, the fluid draws out the grunge. You have to wipe the cast iron down until the fluid runs clean. You can scrub your arms off. But a sander will bring that table to a shiny smooth even luster.

-- david roberts, houston area, "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but that has never been a problem for me."

A sander will also remove metal, which is what you don’t want to do.

-- Julian, Park Forest, IL

Julian, I’m not suggesting 80 grit abrasive. Brite pads are commonly used all the time, so is automotive sandpaper, 400 to 600 grit. It would take a mighty effort to shave 0.005” off cast iron using an electic pad sander and an extra fine Brite pad. After the initial rust removal, it will be shiny by 0.002”. See the Brite pad grit equivalent table below, swiped from http://users.ameritech.net/knives/grits.htm#scotch

But, hey if someone doesn’t feel comfortable using this technique, then by all means, don’t use it.

Fine Light Gray or Green 150 – 180 Aluminum Oxide
Very Fine Maroon 220 – 280 Aluminum Oxide
Extra Fine Gray 320 – 400 Silicon Carbide
Ultra Fine White 600 – 800 Talc

-- david roberts, houston area, "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but that has never been a problem for me."

sanded my 1965 unisaw top with sandpaper,too much rust and went for easy and effective.used 220 to 300,sanded for a while and no difference in metal loss.But as stated if your not comfortable then don’t do it.I also had a handful of burrs that was taken care of in the process too.But she sure is pretty after all the work is done.I used just the brite pads to take off any rust of the body,worked great then repainted with sher-kim ind. enamel paint with factory color.

-- eric post, tallahassee FL

Just got a 1993 Unisaw myself for $500. Coincidence? I think so, yep. LOL.

My top had very little surface rust on it, but there are a ton of dings and various other surface imperfections. IMHO, you have to sand those down…even the pitted areas. When something “pits,” it pushes up the sides, like a lunar crater. Even if you could take away a lot of surface metal in the sanding process, leaving the unevenness in those imperfections is worse. I don’t think sanding is a concern at all…better than using Scotchbrite pads (too much work) while still leaving raised pits in the top.

I’ve been using WD-40 with 220 grit paper on my ROS and it works wonderfully…and I haven’t spent a whole lot of time on it yet. I will progress through the grits until I’m satisfied, though I’m confident I could leave it as is and it’ll be scores better than what it was. While I’ll still have some pits in the surface, it’ll be better with them smoothed down.

My $.02.

BTW, I’m enjoying the videos so far, Bothus!

-- jay, www.allaboutastro.com

good progress

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop, custom furniture ,maker, woodworking school, heirloomwoodshop.com