Ideas On

[matthew_g]

Just looking for ideas for storing machine tooling ie: end mills, horizontal milling cutters, lathe tooling etc;

How are you storing these items to avoid going rusty?

At the moment I am storing these items in a draw but I now have limited draw space and I am still getting light rusting, I spray everything with Lanolin but when I need to use the tools they need a bath in degreser or fuel to remove the stick film left by the lanolin. There must be an easier way to do this...
I have also got moth balls in the draws, This helps reduce rust, But only to a point.

Thanks in advance. Matt

[12teethperinch]

I live in dry Alberta Canada so I don't seem to have any issues with rust, I have heard however storing things in wooden machinist box deters rust. One thing you might try is putting in a couple of packages of desiccant, there always seem to be small packages of it in everything you get from china It says silica gel do not eat, you could also get some that is used in air dryers for compressed air.
Darrell

[Grahame Collins]

Rust control is a big problem in our Australian workshops.

Were you live plays a big part in the degree or severity of this rust from what I can work out it,local humidity, industrial fallout and proximity to the coastline are major factors.

Tried near everything that claims to stop rust and found the one thats suits me best was the 3 in 1 brand white lithuim spray.
3-in-1 Professional White Lithium Grease - 300g - Supercheap Auto (http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/online-store/products/3-in-1-Professional-White-Lithium-Grease-300g.aspx?pid=135464#details)


.It can be sprayed on a surface,say a milling cutter and remain reasonably thixotropic ( won't flow off ) yet can be easily wiped off with a rag.

It is best suited to a tool that is not stored laying down,like a drill bit in a block.

The down side is that once the tool is disturbed one must re apply the spray.It is reasonaby cheap at $6 Or $7 at most hardware outlets.

grahame

[Graziano]

I live near the beach in the tropics and I have to use o-ringed storage containers with silica gel (kitty litter crystals) for some stuff and others I store in a container and wrap the items in a rag soaked in Castrol Rustilo which works really well. Anything which leaves a wax residue will help but you can't beat a sealed container and moisture adsorbent/dessicant like silica gel as it creates a mini desert environment in the container.

Kitty litter gel is very cheap but it tends to have fake blue moisture indicator crystals that doesn't go pink when soaking wet unlike the commercial blue spherical silica gel. I try to buy the silica gel kitty litter without the blue and then add the real blue indicator gel so you will always know when it's exhausted and needs a slow bakeout in the oven. Also don't overheat the gel when baking out or it will be permanently damaged.

[Stustoys]

Do you have a heater in your shed Matt? I've seen people say that they can be a bad idea. Especially gas ones. Hot moist air looking for somewhere cool.
Have you tried just laying an oily rag over the tools in the draws? Anything that slows down air movement should help. If you still have problems maybe you need sealable plastic containers like a lunch box or something similar.

Stuart

[matthew_g]

Do you have a heater in your shed Matt? I've seen people say that they can be a bad idea. Especially gas ones. Hot moist air looking for somewhere cool.
Have you tried just laying an oily rag over the tools in the draws? Anything that slows down air movement should help. If you still have problems maybe you need sealable plastic containers like a lunch box or something similar.

Stuart

I do run a jetfire gas heater, Unfortunantly if I don't use heating I get nothing done over the winter months........YEAH YEAH I KNOW I'M A SOOK:C

I do have my smaller enmills in a plastic partition box, But my bigger stuff won't fit in one of them




I live near the beach in the tropics and I have to use o-ringed storage containers with silica gel (kitty litter crystals) for some stuff and others I store in a container and wrap the items in a rag soaked in Castrol Rustilo which works really well. Anything which leaves a wax residue will help but you can't beat a sealed container and moisture adsorbent/dessicant like silica gel as it creates a mini desert environment in the container.

Kitty litter gel is very cheap but it tends to have fake blue moisture indicator crystals that doesn't go pink when soaking wet unlike the commercial blue spherical silica gel. I try to buy the silica gel kitty litter without the blue and then add the real blue indicator gel so you will always know when it's exhausted and needs a slow bakeout in the oven. Also don't overheat the gel when baking out or it will be permanently damaged.



Do you mean the clear typ cat litter cystals?






Rust control is a big problem in our Australian workshops.

Were you live plays a big part in the degree or severity of this rust from what I can work out it,local humidity, industrial fallout and proximity to the coastline are major factors.

Tried near everything that claims to stop rust and found the one thats suits me best was the 3 in 1 brand white lithuim spray.
3-in-1 Professional White Lithium Grease - 300g - Supercheap Auto (http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/online-store/products/3-in-1-Professional-White-Lithium-Grease-300g.aspx?pid=135464#details)


.It can be sprayed on a surface,say a milling cutter and remain reasonably thixotropic ( won't flow off ) yet can be easily wiped off with a rag.

It is best suited to a tool that is not stored laying down,like a drill bit in a block.

The down side is that once the tool is disturbed one must re apply the spray.It is reasonaby cheap at $6 Or $7 at most hardware outlets.

grahame



I do use white lithium spray, But I hadn't thought of it in this scenario. Thanks for the idea
Grahame.




I live in dry Alberta Canada so I don't seem to have any issues with rust, I have heard however storing things in wooden machinist box deters rust. One thing you might try is putting in a couple of packages of desiccant, there always seem to be small packages of it in everything you get from china It says silica gel do not eat, you could also get some that is used in air dryers for compressed air.
Darrell


I don't think I have seen timber tooling cabinets in Australia, Although I am sure that now I said that every man and his dog will have one:doh:

[krisfarm]

Mathew G,
I live right on the Richmond River it is 5 metres from my back door so I have this problem as well. After trying a few different coatings I found the best approach and cheapest is to coat the parts in a liberal coating of clean automotive gear oil and wrap them in plastic with a rubber band around them ( for longer term storage) for everyday use I just oil them and store them in one of those cheap household plastic containers that you can buy at the supermarkets. I found using paper or rag wrapping just absorbed the oil and the part could still rust, stick with the plastic, no problems. You will notice that this is how all the new lathe chucks are wrapped as well. Cheap but effective.
Regards Bob

[Graziano]

Do you mean the clear typ cat litter cystals?

Yep that's the stuff, it's labelled "irregular silica gel crystals" or something similar and it doesn't have the cobalt chloride moisture indicator that turns pink when wet like the all blue spheres. I store a lot of expensive old style Fagersta WKE 45 tool steel and microelectronic components in jars with 10cm of silica gel in ther bottom of it.

[Dave J]

Hi Matt,
I spray all my tooling that will rust with 10-20% motor oil kero mix in a cheap $1 spray bottle. After spraying I put a plastic bag over the collet chucks etc and put my horizontal cutters inside plastic bags. It is cheap enough only takes a minute to do, and has proven it self over the years.
When I go to use them it only takes a quick wipe to clean it off a bit and is good for the ER collets as it leaves a light coating of oil.
All the lathe chucks rotary table and that get a spray of oil mix as well.

I am in Newcastle and around this time of year it's no uncommon to find the oil on the machinery has gone white because it has been so cold. I don't have any heating in the shed and the eaves are open so it gets a bit drafty, but it's good for ventilation when welding and that.

I keep all my collet sets etc in those little zip plastic bags in the blow mold cases they come in, and try to keep all the end mill in there wooden boxes or plastic cases that they come in as well.

Here is a picture of the tooling in one of my milling cupboards with there condoms on:U, storing them like this I don't get any rust.

Dave

http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/af26/top720/Picture1699Medium.jpg

[snowyskiesau]

As my tooling doesn't get a lot of use at the moment, I gave it a spray with Inox
So far (3 months) no rust.