Thread: Silver Glide

I live about 200km from the ocean so surface rust is not a big problem. But I do use Silvergleat. I sand off any deposits of rust then apply with steel wool. For some reason I do it at the end of the day and leave the excess till the morning to wipe off. I have been using it so long now I only "top up" a couple of times ayear but in your case more regularly would give better protection.
Can you give us a progress report now and then so we can see how effective it is in your hostile environment

Chambezio
Thank you for your reply. I think I will wipe off the excess on a section of the saw & see how it goes . If it goes off , then I will leave excess on between saw use. I will post again in 2-3 months on the outcome.
Thanks again
pker

Mr Pker,
My SCM Panel Saw has both cast iron and alloy on its top. When I am Sliverglieting the alloy gets a wipe as well. The salt where you are would have a go at the alloy as well as the steel. Don't stop with the horzontal surfaces, give the faces of fences a go as well.
I think the philosophy is....."little and often"
Please do report back. Your findings ,no doubt, will benefit others.

One morning this winter I had a heavy film of moisture on everything in the shed. It was just one of those mornings that the conditions were such that you would have sworn it was aheavy dew on everything. So being inland doesn't stop the surface rust

Hi Pker,
I swear by this Stuff.
I recently cleaned down the Table Saw at Our Mens Shed with a bit of well used 400G. Paper. Wiped it with a cloth to get all the Rust Dust off, & I just used my fingers to put the S/G on.
It appears that you are using far to much of th S/G, as you should not have to wipe it down.
The Men at Our Shed wondered what had happened to the Saw, because the Wood went through so easily.
You can also put a LITTLE BIT on the Blade, of course when it is stationary.
For the Older People, I say find 2 others who would like some S/G, & share it between the 3 of you, as it will last for a very long time.

I take the Banjo & Tail Stock from the Lathe Bed, clean down the bed, as above, & SMEAR the S/G on, under & the side of the Bed, Then clean down the other 2, & you would think they had Bearings attached somehow.
Well that is Experience with Silbien Gliet ( Silver Glide ).

I use a small rag folded over into a small pillow shape, scrape a bit out of the tin, and wipe all over the steel faces of my table saw, thicknesser, bandsaw, and lathe. i rub fimly, and so don't leave much at all behind, unless I don't plan on using the tools for a while (in which case I smear just a tiny bit thicker and clean before use the next time). Never had a rust issue at all. I store the rag in a sealable plastic bag along with the Silver Glide.

I doubt I'll be buying any more for the next 10 years or so. That stuff lasts ages.....

(I do find however that it settles, and needs mixing before use. I just use a small stick to mix it up, then wipe the rag on the stick to get all the good stuff off, and wipe onto the machines - don't waste a bit).

As I said in my last post , I cleaned the saw table top & applied Silver Glide . I then cleaned off the excess on one quarter of the top (15/12/12) . This afternoon I went out to the shed & using a white cloth over a finger , wiped the table a few times on the section that I had cleaned off last weekend. This is shown in the photo. I will leave excess on between use & keep you posted on the outcome.
Once again thank you for your information & tips.
pker

saw table rust.jpgIt does help to insert the photo.
pker

Well, last weekend 13/1/13 I needed to use the saw, so cleaned off excess Silver Glide with results shown in pic.
Looks like I will have to apply weekly. Good excuse to use the saw I suppose. Silver Glide was applied 21/12/12.

pkersaw table rust 001.jpg

My experience is that SG is not good as a rust inhibitor, but works great at making the tables slippery. I have put it on my tablesaw when finished with it, and when I come back to it in a week or two, find there is a very, very fine layer of surface rust on the table.
I think I will apply a rust inhibitor between uses, then remove it and apply SG when I am about to use it again.
I am only about 2 kilometres from the sea, and rust is always a problem if care is not taken to protect surfaces when they are not going to be used for at least a week.

Treecycle,
It looks like we both have the same problem. Maybe the use of a wax between use.
Thanks for your input.
pker

I know it has been awhile since my last post,but I have tried a multitude of lubes without success. So I decided to make a cover out of 6mm masonite to go over the saw top which could be used as a bench when not using the saw.
I used an old bit of pine ripped into 20 by 20 for edging to locate the masonite on the saw top.The underside of the masonite was then sealed with a couple of coats of clear poly.
The problem the next day when I took the cover off was the saw top was covered with condensation. So the next step was drilling holes in the masonite (should have used pegboard in the first place ) & then cut and glued an old towel on the underside.
I then sprayed G15 on the tabletop. As the pics show there is no rust after 5 weeks. I thank fellow forum members for suggesting covering with blanket ( towel in my case )
Hoping this helps others
pker tablesaw rust prevention 009.jpgtablesaw rust prevention 011.jpgtablesaw rust prevention 012.jpg

Very good solution. I hope it continues to serve you well.
I like to cover my machines, even if it is only part of an old sheet.

I use Silver Glide but I have found that a Blanket over the top seems to keep any condensation off. I have also lined and insulated my tin garage which probably helps a lot.

I have had excellent results from using Silver Glide (Silber Gleit) on all of my cast iron surfaces in the workshop (Table Saw, Band Saw, Router Table, Lathe Bed, and Hand Planes. I live 100 km away from the ocean in SE Queensland, but any exposed cast iron or unpainted steel will rust before your eyes during our very humid summer months, and during our foggy morning winter months.

When I first bought Silver Glide, I had no success at all with it. Unfortunately, the tins sold in Australia have only very brief instructions included on them.

So I sought out the manufacturer's web site. It's in German, so unless you are a German speaker, you need to use Google Translate, so I've included links to both the untranslated and translated web site:

Manufacturer's Web Site (in German): Silbergleit - das Trockengleitmittel für die Holzbearbeitung

Manufacturer's Web Site (Translated to pseudo English): https://translate.google.com/transla...%2F&edit-text=

The product's Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) in English is available at:
http://www.silbergleit.de/app/downlo...+engl+2013.pdf (but as expected only addresses safety aspects of the product, and does not address how to use the product.)

Late last year I emailed the manufacturer describing the problems I was having with Silver Glide and sent them some photos. They provided a very useful and detailed response in good English (that I'm still trying to find in my disorganised email archives - sorry....).

In essence, their response was that:

1. The surface being treated must be cleaned and degreased first, before re-treating with Silver Glide. You need to remove the used Silver Glide before applying new.
   
   (I clean with Diggers White Spirits or Diggers Dry Cleaning Fluid - which ever I have on hand. I don't use Diggers Mineral Turpentine as the surface feels slightly oily afterwards, and the manufacturer's suggestions specified that the surface should be degreased before Silver Glide. I also don't use Metholated Spirits to clean (even though it does lift old Silver Glide really easily) because Metho evaporates to quickly and can cause condensation to form on the cast iron surfaces in humid weather conditions.)
   
2. Apply Silver Glide sparingly with a soft rag. Allow to dry for a few minutes, and then buff lightly. Avoid getting it on your skin, and if you do get the wet Silver Glide it on your skin, follow the instructions in the MSDS and wash it off with soap and water ASAP.
   
3. For friction reduction, retreat the surface when you can visibly see the coating has begun to deteriorate. The anecdotal information I was given was that factories using Silver Glide on production machinery re-treat the cast iron surfaces every day or so. So they put fair bit of timber across the surfaces between re-treatments. They also said that the factories also re-treat prior to a weekend or holiday period to prevent corrosion during the holiday break.

I usually re-treat with silver glide every two or three days, if I am using the machine every day. I also re-treat prior to any period of time where the machine is not likely to be used for more than a few days. I re-treat my Hand Planes before putting them away after ever use

Due to condensation problems in my shed, I also cover all of my machinery with cheap plastic woven "tarps" that I get from the local True Value Hardware. They're cheap, and they're water proof.

Also, I've heard some people on this forum say that they cover their machinery with "old bed sheets" and similar materials. Be cautious - if you use any material that absorbs water, or that "draws the damp" in humid weather, you will likely get rust forming under the damp covering.

Hope that information helps. If I can find that original email from the Silver Glide manufacturer, I'll post it.

Regards,

Roy