Thread: Paste Wax?

Hello Lance,

Any floor wax or furniture wax that doesn't include silicon should work well for waxing the lathe bed. Waxes manufactured for automobiles often include rubbing compounds. They might just polish your bed but I would avoid these.

In the states we have "Johnson's Paste Wax" as an inexpensive wax good for many purposes. Any wax that the local bowling alley uses would be fine also.

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Marshall Gorrow
May your next turning be your best!

Thanks Marshall,
I'll keep an eye out for it.

Lance

I don't know if I am on the right track or not, if not will correct me...
But theres some goo that works great and from what I know its meant for this application. Its name is Sielberglitz (spelling??) Its like a grey silver paste.
Should be available at machinery sales stores.

Cheers



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Shane Watson..

Combine Love & Skill & You Can Expect A Masterpiece!

Gooday.

Shane, nearly right close enough.

Lance, I would not put wax of any sort on the bed of a lathe. It relies on friction to lock the tail stock on the bed.

We clean our beds down with thinners (or kerosene) and spray with WD 40 or similar and wipe off.

My 10c worth.

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Ian () Robertson
"We do good turns every day"

Wax is put on metal to make it slippery, i.e., to reduce friction. I'd say your manual recommends it so that the tailstock doesn't stick as you slide it along. I use surfboard wax on my jointer, planer and table saw and it works really well. Funny how wax designed to increase friction has exactly the opposite effect when rubbed `into' metal.

Lance,

I believe your manual is suggesting wax to reduce rusting in moist climates. I wax my lathe bed regularly and have never had the tail stock slip. When I lock it down, it stays locked until I release it. There are other more expensive rust inhibitors but the wax works just fine. WD-40 will also fill the pores in the metal and reduce rusting but it can be bad for the bearings on older lathes.

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Marshall Gorrow
May your next turning be your best!