rust spots

[DanielW]

got a couple of rust spots on my lathe,is it possible to get these out? they're black/grey spots due to water must have splashed on the machined metal at some point and have left behind the black spots,not a lot but I would like to have it clean and almost pristine.

Any ideas?

Ta

 

[BrokenBiker]

if its on a bed or other machined face use a bit of autosol polish

 

[MattF]

Green nylon pan scourer and paraffin scrub.

 

[DanielW]

if its on a bed or other machined face use a bit of autosol polish

Nah man,that autosol is rubbish,brings back the rust in my opion,used it years ago to find that out.

I've tried polishing with mop and soap like you do to polish aluminium but the spots are still there,not a lot really but I do like me gear in decent clean condition.

 

[DanielW]

Green nylon pan scourer and paraffin scrub.

Oh god sir,am I supposed to go out and buy a gallon of paraffin just for that,what do I do with the rst of the parafin?

Seriously does it work and will it leave scratches? it being a scourer mind.

 

[MattF]

Those green scourers soften up practically straight away as soon as you start using them. I use them all of the time and I've never had scratching issues. If you went at it like a loon, I suppose it's possible, but just use appropriate pressure. Paraffin isn't a necessity. Any light oil, diesel etc. would serve the same purpose. It's just to give some slight lubrication and cleaning effect. When I say green scourer, btw, I am referring to those cheap things you can get in packs from pretty much anywhere, Wilko's, Aldi etc., and not the likes of Scotch-Brite pads which are far more aggressive.

 

[DanielW]

Yus,if I keep polishing with the soap and mop it will come out eventually.

Almost gone.

 

[brightspark]

green pad and sum wd40 thats all i ever use its a workhorse not a showpiece

 

[DanielW]

green pad and sum wd40 thats all i ever use its a workhorse not a showpiece

Its a workhorse now but a showpiece when I get shut.

 

[BrokenBiker]

Nah man,that autosol is rubbish,brings back the rust in my opion,used it years ago to find that out.

I've tried polishing with mop and soap like you do to polish aluminium but the spots are still there,not a lot really but I do like me gear in decent clean condition.

I have used it exclusively on my bikes and have brought up pitted stainless carb covers easily wit it and never noticed the rust coming back through.

 

[DanielW]

I know one thing which would have done it,but for the life of me cannot remember the name of the paste.

Late teens before I did my training in english electric I had a seasonal job on the IOM ferries and to cut the story short I used to have to polish a bit of the brasswork within the boundries of my area of workplace.

This was a tin of blue paste,the tin was the same size as Brasso what you get nowadays but it wasn't anything to do with brasso.
As well as polishing it removed light scratches and pitting,truly amazing stuff but the nane has been erased from mem and I'm not to sure it had 'blue' in the name? crackin stuff for brass,copper,ally and steel,dunno if its still available even?

 

[Rig Pig]

To be honest your as well to leave it alone, any material removed from a lathe bed = wear! Small pits won't have any real effect on the accuracy of the machine but if you polish them out you will finish up with a wobbly bearing face. The only things to worry about are raised lumps that need to be scraped back to a true surface.

 

[MattF]

What Rig Pig said. When you said rust, that isn't quite what I was expecting. You're being way too anal there, trying to clear those spots. Small pits, as RP suggested, won't have any effect whatsoever other than visual impact. There's keeping a tool/machine tidy and then there's just excess. That falls firmly into unnecessary excess. You can't remove pitting unless you're removing sound metal.

If you want a fine polishing compound, use toothpaste.

 

[DanielW]

Can't a man keep his tool shiny and in good order.

 

[MattF]

Nowt wrong with polishing a certain tool on occasion.