From Rust To Riches - Restoring 40 Year Old Cast Iron
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- Опубліковано 12 вер 2020
- Restoring the cast iron top of my 40+-year-old Wadkin Bursgreen table saw.
I try to get it back to its factory shine which proves to be harder than it seemed.
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I love to try to restore something old to pristine condition and I can understand what you are trying to do. The machine is old and without surface grinding will always have small scratches and imperfections. These will not affect the accurracy of the cut. I'm sure by the time you have reconditioned and painted the rest it will be a great table saw you can be proud of. Looking forward to seeing the next steps of the project.
Great job! I've polished-up numerous saw tops in my lifetime, and what you have is as good as it gets without sending the top off to have it re-ground. We re-ground one table top and one set of jointer tables at a cabinet shop I worked at, but those machines were used daily for 30 years and had noticeable wear that was affecting accuracy. A good thing to do with older machines like that is to put a quality straight edge (we used a Starrett straight edge) across it with a light behind the edge to look for excessive wear. If their is excessive wear, the best thing to do is have the iron professionally ground flat again. Minor wear can be ignored if it's not affecting the quality of the cut.
It looks amazing. You did a great job. Personally, I love these old tools. Having something that works well, and shows its age, just adds character to the tool. Imagine all the stories it could tell.
I've done exactly what you have done to my vintage table saw and understand the frustration of it not turning out the way you expected. But it is definitely better than what it was. It still gave me satisfaction to have done my best without turning to machining the surface. I still like my machine and to me it looks great!
Keep up the good work!
Jean when cleaning up the cast iron top you might find the first step could have been bypassed. You should have tried spraying wd40 on then using wet and dry sandpaper to rub it down then using inbetween the scotchpad. Also going way upto about 1000 grit would have produced a much better finish. My only other thing is you used wax was it machine wax ? If so the spraying of rust stopper was a waste of time as the machine wax is going to help stop any rust appearing.
Just remember if you use machine wax then your best reapplying it every 4 to six weeks depending on how often your using the machine plus if rust comes back...if it does best to go through it all again without whitespirits or anything like that... you mentioned that the guide rails not aligning properly!! Try cleaning the sides of the tabletop plus the rail system in the same way wd40 upto 1000grit wet and dry etc...you know the way👍.
As always 💯% 👍🇬🇧
Honestly, I'm sure that what your gonna use the saw for, it is now 400% better than before!
Well done!
Looks great, it doesn't need to be perfect Just useable 👍👍
I agree. As long as it is clean, smooth, rust free, and very, very level, that's all you need. This is going to be a working tool, not a museum piece. Can't have something so fancy you are scared to use it.
Dude... You have such an awesome work ethic. What a cool video. Thanks.
Love your channel and your attention to detail, great projects and builds. Since your an electrician im surprised you don't have lots of outlets in your shop. I'm not licensed but i put outlets everywhere to make life easier.
Hi Jean. Just found your channel and subscribed. I also have an Wadkin AGS10 which my late father a highly
skilled wood machinist bought brand new direct from Wadkin Bursgreen in 1973 to use in his garage. He was
like a kid with a new toy my mam said just recently. What a coincidence that you are refurbishing the cast iron
table. I have just done so on another machine that we bought together ten years later in 1983. Enjoyed. Tony
I have a jointer and a drill press that were purchased new but have lived 41 years in a basement environment with periodically high relative humidity. I just gave them the WD-40/scotchbrite pad treatment followed by paste wax. They look a lot better but the real difference is how smooth and slick they FEEL!
I love the results! I like a nice patina on old machines and tools. They're not brand new, no point trying to hide their heritage!
Granted I haven't used this for years but when I worked in a shop rebuilding & reselling industrial machinery we used brake fluid & a Scotch Bright pad. it used to quickly and easily remove rust, paint, glue and mystery goo.
Thanks for the tip.
Another great video! Thanks Jon!
You have high expectations cause I think it looks awesome! Nice job!
really looking good, going to be well worth it when you finish.
It looks fine. Nothing wrong with having a top that looks like it's been through a lot of wood. :)
I'm retoring a WWII-era combination table saw/jointer. I had great success using WD40 and orbital sander with 220 grit and then 400 grit. Like your top, it still has some small scratches, but it looks close to out-of-the-crate condition.
It's looking good!
I have had a Wadkin AGS 10 table saw from 1963 as my main saw for 10 years. I kept the motor, since i like 3-phase power better than single phase, but i did build a new fence for it. A replica of the Ask Woodman "Very Super Cool Tools" fence with an aluminium extrusion. That has worked out great. really didn't like the stock fence.
It is a solid saw, and i have used it practically every day since i bought it.
I just restored an ags 10 and as it had no fence did the same as you. Ask wood man's fence series is brilliant.
Looks great.
For forty year old cast iron, that looks great! Since cast iron is fairly porous, I think there's probably a little bit of oxidization down in the pores.I don't think you'd get it any shinier without a surface grinder, or maybe a _lot_ of wet sanding. I don't think it's worth the trouble. Right now it looks like a well cared for, 40-year old saw, which is just fine.
Which rust preventive spray did you use? I've tried Boeshield T9 on my saw, but I still got some rust spots. I switched back to plain old Johnson's Paste Wax, which seems to work just as well and is _much_ cheaper. It gets very humid here at night and in the winter so I still get occasional surface rust, but a light hand sanding with mineral spirits and 400 grit wet/dry paper gets it off easily.
How cool
Great Job...
don't forget to wear a respirator when sanding stuff like that!
His snot is going to be black for the next day xD
ReferenceThisObject...We call them ‘Industrial Bogies!’
Looking good Jean. Keep it up. You have way more patience than I do.
I think the top looks really good for it's age. The only way to make it look like new would be to spend a bunch of money to get it reground but as long as it's flat I don't see it causing the cuts to be to off. You can check it's flatness with a good straight edge and some feeler gauges.
You did a great job on the top. That is as good as it gets unless you have it machined. I restored a Delta Unisaw that was made in about 1960 to 1962. I use Johnsons paste wax on the top to protect it from rust and allow material to glide across the top.
I have the same little sander, it helps to put the cord end of the paper in first then do the front. It gives you quite a bit more room to work without the hand hold and cord on the way.
I think it looks amazing compared to how it looked before.
Turn all three boards on a flat surface and connect them, so you will have a perfectly aligned
That looks amazing for its age, don't sell your work short
You can also use Mr Min on the top, works for rust and makes the surface vary smooth. Use it on my table saw every time.
I just spoke with This Old Tony. He suggested soaking the tops in a mixture of vinegar and milk to soften the metal tops. He also suggest that you can harden it with. Nou kan ek nie meet onthou wat hy gese het nie.
The results may not be what you expected but for an old machine I think it looks great.
You should always start with the DA on the surface and lift it off before turning it off. When you start it in the air it just spins in a single circle (like a grinder) rather than taking advantage of the dual action which randomizes the scratch marks. You can see what happens when he starts off the surface at 5:44. Not such a big deal on a cast iron table top but do that on wood or paint and you can get a pretty significant "smile" in the surface. Similarly, when you stop on the surface, you can get some ugly scratches as the torque winds down. Remember - start on, stop off.
For the sake of flatness, you could get an offcut of granite countertop, stick some 220 paper to it with spray adhesive and sand it flat. The weight will help. You would even get a reasonable result if you just use the 2nd piece as a sanding block, and vice-versa.
I was able to polish my saw with 600, 800 then 1000 grit wet/dry sand paper using WD40 which creates a slurry. It completely smoothes and polished rhe table top. Stumpu Nubs has a video on it
Thanks!
in old machines like this, the scratches and pitting (as long as it doesn't interfere with function) add a personality that would be a shame to get rid of, my opinion
The reason your sandpaper didn't last long isn't because cast iron is hard. Well, compared to the human head it is but compared to even the softest steel it is very soft against cutting tools. Cast iron is also very dirty and abrasive as it is worked and dulls tools/sandpaper quickly. I've cleaned up some cast iron tools and think you did all you could without machining the top. Factory saw tops are not especially finely finished; no where near the 1000 grit I saw referenced in another comment. A slight texture like the 220 grit you used will provide less drag than a surface so slick that the material tried to develop a suction to it. I recently purchased an older one-owner cabinet saw that had been treated with Boeshield T-9 with paste wax over the Boeshield since new. It still has that new look after many years of Texas Gulf Coast heat and humidity near a salt water bay.
Hey David. Imagine the odds of running across another Texan with an interest in Aussie woodworkers. L0L. I’m in Houston and even this far from the actual coast I have a lot of rust attacks.
Wow looks almost brand new to me
If I heard correctly you only sanded up to 220? I went through the grits to 1000 when I restored my saw and it came out very bright, I think this is why you were let down.
Jean, ever the perfectionist! Great job in my opinion. I'm no expert, but perhaps going up in grit might have given you a slightly "brighter" finish.. As it was, in certain angles, I saw some definitive reflections in the top so I'm saying "damn fine job" bud! Looking forward to seeing more content but in your time! Blessings and regards, Mark (Jhb)
You should also wax the top with something like a bowling alley wax this makes the stuff you cut slide much better and protects the top to
I use regular old paste wax (Minwax or similar). Let it dry thoroughly and then polish. Makes using the saw so pleasing as well! Everything glides so nicely on it!
Scrapping with a razer blade, the. Buff with steel wool
Also worth noting that some of those older saws would have had their top oiled...to try to manage the rust...and that would have darkened the steel...permanently.
Patience and expectations. Cast iron is extremely hard. It takes time to get the shine. You really do have to take material off.
In terms of polishing, consider a rotary polisher with a fast cutting compound. Much more aggressive than the short orbit one you used.
Can't wait to see the rest. Nice work.
Hello, I think the easiest way to get a perfect surface, would be to pour on a thickness of 3 or 4 mm of epoxy that would fill the imperfections and give a perfect glide and a very good protection of the surface..
I don't know what sort of epoxy you use, but even at it's best, it's much more sticky than cast iron.
I "restored" a scheppach hm2 using wet sandpaper 800 grit glued on a piece of MDF 40x30cm. I sanded for hours and hours.. :) No cast iron though .. i think. But a lot thicker than thin sheet metal of today.
I wonder if a wire wheel on an angle grinder might have made a difference as a first step. The wires might get into the pits too.
Not a bad idea. Not too late to try either.
I have the same model, that i'm restoring. I just got 400v install so i can keep the motor. Will you come with a video on how make dust collection? And thanks for super nice UA-cam channel I like all your videos
i need everyones opinion on this. my dad has an old saw as well. its powerful and has the side thing for bigger sheets to be able to push it but definitely needs to be restored so i can trust it. one big issue is it has no miter track. im guessing because of the side thingy(dont know what to call it) , it acts like a miter gauge and doesnt need a niter track. however, i wanted to know, is it possible to take the tops and have miter tracks somehow routed into the cast iron?
The saw top looks great for its age, and plenty smooth for woodworking. FYI, you could have spent 4 hours sanding in one spot to remove much more that 1/1000th of an inch.
Better looking than mine. 🙂
1st. I love your channel.
I think that it looks better than my cast iron top for Grizzly did when it was new 30 years ago.
You're being hard on yourself. That table looks, as my friend would say, "fucking mooi" to me. Great job!
I would have used the WD-40 with the sand paper as well to extend the life of it and go all the way to 400 on the orbital then 600 by hand with nice straight strokes the full length of the table. But like I said...mooi.
What kind of polish cover did you use
You got some good results there.
But are you going to keep the ancient green color on the sides and on the main body?
I'm blasting it off and re-painting the entire saw.
A monthly coating of paste wax would be better, particularly for the timber as it won't mark or stain it
I wonder if you could find an oldtime car body restorer who could Lead fill the divots?
My brand new top doesn't shine any more than that - it makes no difference to the wood after all. Looking forward to the build...
Using wd40 as lubrican for the sandpaper, start at 80 grit, works magics
Any further thought on the colour?
I'm getting there. Busy messing around with ideas by editing an image of the saw.
Woodshop Junkies you took my suggestion off the back of last video then! 😉 awesome! I was going to offer to photoshop for you. Sounds like you have it in hand though! 👍🏼
Thanks. My brother is a designer. He's handling it for me.
You spent hours doin fuck all , and got vibration white finger to show for it lol , love it
I'm sure you've heard this but I would use a belt sander
Your way to picky! That top looks great and it’s all about performance and not bling.
Very true.
Gebruik 'n gewone olie slyp steen en parefin om die high spots van die blad af te kry asook om die roes kleur af te skuur.
Why not have it sandblasted with a very fine grit then go through the process that you’ve done....still looks good, thanks for the vid
Smashing it! Good content. I'm hoping you'll our content also 🎥🕹
Sorry Jean. I do very much enjoy your channel . LOL
Try buffing it with cooking tin foil
West breathing protection ffs please?!
I don't understand why people are bothered by scratches. That's what happens when you use tools. It's not gonna change the functionality of the tool.
Thats what cast iron looks like. Its not steel. Its more grey and less silver.
Not so good the video! You don't do anything for minutes, you just stand and talk. We are not interested in that.
Feels bad man
Yet you still comment on all his videos and watch them, so u must like it.
When he does that, he explains his thought process and keeps you updated on every step. Those of us who enjoy his channel appreciate it
“We”? You don’t speak for me or anyone else watching this video. Not so good your comment uh “Kiss”. L0L. You could always take the time of mine I wasted reading your comment and don’t do anything when you think about criticizing those who do.