Rust Hands - I'm rusting my Veritas planes

[HeathRobinson]

Hi all,

Just a couple of questions about rusting planes. I seem to remember Philly confessing to the same sort of hassles, so I know the knowledge is out there. Thing is I feel it might be slightly over the top for me to take the drastic step of becoming a wooden plane maker like Philly did to solve this :lol:

So I'm rusting my planes. My main user is a veritas low angle block plane and I use it for shooting quite a bit. It is starting to show rust exactly where my palm sits over the top of it when used on the shooting board. First question is how to fix this? I've seen the sanding blocks sold specifically for the purpose but aren't they just glorified sanding blocks with a bit of give in them? I've seen the same sort of thing sold at Halfords for car repair work. A softish block covered in an abrasive grit.

Next question is how do I keep this from happening. I am not going to wear gloves while woodworking, but given the various minor injuries I've sustained in the hobby, maybe chain mail gloves would be appropriate at times (bet I'd only rust them too). I think it's going to boil down to some sort of maintenance routine. I haven't tested it but perhaps a wipe with a bit of alcohol at the end of play (always refreshing), let dry, then coat in camellia oil as usual. I use camellia oil already but it doesn't prevent the rust from forming. Maybe I'm using it wrong. :roll:

As always, help and advice from all and sundry is much appreciated. No arguments please :mrgreen:

Simon

 

[jimi43]

Camelia Oil....after wiping with cloth...alcohol not necessary...the oils and acids in your hands will be wiped away by the oil.

Renaissance Wax is also brilliant for long term storage...museums use it...they probably know what they are doing....

Jim

 

[HeathRobinson]

Thanks for the tip about renaissance wax Jim. Otherwise what you describe is pretty much what I do already. I say pretty much because there may have been one or two instances of laziness where I've put the tools away without giving them a wipe of camellia oil but I'm quite shocked if those instances alone have lead to the rust.

 

[Philly]

Simon
Yes, I have the same issue. The Garryflex blocks are fantastic at removing the rust without leaving scratch marks on your plane - I recommend the medium grade one. They are rubber blocks impregnated with grit, so not like the foam sanding blocks you see. I have just bought my second one, so a good six years of service from the last one!!
As for stopping it from happening, I've tried using barrier cream. But it makes no difference, and gloves are not really an option as I enjoy the "hands on" thing. All you can do is be strict about wiping down and oiling your planes at the end of each and every session. Camellia doesn't really do much for rust prevention - I'm sure there must be better options on that front but at least camellia is good for your skin.
Oh, and even though my planes are wood I STILL make the irons rust :roll:
Best regards
Philly

 

[HeathRobinson]

Hah, Philly, just the man I was after. Thanks for chiming in, and so quickly too. I'm pretty certain that the camellia oil as sold to us for use on planes is not a pure camellia oil. It is blended with mineral oils too, which is why they write on the packaging not to use it in any way that brings it in contact with food. Therefore an MSDS should probably be consulted before we go ahead and declare it as good for our skin I know you were joking and I also know that vaseline and constituents of all kinds of skin moisturising products are mineral oils, but thought I ought to make it clear since I decided on camellia originally because of the user / environmentally friendly nature that the marketing types try to conjure up around it. I was a bit disappointed when I researched it and discovered it's not as friendly as it first seems. Still, it beats olive oil (virgin or second pressings?) at this job :lol:

I guess I'm destined to be a regular user of the rust removal blocks then. I'll pop one in my next woodworking shopping basket.

Thanks for the help,
Simon

Camellia doesn't really do much for rust prevention - I'm sure there must be better options on that front but at least camellia is good for your skin.
Oh, and even though my planes are wood I STILL make the irons rust :roll:
Best regards
Philly

 

[jimi43]

Camelia oil is like olive oil...there is quite a lot of rubbish out there...cut with other oil...rapeseed oil etc...and if you buy pure Camelia oil it costs quite a bit (as does pure Olive Oil).

Pure Camelia oil is wonderful for the skin...ask my missus! And I think the same applies to the use on tools...I use it all the time and no rust...and trust me...in the winter...my workshop is damp!

If I were you though...I would bring expensive tools inside in the winter...

I have to say..I don't get rust from my hands...but then most of my planes are over 100 years old when steel was steel and men were men! :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Jim

 

[HeathRobinson]

No troubles this side leaving tools outdoors in the Winter. My tools are certified couch potatoes and TV addicts. They are stored not more than 3 meters from the television :lol:

Yes, agreed about the pure camellia oil. The stuff sold for protecting planes is cut with liquid paraffin, which some may or may not know and as mentioned this is not necessarily a cause for concern since it is the main ingredient of any aqueous cream skin moisturiser. I was just dissapointed that a pure plant product wasn't used.

 

[woodbloke]

Simon, coupla things. I think Matt at WHeaven sells the pure variety of camilla oil as well as one or two other products that he and others swear by, so I think a PM in his direction might be useful. I don't suffer from the 'rusty mitts' disease that afflicts Philly and you so I can't vouch for the effectiveness of the stuff...I just use camilla oil 'ordinaire' from Axminster and that seems to do the trick for me.
I know the conditions that you store your tools in (having been round your gaff) so that storing them indoors in a warm environment is probably the very best way to ensure that they stay free of the dreaded rusticles, but exactly how you go about curing it is something I can't advise on, apart from PMing Matt - Rob

 

[jimi43]

I get my Camelia oil from Matt....it's the pure stuff right and all!

Jim

 

[Alf]

There seems to be some empirical evidence that new planes, and Veritas in particular, tend to be a bit more rust prone anyway, Simon. If that's any comfort. Anyway, 'nother vote for the Garryflex blocks (I was sceptical too, at first) and Camellia oil. Dunno if mine from Axminster is sufficiently old to be pure or not (sufficiently pricy though - to such an extent that my brother, who gave it to me as a requested Christmas present, still remarks on the cost some six or seven years later every time he sees the bottle. Mind you, he is an accountant...) but I give every tool a wipe down with it before putting it away. Every time. And I don't even suffer from the Rusty Hands Of Death. If I did, I might be tempted to give them a wipe more often even than that. I'm really inclined towards an oily cloth being your constant workbench companion, getting into the habit of using it often, and see how you go from there.

Alternatively - bronze and/or stainless steel planes?

 

[Tusses]

You could paint all your planes with hammerite

 

[promhandicam]

If it is any consolation I also suffer from rusty hands and my Veritas low angle jack suffers the most as I use it on a shooting board so hold the side. I've given up wiping my planes or any of my tools with anything as it doesn't seem to make the slightest difference - other than lightening my wallet. When the rust gets too noticeable I just manually remove it with a hermes webrax pad - I've not tried the garryflex block. Of course actually using tools helps to prevent too much rust building up on the important working surfaces. A related problem is black hands when using oak. One tip for removing this, which I think someone here suggested, is lemon juice. There seem to be two possible causes - acidic perspiration and excessively salty perspiration both of which will cause ferrous metals to rust. Both causes can be alleviated somewhat by modifying your diet.

HTH,

Steve

 

[Jack in Nepean]

I have the same problem with my Veritas planes, particularly in the hot, humid summers here. Camelia oil seems to help, but when it doesn't, the fine version of this does the trick: <http://www.leevalley.com/en/garden/page.aspx?p=10509&cat=2,42194,40727>. On a slightly different note, have any of you found your hands being stained when working with red oak?

Cheers

Jack

Edit - just noticed the previous post and find I'm not alone with black hands. Lemon juice, eh?

 

[David C]

I believe it is the uric acid exuded through the skin which causes rust, and black marks on any wood high in tannin.

Dilute Oxalic acid solution is great for cleaning up wood.

David C

 

[danielddr]

Just a quick note for some of the members who have commented on this thread.

Although it seems like a daft thing to say; if you've only just started rusting up your planes (after a lifetime of rust free working) then it may be worthwhile having a word with your doctor next time you see him.

As members have pointed out here, the composition of sweat can be influenced by diet and medication, however it is also controlled by various homeostatic mechanisms in the body, who's job it is to maintain the correct balance of things like electrolytes (sodium/potassium etc.) within the blood. A sudden change in the composition of sweat can be an indication that something is wrong with these homeostatic mechanisms. As many of the conditions that cause these imbalances can go on for many years without causing overt symptoms, something subtle, like salty skin, may be the only indication that something is awry; and like most things, these conditions are often easier to fix early on than many years later when cumulative damage has occurred.

Of course if you've always rusted things up; well that's just bl**dy annoying!

Cheers,

Daniel

 

[matthewwh]

Blimey, I'd never thought of the health monitoring benefits of new tools - it's a whole new unique selling point!

Nice one Daniel.

 

[Vann]

- it's a whole new unique selling point!

And a whole new buying strategy. "Luv, now that I'm getting on in years I need to buy a brand new Lie-Nielsen No.8, entirely for medicinal purposes of course."

Hmm... 8) :twisted:

Cheers, Vann.

 

[jimi43]

- it's a whole new unique selling point!

And a whole new buying strategy. "Luv, now that I'm getting on in years I need to buy a brand new Lie-Nielsen No.8, entirely for medicinal purposes of course."

Hmm... 8) :twisted:

Cheers, Vann.

Do you think that would work as far as a milling machine Matthew/Vann?!!!

:mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Jim