Cleaning an Old Woodie

[lilrichard2]

I asked in another forum for techniques for cleaning old wooden planes and received a number of good ideas. The procedure that I chose was based on what I had on hand, that being mineral spirits and 0000 steel wool. I used this to scrub the old plane, let it dry, then repeat the procedure. Admittedly, I was surprised to see the amount of dirt and grime removed during the second scrubbing. Finally, I gave it a good application of Johnson's paste wax (still using out of the can that I purchased in 1986).

Here's the before and after pictures:

















Needless to say, I'm well pleased.


r2

[Admiral]

Very nice. I've used the same technique, tried and true, cleans just enough so that you don't modify the tool. I do tend to use Scotchbrite-type synthetic pads however, no metal swarf debris from steel wool although the result is the same; my choice might be influenced by having scored a case of perhaps 1k of assorted pads about 5 years ago for $10 . . . drive by gloat I guess, eh?

[lilrichard2]

Looks like we're doing the same thing - using whatever we have available.


r2

[C. in Indy]

That is good work! Makes me want to re-think a bunch of Antique Mall pieces that I've passed by. Nice to know they don't need sanding/scraping down to bare wood.

[JimReed@Tallahassee]

Great work. Thanks for the pictures.