Table marking wood

[rash_powder]

I’m working a rather complicated (for me) project and with all the spinning and twirling the wood has rubbed the table of my saw so much it is leaving aluminum stain on the wood.  I am sure I can sand this away when done but it is going to be tough with all the fretwork.  
 

would wax prevent this?  I thought about putting that clear sticky shelf paper on the table but I’m afraid it will start lifting off in short order.  
 

Any tricks??

[Jim McDonald]

Absolutely clean and wax that table. It will put a barrier between the table and the wood. Use Johnson paste wax. It will not interfere with your finishes like anything with silicone will.

 

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

Wax will help. I use Johnson paste wax. You can always put a piece of plexiglass on it as i did with my 2 RBI saws. It made the top a little larger too. On my Hegner I used a piece of 1/8" BB

[tomsteve]

11 hours ago, Jim McDonald said:

Absolutely clean and wax that table. It will put a barrier between the table and the wood. Use Johnson paste wax. It will not interfere with your finishes like anything with silicone will.

 

the clean part is important. mineral spirits,lacquer thinner, or acetone work great for cleaning the table

[OCtoolguy]

How about putting a piece of that slick cutting mat down on the table with some spray adhesive? My wife has some that is very thin and has a "teflon" feel to it. She bought it at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Easy to cut to shape of table and can be changed out easily with mineral spirits. Just an idea.

[SCROLLSAW703]

Not to crash yer party boss, but, always do yer finish sandin afore any saw work starts, always.

Next, my best advice is get all yer saw work done before any stainin starts. Especially if'n yer saw deck is aluminium. Cast Iron saw decks can usually go unharmed. 

Apparently, it sounds like you've already tracked stain onto yer deck. From here, were I in yer boots, I'd invest in some trip!e 000 steel wool, & if'n it ain't already in yer shop, fetch a can of Johnson's paste wax. Get to workin' that triple 000 over yer sawdeck. Yes Sir, it's gonna put a polished look on yer aluminium, but it'll get that stain off'n that deck, as well. Careful not to rub to hard in one place because it may pit yer deck.

After you've shined that deck up, & all the stain is gone, wax it with a good heavy coat of Johnson's paste wax. Let it dry, buff it off & you're ready to make sawdust!

 

Edited December 29, 2019 by SCROLLSAW703

[rash_powder]

SCROLLSAW703,

Not stain like wood stain, stain like when you rub something aluminum on yourself and you turn black.  My project was sanded, but I've to do something now to get the aluminum black off it.  

octoolguy,

That is a great idea!  Our Bed, Bath, Beyond is closing and has been liquidating for about a month.  Do you know what was the product name?  Did you use permanent spray or temporary?  Does it lift any?  Sorry for all the questions.  I absolutely never thought it would do this.  

tomsteve

So any painting/staining solvent is ok?  I've never had to clean un-finished aluminum.  The motorcycle and auto's have a clear coat of some sort.  

 

Thanks all!

[OCtoolguy]

3 minutes ago, rash_powder said:

SCROLLSAW703,

Not stain like wood stain, stain like when you rub something aluminum on yourself and you turn black.  My project was sanded, but I've to do something now to get the aluminum black off it.  

octoolguy,

That is a great idea!  Our Bed, Bath, Beyond is closing and has been liquidating for about a month.  Do you know what was the product name?  Did you use permanent spray or temporary?  Does it lift any?  Sorry for all the questions.  I absolutely never thought it would do this.  

tomsteve

So any painting/staining solvent is ok?  I've never had to clean un-finished aluminum.  The motorcycle and auto's have a clear coat of some sort.  

 

Thanks all!

I'm sorry that I cannot supply a brand name. This was just an off the cuff idea. I'm sure that any of those cutting mats would work. As for adhesive, I'd probably use the same stuff we use for our patterns. The other benefit will be a zero clearance hole where the blade goes through. For those of us who have saws with a steel table, the idea that Jim came up with a while back about using the thin magnetic material as a table covering is still something that I want to try. So far the paint finish on my EX hasn't gone away. I just keep it waxed after almost every cutting session. I'm going to get some of this cutting mat for my Hawk. So far, I've not used it enough for any of the aluminum to have rubbed off. I'm sure it would sooner or later but I did buff it out and wax it when I first brought it home after it sat in a garage for almost 20 years.

 

[JimErn]

Ray @octoolguy was mentioning my magnetic overlay, it works, it is super slippery and even if it does not "stick" to your table, just use double side tape to secure it.

[kmmcrafts]

I've never had this problem with my Aluminum tables of my Hawk saws.. But I do wax them often.. Maybe that is why? But I did have a similar issue with my DeWalt which had a steel table.. I never really figured out where the stuff was coming from.. maybe wood sap? I always kept the table waxed good on it too so not sure why it did it.. 

As others have said.. a good cleaning and a fresh coat of wax.. and the issue went away on the DeWalt... but.. I had to do it quite often.. maybe every 10 days or so... otherwise it'd come back.. finally took time to clean it really well.. I ended up using brake cleaner from the parts store.. several shots of it and scrubbing the table top revealed I had something on the table.. not sure what it was... maybe wax build up, LOL.. no idea what.. but a good cleaning and waxing and finally the issue was permanently gone... So I believe the good cleaning part is a must.. 

Careful if you use the brake cleaner.. it will eat off paint and melt plastic stuff.. I suggest spraying it into a paper towel and then wiping down the table rather than spraying the table and having the over spray getting on the saw body or other parts... Mineral spirits may be all that's needed.. I used brake clean as that was all I had on hand.. rubbing alcohol wouldn't touch it.. which is the other thing I had and tried.. Something else that works well to remove grime is WD-40.. but I'm not too sure about the use of that with a woodworking tool.. may affect the finish of wood etc ? 

Best of luck with it..      

[OCtoolguy]

1 hour ago, JimErn said:

Ray @octoolguy was mentioning my magnetic overlay, it works, it is super slippery and even if it does not "stick" to your table, just use double side tape to secure it.

I'm gonna do that to mine someday. Right now, I've got other priorities for my $$$.

[jollyred]

For years I had a piece of tempered hardboard on my Delta saw.  I kept it waxed and actually liked to work on it better than the saw's table top.  Seemed to be somewhat slicker.  I plan on putting one on my DeWalt at some point.  I made a small tempered hardboard (from a clip board) to use as a small (not zero) clearance plate for doing delicate projects.  It seems to stay slick for a long time with a coat of wax.  It is held in place with magnets and does not move one iota.

Tom