I'm not sure if this is the right section to be posting this so please excuse me. I have a small(3")round steel block that has become rusted. I live in the tropics so rust is something you have to live with! Anyway, how should I clean it without scratching? I've put some WD-40 on it to take off any loose stuff. I have 000 steel wool, would that work? Any advice would be appreciated.

Hi there!

Ah yes, the joys of humidity! It drives me insane, my gorgeous little anvil started rusting less than 24 hours after I first used it!!!

Steel wool would probably only work for the tiniest amount of rust. I had a little more, so I used some wet/dry metal sandpaper that I got from my hardware store. I started with a coarser grade and then worked my way down to the finer ones, last of all I then rubbed the anvil with some 000 steel wool and soap. It left me with a lovely rust free surface  That being said I didn't have a huge amount of rust to deal with, larger amounts might require a 'hard core' approach. I now keep my little anvil wrapped in an oily rag and stored in some ziplock bags.

I'm no expert though, so if anyone has a better way, I'd love to hear it!!!

Niquita

I live where it is dry most of the year and warm well actually very hot and I sweat so I am constantly cleaning rust off of my polished tools. I use 1200 and 2000 wet/dry sandpaper and the buffing wheel on a regular basis on my bench block, anvil, dapping block and punches, hammer faces, anything that is bare metal. I try to keep a thin coating of sewing machine oil on the tools when not in use but use lighter fluid to clean  them off before use. I don't like oil on my tools when I am using them.Oil also causes a slight problem when soldering. It is a constant and on going battle with rust.

Thanks for the advice. Niquita, I wouldn't have thought of keeping it in an oily rag. That's sounds good as it was already inside a ziplock but still got some rust. Bentiron, I didn't know there was such fine (1200-1600)wet/dry sandpaper. I will get some tomorrow to finish it off. I had to start with 600 and moved on to 800. It's looking sooo much better but I'm sure I need to continue with very fine and then buff. I'm going to have to do the same with one of my hammers too. Humidity wrecks havoc here, it's the price of living in the tropics.

 I use as a bench block for many years an on the top high polished granite slap of 10 cm thicknes. One often receives such slaps for little money of a stone-cutter.

Edmund

www.emailkunst.de 

Edmund, how simple. Of course I use stone for my enameling, why not for metal working, silly me. We have a stone cutter here in the town I live in that lets us take scrap for nearly nothing and the variety is amazing! And no rust.