Removing rust from a drill press column on a lathe

I have had success on a mill table with vinegar, abrasive pads and elbow grease. You may want to keep the rust damp by wrapping with vinegar dampened shop towels then plastic scrubbing pads.
 
jmarkwolf said:
1. Is it ill advised to slow-turn a drill press column on a lathe for purposes of removing rust and polishing?
Click to expand...

I'd think of that as 'making a mess' and would keep it outdoors. So, the column might get clamped to sawhorses, and a wire-wheel applied, and (if I was especially concerned) maybe wrap a rope around
it, paint on some metal polish, and do a hard burnish by working the rope back and forth...
the rope gets black and the metal gets shiny.

On clean metal, either a linseed oil or good wax coating might be appropriate. Neither is great
for friction, though, and they are usually temporary (but in a dry shop, that's maybe good enough).
 
Double oo steel wool and light oil. Once the rust is off, clean off the oil and use paste wax. Lasts a few years.. Method I have used.
 
If you involve any chemical that is acidic, remember that the surface is open to re-rusting precursors within seconds of it seeing air. It will go orange before your eyes. Kill it immediately by wetting it with something alkaline before it dries. Soap, washing soda, anything. Better if it is hot.

Then, protect it. Oil it. Wax it. There are lots of ways. The big pity is to let it start rusting right away, after all that effort to clean it up.
 
Why bother. It's just going to rust again. But if you just have to do it, use an oil and some fine grit sandpaper (use an old belt sander belt cut at the seam). Wrap it around the column and pull the ends back and forth as you progress around the column. Just remember how you did this, because next year you'll be doing it again.
 
OP here with an update:

Below are the "before, during and after" pics of derusting the column by dipping it in a PVC tube filled with Evaporust.

The rust was actually worse than the pic. I had never cleaned a drill press column before and was reluctant to use any abrasive for fear of removing too much material. So I opted for the Evaporust.

I had to add a unistrut "extension" to my cherry picker to gain the height to dangle the 5 foot column over the nearly 4 foot PVC tube, below a 10 foot ceiling. The column weighs about a hundred pounds so no danger of a tip over.

I had cemented a cap on the bottom end of the PVC to contain Evaporust, but I used the bucket to contain any possible leaks. Luckily there were none. I let it sit in the soup for 24 hours.

I was pleasantly surprised that all the rust had been cleanly removed, leaving only some "cloudy" areas where the rust had been. This was beautifully polished with some WD40 and Scotchbrite. Looks like new now (sorry didn't take a pic).

I've got another drill press I think I'll do the same with.

Wilton_drill_press_column1.jpgWilton_drill_press_column2.jpgWilton_drill_press_column3.jpg
 
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Occasional application of oil and/or WD40. Might try the application of wax as some have suggested.

My shop is heated and cooled, so it shouldn't be too difficult to keep up with.
 
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