"krw" wrote in message
t...
..

Certainly not. (sorry for not gettin back sooner - packing for the
move and just finishing up at work here).

I live in Houston and rust is pretty much a nonissue unless I am
careless.

Careless? Like spill a drink, careless?

Yes that, or sweat on the iron and not wiping it off.


Yes, but in my basement (in Vermont) I could more easily control the
environment with a dehumidifier. Heat was never a problem because
the humidity in the Winter was shockingly low.

I think regardless of the humidity level, high or low, it will not be a
problem unless the temperature of the surrounding air suddenly becomes
warmer than the iron. Even with a dehumidifiier, if a glass of ice water
sweats during temperature changes, so will the iron if it is colder than the
surrounding air, and it takes very little moisture to start the rust. This
can be more of a problem in an air conditioned shop for cooling purposes if
it is suddenly exposed to an opened door letting in warm out side air.


For those times
where you might not have the perfect environment apply 3-4 heavy coats of
TopCote initially to the cast iron surfaces and buff off. Follow up with
and extra coat every 6 months or so.

This stuff??

http://www.glubie.com/01_Pages/lubricants.htm

Thats the stuff. I recomend several coats the first time to insure complete
coverage. Another product that does well are Empire products. They were
the original makers of TopCote.



I would have thought a wax, or perhaps a teflon based "wax" like the
stuff used on boat bottoms.

You want to be very careful with products that have non stick lubricants in
them such as silicone and or possibly Teflon. If this products gets on your
wood project and is undetected it can cause a lot of head aches with
finishes. Remember, nothing sticks to Teflon, including your finish.


Thanks. Now to figure out which saw. ;-)

The hard part.