# Paste wax vs. Car wax



## TS3660 (Mar 4, 2008)

Is there a difference? Everyone says to use paste wax on cast iron machine tables but all I have at the moment is car wax. Turtle wax to be specific. Will this work?


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## preacherman (Nov 29, 2011)

Car wax will work. Some car waxes have silicone in them which can cause problems finishing wood, I have been told.
I used turtle wax on my saw simply because I did not have anything else. I made it slick and has keep it clean. So far no problems.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

You can use the turtle wax on your equipment. I think it's too thin to give you the benefits the paste wax would give.


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## sawdustfactory (Jan 30, 2011)

I've used turtle wax on all the cast iron parts of my tools for years w/o problems.


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## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

When I bought my saw years ago, and it came with a thick "grease" coating, I called the manufacturer, and they said to clean the coating off with wd40, and then wax it. All I had at the time was car wax, so I used that. Then next time it got cold at night and then humid the next day, my top had a surface of rust..... I then did more research to find that this paste wax made for wood was a better product, and lasts a long time.... I usually only have to coat my saw once a year. I have used that since then, and have had no rust issues.

With that being said, it has been pointed out many times that using wax on your surfaces could create some finishing problems later on down the line. this product is used by alot of guys on here, and I am thinking about making the switch as well.

hope this helps.


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## cocheseuga (Dec 15, 2010)

I don't even use Turtle Wax on my car. Go with the Johnsons.


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## TomC (Oct 27, 2008)

Go with paste wax. You can get Johnson's at Lowes.
Tom


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## HowardAcheson (Nov 25, 2011)

Many paste waxes intended for cars contain water to soften the wax and make it easier to spread. They also contain silicone. Neither of which is good for cast iron. Furniture paste waxes do not contain water or silicone. Silicone particularly can and will cause problems when finishing or refinishing furniture. It will cause "fish eyes".

Most wood workers keep silicone far away from wood that will be finished.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

TS3660 said:


> Is there a difference? Everyone says to use paste wax on cast iron machine tables but all I have at the moment is car wax. Turtle wax to be specific. Will this work?


Considering what wax does, and/or the purpose of it, why subject your wood to it.









 







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## Wrangler02 (Apr 15, 2011)

Anyone who has done much auto refinishing will tell you not to use any silicone products around your car. It will cause fish-eyes in a new paint job. I always look for "Does not contain Silicone". Interesting there is a fish-eye additive for automotive paint - it's silicone based!!


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

Wrangler said:


> Anyone who has done much auto refinishing will tell you not to use any silicone products around your car. It will cause fish-eyes in a new paint job. I always look for "Does not contain Silicone". Interesting there is a fish-eye additive for automotive paint - it's silicone based!!


Silicone is also in aerosol furniture polishes. Often when you refinish an antique there has been so much silicone soaked into the piece there is a great deal of problem finishing it back. Sometimes I have to put two or three coats of sealer with the fisheye control solvent in my finish before I can come close to normal finishing.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Steve Neul said:


> Silicone is also in aerosol furniture polishes. Often when you refinish an antique there has been so much silicone soaked into the piece there is a great deal of problem finishing it back. Sometimes I have to put two or three coats of sealer with the fisheye control solvent in my finish before I can come close to normal finishing.


Once you use that stuff "Fisheye Remover", your equipment and the area becomes contaminated, and can be impossible to eradicate it.








 







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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

cabinetman said:


> Once you use that stuff "Fisheye Remover", your equipment and the area becomes contaminated, and can be impossible to eradicate it.
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I know all about fisheye control solvent. I'm a furniture refinisher. I only use it in a spray booth in front of an exhaust fan. Silicone doesn't take long to wear off machinery anyway. I went to work for a company one time that was using silicone spray lubricant on all their saws. Of course it was driving finishing department crazy but they didn't know where it was coming from. I got them to quit using the spray lubricant and within a couple of days the fisheye problem was solved.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Steve Neul said:


> I know all about fisheye control solvent. I'm a furniture refinisher. I only use it in a spray booth in front of an exhaust fan. Silicone doesn't take long to wear off machinery anyway. I went to work for a company one time that was using silicone spray lubricant on all their saws. Of course it was driving finishing department crazy but they didn't know where it was coming from. I got them to quit using the spray lubricant and within a couple of days the fisheye problem was solved.


Hard to believe. It will contaminate the gun, and land on anything everywhere. Flushing out the gun with lacquer thinner or acetone can prove fruitless. It gets into areas like a night time robber. That's its job. Isolating it to a spray booth would be a stroke of luck. And in the mean time you have a contaminated spray booth. Silicone doesn't dry and go away in "a coupe of days". 










 







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## TS3660 (Mar 4, 2008)

Thanks guys. I guess I'll get some Johnson's.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

cabinetman said:


> Hard to believe. It will contaminate the gun, and land on anything everywhere. Flushing out the gun with lacquer thinner or acetone can prove fruitless. It gets into areas like a night time robber. That's its job. Isolating it to a spray booth would be a stroke of luck. And in the mean time you have a contaminated spray booth. Silicone doesn't dry and go away in "a coupe of days".
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I don't see it as much of a threat. I've been using the fisheye control solvent for years. Enough washes out of the gun to prevent contamination to the point where it causes fisheye. I use the same gun going back and forth between an antique and a new cabinet. I sometimes have a new cabinet in the spray booth at the same time when I'm spraying an antique. The sanding pads are a problem. I have to spray the back side of the pad with the silicone with red paint to keep from getting them mixed up. Other than that I've never contaminated another piece with silicone.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Steve Neul said:


> I don't see it as much of a threat. I've been using the fisheye control solvent for years. Enough washes out of the gun to prevent contamination to the point where it causes fisheye. I use the same gun going back and forth between an antique and a new cabinet. I sometimes have a new cabinet in the spray booth at the same time when I'm spraying an antique. The sanding pads are a problem. I have to spray the back side of the pad with the silicone with red paint to keep from getting them mixed up. Other than that I've never contaminated another piece with silicone.


You don't see it as a threat because you continue to use it. Once you start you have to continue.








 







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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

cabinetman said:


> You don't see it as a threat because you continue to use it. Once you start you have to continue.
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It's not a threat because nothing in my shop is contaminating new work with silicone. It takes more that a slight trace of silicone to cause fisheye. Even though I'm not refinishing antiques anymore on a regular basis, I still do some from time to time. I still don't see a contamination problem using the product occasionally. Some of the antique furniture I refinish has so much silicone on it that the remover fisheyes. I couldn't refinish this furniture without the fisheye control solvent. If it were flat and smooth without carvings I could get a lot of it off with a wax and grease remover, it's just a lot simpler to use the fisheye control solvent.


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

Maybe I missed it so I'll ask, Does Johnson's Wax have silicone in it? I went to their website and I couldn't find anywhere that mentioned silicone but there was an ingredient that might have been, "something christallina" ?

What about WD-40, is there silicone in that? If there is silicone in duct tape then I'm really up a creek.

I've had some fish eye problems in the past which is most likely attributable to some sort of wax, but I use only J-wax now but if it has silicone in it I'll stop using it. I used to spray lacquer on many of the cabinets I'd build. Every once in awhile the fish eye would appear. The nice thing about lacquer is it is about as easy to remove when it's fresh as it is to apply. Mostly lately I've been wipe on finishes and I never have a fish eye problem with those.

Bret


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## Wrangler02 (Apr 15, 2011)

Bret,

Any wax or oil can cause fish eyes. Wax and oil are a little easier to remove.


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## HowardAcheson (Nov 25, 2011)

>>>> Does Johnson's Wax have silicone in it?

No. Almost all paste waxes that contain a reference to use on furniture are silicone free. Johnson, TreWax, Minwax, Renaissance Wax are some who are silicone free.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

Neither Johnson Paste Wax or WD-40 contain silicone. Most any chemical can have a adverse reaction to finishes. When I use paste wax, WD-40 or any other oil on my machinery, I wipe the excess off with a clean dry cloth before I use them.


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