Replies

1. 
   Ray | Jan 24, 2009 05:58pm | #1

   wait until the wife's gone for the day, take the wood off & put it in the dishwasher ;-)

   so much for the fun, I'd start with kerosene or mineral spirits and an old toothbrush.  There is a large number of rust removers on the market, just follow the directions on the container.

2. 
   xmike | Jan 24, 2009 06:19pm | #2

   Ray,
   One of the things you have to tell folks is your goal for the tool.

   If, for example, it is to be primarily for display and/or value as an antique, you will get one set of answers.

   If, however, it is to be primarily as a "user" - i.e., a tool that you plan remove the rust and dirt and then put to work and you don't care if it loses it old paint job (called japanning if it's black, I think), then you will get another set of answers entirely. For example, taking the wood parts off and putting it in the dishwasher isn't that bad an idea if you are just wanting to clean it up and use it (in that case, follow it up with a liberal spraying of WD40 :) ). There are also rust removing solutions that you can follow up with to remove all the rust and see how much pitting you have.

   Any way, gotta know what you intend.

   Mike D