Drying out an over-oiled honing wheel

[Mike Fairleigh]

As a new Tormek owner, I made the same mistake quite a few others have made, based on my reading.  I over-oiled the honing wheel - a lot.  Basically, my wheel does virtually nothing to improve an edge now, because it's like trying to hone with velvet.  I've tried soaking the oil out with paper towels, "scraping" it out by running against a blunt edge, etc.  It seems there's no end to the oil coming out and I'm about to declare the wheel hopeless.  Does anyone have any suggestions?

[jeffs55]

Try covering it with white rice.

[Ken S]

Mike,  how about mounting the honing wheel on a drill press or faster dry grinder.  (even a regular electric drill would work)?  Just let it run for a while and see what centrifugal force might do.  In the hope of success, watch where the oil might fly.

This seems to be a common enough user complaint that Tormek should consider placing a caution label on the honing wheel.

Keep us posted.

Ken


 

[tonylumps]

Mike 2 things that will work Pack it in Oil Dry or Cat Litter for a couple of days. Use it with Talcalm Powder than back in the Oil dry It will work if you are not in a Hurry. Or buy a new wheel and keep this packed in oil dry for awhile It will dry out

[Mike Fairleigh]

Thanks for the replies everyone.  I did pack it in rice (should have the same effect as oil-dri) so I'll give that a couple of days to see if it helps.  I'm thinking about going ahead with a new wheel though, so I can move on while I try different ways to dry out this one.  Ken, the centrifugal force idea is interesting.  I'll give that some thought.  Thanks again!

[Herman Trivilino]

I was able to get the oil out of mine by scraping it.  With the wheel spinning on the machine, press the back edge of a knife or something similar against the wheel, forcing the oil out.  Add some compound, and use the wheel as normal.

As additional oil is drawn out to the surface repeat the process.  Eventually you'll get it dried out.

[Mike Fairleigh]

Herman, thanks.  That's the approach I tried to use, but there seems to be no end to it.  I'm sure I just need to keep at it, but it's amazing how much oil can be absorbed into that thin leather.

[Black Mamba]

I've no new suggestions for you. I'm convinced that most folks probably over-oiled their wheels as well....and it's those same folks who aren't really happy with the honing they're getting. Fortunately, I oiled my wheel very sparingly and I'm really pleased with the honing action I get. When you get your issue resolved, I'm sure you'll get good results using the wheel.

Tom

[Herman Trivilino]

KSMike, keep at it.  It'll eventually dry out.  Maybe try leaving it out in the sunshine.

[Mike Fairleigh]

Well, I tried packing it in white rice in a 9" cake pan for several days...



...and while it was a great idea, in this case it didn't seem to have much effect.  Maybe Oil Dri would have worked better, as long as it was crushed beforehand.

Then I remembered that I had a Bessey strap clamp squirrelled away in a drawer, so I tried wrapping the wheel with several thicknesses of paper towels, and applied pressure using the clamp...



...and this seems to have helped somewhat.  The leather is still too saturated, but it's at the point where "scraping" with a blunt edge no longer draws any oil out and the leather makes some noise when honing (it was virtually silent before).  There might be hope for it yet. 

[Ken S]

Good job, Mike.  Hang in there and thanks for posting.  Very good photos, too.

Ken

[Herman Trivilino]

Keep using it.  Add honing compound.  More oil will come to the surface where you can scrape it off as a sludge.

Eventually it'll dry out and no more sludge will come to the suface.

(I had a feeling the rice wouldn't work.  The clamp seems like a good idea, though.)

[Mike Fairleigh]

Thanks Herman, and everyone else.

[Rhino]

From my chemistry class, I would say oil dissolves in alcohol.  So if you drip rubbing alcohol on it a little bit and remove it with a towel, hopefully enough oil would be removed with the alcohol.  The trick is not to use too much and dry out the leather.

Usual disclaimer.  I have not done this ever.  Do it at your own risk.  Start small.  Alcohol also dissolves rubber, adhesives, and may damage plastic, wax and paint so I don't want to be responsible for any damage you have or if the leather starts to come off the wheel.  It is also a fire hazard so make sure you have some fire extinguisher nearby.  Don't let the alcohol touch your stone.