Cleaning/servicing an Ellis 9400 drill press

[Shawnco999]

Picked up a 2016 Ellis 9400 drill press for a great deal from a structural fab shop. It’s got a bunch of rust and “gunk” on it, see pictures. What’s safe to apply to restore it to it’s original clean state? Simple Green? Steel wool?

Thanks,
Shawn in Colorado

[farmersammm]

Some of that stuff might be plated, so it's not going to come back to "factory" finish, but it really doesn't matter. Best thing I've ever used is a brass cup brush on a die grinder. Eliminates a ton of elbow grease. https://www.rshughes.com/p/Weiler-Br...er%20-%2014314

[farmersammm]

Are Dip Buyers
Growing Tired?

While this isn't scientific by any means, I've noticed stocks in the Fund are increasingly showing relatively low volume following a pullback. The bounce isn't as good as it used to be.

The Russell seems to have broken out from its YTD support levels. The last selloff wasn't as steep. This remains to be seen though. One event doesn't a trend make

You can also see that the resistance level seems to be decreasing. They're not buying the recovery as well as earlier in the year.

Are we seeing Mean Reversion...............stocks returning to a more stable state, closer to historical valuations. Or, are we seeing investor fatigue. You can only take so many beat downs before you pack up your marbles, and go elsewhere.

It's said that the retail trade is running around 25ish% of total market order flows. That's quite a bit of money, if the stats are right. I can't remember where I read it, but it might be true.

25% can move the markets. It also represents a lot of money lost during drawdowns. Retail investors don't have the deep pockets that institutional investors have. I'm wondering if enough portfolios have blown up, to wipe out the funds held by retail investors. Once the well runs dry, it might stay dry. There simply might not be enough funds in people's brokerage accounts to get back in after a selloff. That might explain what I'm seeing in my universe..........small caps.

Or.......................are investors tired of the volatility, and keeping their money on the sidelines until the storm blows over?

Either way.............once inflows start to decline, it's a death knell for a good many stocks. The broader market can sit in this limbo until there's some sort of catalyst to make it come alive again.

I don't believe, perhaps incorrectly, that increasing the debt ceiling is the news the market's waiting for. It's a forgone conclusion that Congress won't allow the country to default. The only positive news I see moving the market, might be the passage of the infrastructure bills pending in the legislature. This will inject huge amounts of liquidity into the economy...............some of which will invariably flow into equities.

I just dunno................it's a theory I guess.

[farmersammm]

You can see the same thing going on in the Dow. Anybody that bought the uptick after the dip around the 20th of September, got wrecked again on the next selloff. There has to come a point when the hammering takes a toll one either funding, or optimism.

[farmersammm]

An old article, not the one I recently read...........but it's a good indicator of retail strength growing

https://www.irmagazine.com/small-cap...t-mean-issuers

I'm a guy that always looks for ominous clouds on the horizon It's just possible that the new anti pay for order flow mood in Washington might be linked to the perceived volatility linked to increased numbers of retail investors. For the first time in history, the little guy can trade at an affordable rate. I can't imagine that institutional investors are very happy about this. They've historically had a strangle hold on market movements. I'm beginning to wonder if elimination of pay for flow isn't just a way to regain absolute control of the market.

I sound like some crackpot conspiracy theorist

[farmersammm]

HOLY CRAP.............................I THOUGHT I WAS POSTING IN OFF TOPIC I AM SO SORRY FOR CRAPPING UP YOUR THREAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[farmersammm]

Maybe one of the mods can take this trash outta here, and move it to where it belongs. I really apologize.

[VaughnT]

Oooh, that was funny! I was about to go nuts trying to figure out what I was reading!


To the OP, I've found that a good wash down with a solvent is a great first step. Just soap and water works. Anything to cut through the grime that's been caking on for years. If you have a pressure washer, that's a fantastic first step. Gotta be careful, though, because that high pressure will take off stickers and thin tags in an instant!

Rusty pillars? As noted above, a brass wheel on your angle grinder will save you a lot of time and effort. You might get by with a soft steel brush, but you want to be careful with that so you don't peel off anything that shouldn't be peeled off. Even then, a good wash as a first step really helps because you don't want your wire brush being basically lubricated by the grease and grime it picks up.

Simple Green is good stuff, imo. So is brake cleaner or mineral spirits.

[scsmith42]

For an initial cleaning on older equipment, I like to use a siphon air gun and mineral spirits. I'll soak it down, and then use soft bristle brushes to remove the gunk, then rinse it off again.

After that, if needed I'll use soft wire brushes and Scotch Brite pads to take the surface rust off.