What is best to clean an older C&H 4060 matcutter

Chicky-poo

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I've recently acquired an older C & H mat cutter (has a wood bottom and is complete with rusted matblades and cobwebs on the bar.) To date I can't find anything on the web that I can purchase to clean this darned thing. Any suggestions?

Back in my old days of working for a big box frame shop, we used this stuff I believe was from Larson Juhl labeled "mat cutter cleaner" and "mat cutter lubricant" came in a nifty blue/white label and red/white label.

I'm going to just be framing my own things at home. Funny, all of those years at the box store and I really worked on my own stuff.

Any ideas where I can purchase these items from?
Oh and where can I find Unseal?

Thanks!
 
We always wiped ours down with lighter fluid, and then lubricated with silicon spray. That reminds me: about time to do it again...
 
Oh and where can I find Unseal?
That's going to be tough.

A few years ago, Unseal (now called "Unstick" or something like that, because the company that makes it is no longer called Seal) became very difficult/expensive to ship because of restrictions regarding transportation of hazardous materials.

That might tell you that it's not a solvent that you'd want to have around the house anyway. For cleaning applications, I'd lean toward Ellen's recommendation for lighter fluid - not because it's necessarily more benign than Unseal, but at least it's sold locally and in much smaller containers.

The itty-bitty spout on the lighter fluid also discourages us from pouring out a tray full of it and soaking mounted prints overnight.
 
Like the others, we use lighter fluid (Ronsonol™ - naphtha), square cosmetic cotton pads and Q-tips.

Liberally spritz the friction surfaces of the bar and block with lighter fluid to loosen the grime and dust. Use the pad and Q-tips (in those hard to reach places like under the round bar) to wipe it up. When the pad and Q-tips no longer have dark crud on them, they are probably as clean as you will get them. We then use the shrink wrap, hair dryer to evaporate the excess lighter fluid.

Lightly spray these surfaces with silicone lube and lightly buff them with another clean cotton pad.

You might want to replace the rusted knife blade, though.
 
You may want to remove the head from the end of the bar. You do this by removing all blades, unscrew the bolts from the under side on one end and the rubber stop will come off.

I think the LJ cleaner and lube is still the best, maybe you can get a friendly framer to order you some. Try not to waste too much of his time in the process.
 
Thanks for the suggestions...

This may be a stupid question... but does silicone spray leave a residue that may get on the mat?
 
Call Gritsko at Nielsen Bainbridge (800-524-0434 ext. 6202) and he can tell you how to clean the machine. He is the expert on all things C&H and besides a nice easy to talk to guy.

Good luck
 
Originally posted by Chicky-poo:
Funny, all of those years at the box store and I really worked on my own stuff.
Opps
faintthud.gif
I mean all of those years at the box store, I HARDLY worked on my own stuff.
 
... but does silicone spray leave a residue that may get on the mat?
Not if you do it JPete’s way and remove it from the base of the cutter. When you finally spray the silicone, the bottom of the bar will not be exposed to the lubricant. Even if it were, since you’re cutting the mat face down, the silicone would only contact the back of the mat.

But, as JPete said, you should remove the bar and the slide block before cleaning and protect the base from getting spritzed.
 
Does anyone have a favorite type of silicone spray you would recommend?

BTW, can someone please tell me what the running price on LJ matcutter cleaner/lubricant runs these days?

Thanks!
 
I hesitate posting this, because I am not an expert in machinery, but I don't think many people use silicone anymore. It tends to gum up the works. Most just use the lighter fluid and rub it down good.
 
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