Is Your Rust Preventive Actually Working?

August 6th, 2021

Don’t settle for just any rust preventative. Many anti-rust products are not designed for industrial applications and may be slowly damaging your molds and molding equipment. Solutions such as WD-40 only prevent rust through water displacement and typically develop a buildup of wax. Instead, invest in a rust inhibitor material that neutralizes acidic vapors, self-heals, and leaves a barrier to efficiently prevent direct water/steel contact.

At Slide, we understand how important proper products and methods can be in protecting your mold and molding equipment. Therefore, we work to create solutions that are specific to our customers’ industrial needs. The chart below highlights key elements of our rust preventive solutions to help simplify the selection process.  
 

Even the best rust preventive must be applied correctly in order to reach its full potential. We compiled a list of tips to keep your molds rust-free and your production line running smoothly cycle after cycle. 

Spray the Mold When It’s Warm
One of the most crucial steps in protecting injection molds is to spray an anti-rust product immediately after the molding run is over. During this time, the mold will still be warm and should be protected until it is cleaned and coated with a rust preventive prior to storage. Because it is hard to tell whether the mold is properly coated, don’t be afraid to add extra product just in case. 

Protect Sprue Bushings
Although the interior of the mold surface is most critical for protection, be sure not to neglect the sprue bushings. Rust in this area will make getting a seal with the barrel nozzle extremely difficult. Slide recommends coating the entire exterior of a mold to give additional protection. Rusting where the mold bases clamp against the platen causes problems when trying to keep the mold halves parallel and could lead to excessive clamp pressure or even mold damage in some cases. 

Watch for Bleed-Out
Anti-rust compounds that penetrate and seal off ejector pins can cause oils and solvents to bleed out. To prevent this, try using a mold protectant that goes on dry such as SLIDE Mold Shield. This can offer your molds protection for up to two years and are ideal for many operations that require shorter storage periods. 

Test Slide Before You Buy
Using an efficient processing aid such as those offered by Slide will help to increase your manufacturing efficiency and decrease your overall cost. But don’t just take our word for it – we offer free trial samples so you can see if our products are actually as good as we say they are. Test out Slide’s solutions by requesting information or samples on our website or get in touch with our extensive network of local distributors. As always, we are here to help maximize your molding process.