Customer Reviews

Bostik 10220 Aerosol Top-Cote

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Bottom line up front: Don't expect miracles from this product, but most discerning consumers will already understand that.
In my experience, Topcote applied to a THOROUGHLY prepared surface (according to Bostik's instructions), in humidity below 60%, will create a very smooth surface, comparable to UHMW plastic.
Apply subsequent coats after you've run about 100 linear feet of wood over the surface (much better than car wax). Buff the application of Topcote only after it dries to a haze, if you work with it before it's dry (refer to my note about high humidity), start all over by preparing the surface. Otherwise you'll feel more friction.
If your tools are exposed to high humidity or rain/snow, well buy a non-porous cover (like one offered by HTC). If your tools do get wet and rust (as mine sometimes do), I've found that Topcote won't prevent rust, but rather it inhibits rust. What that means in short is the rust won't be as bad as if you hadn't put an application of anything on it.
Yes, wax may repel water a little better than topcote, but wax also keeps water bound to the surface of metals, once water comes into contact with the metal (this is why chrome pits if you wax it).
I'll stick with Topcote, thanks, at least until there's some tech breakthru of UHMW stainless steel that I know scientists are currently scurrying to produce.

Top-cote is something I can live without, but why would I want to?? It does reduce friction amazingly (I don't understand the reviewers who say it doesn't). As for rust prevention, that's not what I use it for. The only real prevention for rust is to keep the tool dry, not spray something on it & then leave it out in the rain. And I notice a few people complaining that it "stains" the tool surface. The product is non-staining to *wood*, as advertised, which is what matters. That is, if you actually use your tools.

Offhand I'd say, ignore any review from some weekend warrior who tells you how great silicone-based products are. Silicone is something real woodworkers go to any lengths to avoid- any tool treated with it is ruined for good- that is, any wood run through them will pretty much have defects in the finish. And most auto 'waxes' are silicone-based.

...unfortuately Amazon seems to have stopped selling it. I'll just have to go to a *real* woodworking supplier- any one- from now on.

I've been using top cote on my machine tops, metal fences and guides for about five years now. I live in western Washington and moisture here can be a problem. Especially when your shop is in the basement of a 80 year old house,on the shores of a lake.

I have never had a problem with rust on my machine surfaces when I prepared them properly. The last step, I take, before applying the top cote, is to wipe the surface with alcohol. This removes any residual moisture and cleans the pores of the metal. Using a quality car wax will import silicon to your metal surface which in turn will transfer it to your wood workpiece. This can really cause problems with a lot of finish's. Silicon is very difficult to remove from wood and will block penetration of most oil based finish's.It can also affect "natural" wax's, such as carnuba and bee's wax.

The top cote layer does provide a nice slick surface and I have no difficulty telling when a new treatment is needed, especially when ripping hardwoods.

I also use Dri Cote (seperate review) on my blades and cutters.

I recommend this product to everyone, follow the directions on the can and you won't be disappointed.

This product is a good sealant but it might be better suited for garden tools than a cast iron surface.It isn't all that slippery as they claim in fact i've found it actualy causes friction.I did a simple test,I polished an area of my tablesaw with a good quality car polish and coated another area with top cote and then felt the difference. WOW the car polish was clearly the winner.I called the factory to see what they recommend using and guess what,? car polish again. This product will do great on tools you use outside or in the rain.It leaves an ugly white coating on anything you spray it on.Car polish is a whole lot cheaper and in my opinion better.It cleans polishes seals and reduces friction far better than top cote.Just do the test I mentioned and you will see for yourself. Now get out there and try it.

I have used TOPCOTE spray for several years on my table saw. This product does not seem to look or last like the old orange colored can or the real old pump spray bottle that I use to get. The current stuff now has a white flakey coating that flakes off and is sticky, the boards don't seem to slide like before. Now my new can is half full and won't spray any more! I checked the spray tip and it's not clogged but still nothing comes out when I push on the spray tip! It's like it lost its air! Don't waste your money it's not as good as it once was!

At the woodworkers guild meeting they recommended I use this new stuff called Table Top Lube from EMPIRE and they gave me a small sample. I tried it and it seems to work just like the old TopCote stuff!

Here on amazon Table-Top Lubricant sells for $14.99.

It cost more but I think it is work it.

I've been using Top Cote for about 10 years now. I frequently leave the country for anywhere from six months to a year, so one of my priorities is to make sure my tools aren't covered with a coat of rust when I return. Normally if I know I'll be gone for a while I'll put a coat on everything steel in my shop, to include hand tools like saws and chisels. Occasionally there are some isolated rust spots, but for the most part this stuff saves me from having to steel wool everything twice a year. It's easier and quicker to apply than car wax and it won't contaminate finishes like silicone. The only down side is that it wears off my thickness planer bed pretty quickly when planing rough cut purpleheart, or similar abrasive woods. I'm not sure why some people get bothered by the white haze it leaves on the surface since that's the easiest way for me to see where I need to recoat.

I just treated my table saw and planner and they are super slick and super smooth. The product also protects against rust without leaving an oiley film like WD-40 or other silicone based products that can leave a film on your wood which adversly effects finishing.

Purchased this for protecting my Unisaw table top. Paste wax works well but is an effort to apply and must be reapplied every month or two here in the humid south. Top Cote advertised to last five times longer, so thought I'd give it a try. Last Saturday afternoon I carefully cleaned all wax and made sure surface was as clean and perfect as I could get it. Applied three coats of Top Cote, used the saw on Sunday to build some Christmas gifts for friends, and then on Monday evening noticed the entire cast iron top had a faint golden haze - rust film already setting in, 48 hours after Top Cote application. This stuff has zero value as a rust protectant.

My 13" Delta thickness planer always had some difficulty self-feeding material, and needed to be aided by hand, until I tried Top-Cote on the platen. Now, whenever it starts to show signs of the feed rollers slipping, I clean the platen (with acetone) and coat it with Top-Cote. Problem solved. Also I use it on my cast iron table saw tops and fences for amazing friction-free operation, without contaminating wood which will later be glued or finished. Dries very quickly, a couple of minutes, so there is little downtime.

I agree with Bradley Keller's review. I bought this to treat the top of my table saw. I was horrifed by the milk-white hazy layer that the Top Cote left after applying (per directions). The stuff smells like wax, and on application looked like wax, so I figured it needed bufffing. I hand buffed my table saw top for about an hour and the haze cleared up, but I found that my saw top was not as slick as I had expected it to be. I plan on using auto wax from now on.