<VV> WD-40 No Corvair

[Tony Underwood]

At 01:14 hours 11/14/2004 -0500, PaulSiano@aol.com wrote:
>
>It is a carefully guarded recipe known only to four people. Only one of them 
>is the "brew master." There are about 2.5 million gallons of the stuff 
>manufactured each year. It gets it's distinctive smell from a fragrance
that is added 
>to the brew. Ken East says there is nothing in WD-40 that would hurt you.



For what it's worth:   

WD-40 is mostly stoddard solvent aka Varsol, with a little mineral oil
added, along with a deodorizer to infiltrate the solvent aroma.    There
are a few other little odds and ends added to the mix but for the most part
this is about all of what's in it.   

By the way, stoddard solvent IS toxic and is nothing you wanna get in your
system.   WD-40 had a chemical hazard warning on the label with the
accompanying statements that if inhaled or ingested it could cause illness
or death.   The National Institute of Health also says you should NOT use
WD-40 as any sort of topical ointment such as a liniment to relieve
arthritis pains, as some sources have claimed.   Stoddard solvent can and
will cause skin irritation and can be absorbed through the skin and cause
toxic reactions if sufficient exposure is incurred... thus says the
government and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (had to
go look it up).       

I'd say that this would suggest that there's stuff in WD-40 that *can* hurt
you...  so don't drink it or snort it or inject it and you should be OK.
Buy it in the Big-Batch cans to really go after those things that stick or
hang... and it also can get rid of bugs.   Wasps go down fast with a shot
of WD-40.    


It also works pretty well for arguing with sway bar and strut rod rubber
bushings...   and it leave so little actual solvent or mineral oil behind
that the rubber doesn't suffer "oil rot" from being soaked in WD-40.
Penetrating oils tend to be a bit rough on some rubber materials but not
WD-40.    Good stuff...   although it's not the best penetrating oil...
that's where Blaster comes in.    If not for WD-40 I don't think I'd ever
manage to get some of these glorified power supply cables reassembled here
at work... strain reliefs and sleeves and all manner of things that have to
slide up and over cables to keep them weatherproof.   WD-40 lets the
weatherproofing seals stuff slide up and over cable sheaths and then
evaporates and no longer "greases" things.    

And...  the color scheme for WD-40 is the same as the Subaru rally race
team.      ;)    




tony..