paint the lathe, or leave the chips in the history

Thinking about stripping the Atlas and painting it the color it probably was. The current color is rust and a green that isn't a brand. It runs. Painting feels like a project that replaces actual work.

Paint it when the oil leaks are fixed, not before. Fresh paint with a leak is a diary. I left mine ugly for three years and the ways didn't care.

I painted a handwheel once. Rivet walked through the tray. The lathe is still the old color. The dog is not.

Leak first, then. The paint can is going back on the shelf where it can age with dignity.