After the rings rust, then the rust builds up between the cylinder walls and the pistons and wedges everything tight. Rust expands - Iron oxide takes up 10X the space as iron, it can break things like freezing ice. I recently heard of Fluid Film - sold mostly at John Deere dealers, said to be even better than Kroil. I'm going to try some. Also heard #1 oil is fantastic - It's like #2 diesel oil but thinner. So thin it's hard to keep it from leaking out of pipe fittings. Don't know where to get it though. Sounds like thin viscosity is important, like the ATF/Acetone brew. I know it sure can be hard to keep ATF from leaking out of gaskets and o-rings sometimes.
OK, so here's the million dollar question...... Supposedly, ATF got it's reputation as a penetrant pre 1980s. Back when it was still whale oil. Now, ATF is a petroleum base like oil. So what makes the ATF special as a penetrant? Detergent additives? Is it acidic to dissolve corrosion? Just wondering aloud what makes modern ATF the perfect oil to thin with acetone.
ok...atf & acetone. If you whip up a batch of this, does it evaporate if not in a sealed/covered container? Reason behind this is...i have a baseplate assy that i am trying to free up. I understand that the acetone will attack the throttle shaft bushings, but if it loosens things up...no worries. as for the original question...Kroil has worked wonders in the past for me. Spray the fastener in question & rap with a hammer, if you can get to it. 'Nother trick i learned from a buddy of mine is to tighten (or try to) the nut/bolt in question before trying to loosen it.
So can I mix soem of this up and keep it in a hand oiler, or some thing of the sorts? If it as handy as you guys are saying it is, I may want to keep some around.
this is really interesting, thanks for posting this. Where do I get acetone? Surely there's a better way than nailpolish remover?
we use stuff called twister at my shop... it works really good and has no silicones so you can use it if youre painting and not have any ill effects
Something else too. I learned this from getting the top exhaust manifold bolts out of FEs. I use PB Blaster myself, but thats not in stone. But I warm the engine up and put candle wax on the boss (which is open to the bolt) and let it melt in to the threads and pull them running. Put a tight 6 point socket on it and take a hammer and tap on the ear of the head moderately while you work the bolt. You do't want to bust the ear off the head. I have still broken a few bolts off, its about inevitible with them, but this method helped more than about anything. If you can get a hammer at a 90° tapping on something you would be surpised what rusty stuff will come loose. I learned that working on old tractors.
Thanks a million for that tip ! Something that works good and is real cheap , can't do better than that .
i've used tranny fluid/acetone mix for years.bought a little squirter type oil gun to keep it in. it keeps,dosen't desolve. i guess you could mixe acetone with kerosene or oil . it just really thins it down.hmmmm i may have to try the kerosene/acetone combo see how that works. must folks think i'm crazy when i tell them what i use.but i work on a LOT of rusty stuff.and i seems to work best for me.jmo
Not really, I've worked with acetone in manufacturing as a production cleaner. Those companies just buy nail polish remover, it ends up being cheaper than buying acetone labeled as acetone.
Lamp oil is a refined kerosene, get it at the neighbor's yard sale. Often comes scented - citronella keeps the bugs away, lemon or vanilla will make the wife think you're polishing the furniture or baking brownies.
I noticed on my wife's nail polish remover, that it's not just acetone, but a mixture of acetone, water, and other stuff. And there are some that have no acetone in them at all and use MEK instead. MEK seems even more toxic to me than acetone and smells worse. The hardware store sells pure acetone in metal cans. Or most lacquer thinners are made of acetone and other similar solvents mixed together. If you work with acetone remember that it is way more flammable than say ATF or kerosene. The flash point is -20 C, so it doesn't take much of a spark to ignite it. The fumes can ignite from some ignition source far away from where you're working.
Nice! Although I am a little strange, and sort of like the smell of PB Blaster... especially a few days after using it. ~Jason
I wonder if there's something you could put into the acetone & ATF mixture to make it gel... you know, like if you want to smack a huge gob onto an exhaust bolt and let it sit overnight. Nitrocellulose, maybe? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gelling_agent ~Jason
I've always had great luck with ATF. An old-timer that restores Model A's total me about it some time back. I use a little syringe form the baby section of the pharmacy or I think autoparts stores sell them too. I put a little hose on it to get into tight places. Suck it up and apply it where I need. My Model A had been sitting in a field for at least 20 some years (probably longer) and everyone of the fender bolts was on there good. Little bit of ATF, let it sit for about a half hour and just about all of them came off with ease. Few stubborn ones though.
You used to be able to buy acetone at Ace Hardware in the paint section, at least you could about 4 years ago.
Like dis? Dunno what happened here. Supposed to be straight kerosene. May have had something else in the drums prior to when I bought it. That's what you get when you try to do the bargain basement bit....
If you put a fish oil cooker under it you might get an Iranian sattelite launch. That would make for a curious piece of space junk in orbit. "Mission Contol"... there's what apears to be a parts washer in low earth orbit..."
I'd heard of guys using ATF on rusted parts but never tried it, thanks for the info, I'll give the home brew a try.
I'm surprised only one guy mentioned the Wax trick. Every old time flat head guy i know uses this method to remove flat head studs which can be the hardest things on earth to get out without breaking.
I thought old Ford spring perch pins were the hardest things on earth to remove? Could a guy mix up a couple gallons of acetone/ATF in a large pan to soak his axle/perch/wishbone in, and it might not all evaporate away? Sounds like it might be a lot cheaper than a couple gallons of Kroil or other penetrant. What kind of ATF? Type F for Ford parts, and Dexron for GM?
Back in the `90's when I was a slave to corporate america, our stockroom (boy, I do miss that) had a penetrating oil like no other. It was call "Let-Go" and was propane based. It smelled like propane but worked wonders on tight rusty bolts. Anybody else use this? I'd love to buy more if it's still even made) but can't find it anywhere...
If you get tired of crappy oil squirt cans, try these - I bought them at a beauty shop supply store, the local one is Sally Beauty Supply. I've never put acetone in one, not sure how that will hold up.
Ya Acetone is a bit Nasty but it will keep Fine in a Polyethylene Bottle or a Teflon Bottle. We use Lab Grade Acetone like water at work. We have Squirt dispensers years old with Acetone and other Nasties in the Chem Cabinets.. Here is a Local place that specializes in this sort of thing. Check there Tech data and such. http://www.nalgenelabware.com/ We use to build molds for them . Pure Acetone is available at Lab supplies and Good Hardware stores. Sometimes at NAPA's and Paint Stores if your a bit out there. Never bother with nail polish its watered down and not the same as it was years ago.. Acetone great to have around as it is an excellent cleaner for surface prep when bonding.. Ya the Tranny fluid deal is old. I remember my Dad using it. '
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