I just finished tearing down a car. I have a bucket full of bolts, nuts and misc hardware. In the past I've cleaned them in solvent and then spent hours on a wire wheel getting them clean before painting. Has anyone tried using one of those tumblers like sold at Harbor Freight to tumble them? I had thought about trying one with sand as the medium. Or does anyone else have a good method of cleaning this small hardware?
I have heard that a rock tumbler with the walnut shell blasting media works pretty good. Never tried it myself though! Sure would be easy, just put them in and let em go!
Home deopt has a bolt cleaning service. They have a big garbage can lookin thing outside the front door, drop your dirty bolts in there. Then go inside and they have a rack of properly cleaned bolts. Select the ones you need and pay for the service, based on how many bolts you have and size, at the cashier. Couldn't be any more simple.
Yep, the BEST way!! I gave up on trying to clean old hardware years ago. Too fiddly, takes too much time and you often you will wind up with a bolt - or what ever - STRIPPED of its protective coating. (hell; the threads may be rusted WAY past safe limits!! ) Unless it's a SPECIAL fastener; GO BUY NEW!! And IF the fastener is used in a HIGH STRESS location; watch out for cheap "off shore" stuff!!
New stuff is better, right, but not from the home depots. Dont you have small hardware stores, where you can buy professional hardware? Special fasteners: Clean the mud with diesel or cook them in a mixture with washing powder and dish detergent. Then throw them into Coca Cola (no joke) or vinegar essence for a couple of days. Rinse them, sandblast them and put some nickel (no chrome) on them. But only special fasteners deserve that way, the rest throw in the garbage.....
In Washington we have a chain of stores called Tacoma Screw. They have everything you could ever need ....I've spent lot's of money with them.
If you want the BEST!! try these guys, I use their hardware ALL the time!! http://www.arp-bolts.com/ Plus they have a lot of SPECIALTY hardware too.
i use a vibrating tumbler that i purchased from eastwood, it works great. leaves everthing nice and shiny.
If you are wanting to replace your hardware with high quality aircraft grade bolts then call Coast Fabrication in Cali. Talk with the bolt Nazi because he will set you straight. All humor aside, we purchase all the bolts for our Indycar from Coast Fab great place.
The vibration cleaners work great on all kinds of hardware. We were using them years ago to clean brass cartridge casings. Cleaned 'em inside and out.
Try www.mcmaster.com ,if you want any thing and every thing bolt related.They have things youve never even heard of!No,seriously they do
my wife works at harbor freight, and she says they sell those tumblers constantly to people that are using them to clean bolts and such. they seem to do a pretty good job.
Wow, I just started a post on this same topic. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=219915 I bought one of those Harbor Frieght vibrating tumblers and it works like a charm. The best part is I dropped them in the tumbler with 8-cups of play sand, turned it on and went off to work on other stuff. Some of the painted bolts and ones that had hardened grease, paint, or undercoating I let run longer. I would imagine if you used something like a more abrasive blasting media it would speed up the process.
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