Hey guys has anyone tried remove rust off of small parts using this method?? Basically build a a tumbler and add some abrasives to clean up rusty brackets etc??? I think using an oil barrel and a small motor would be cheap enough to use and you can always use sand or rocks as an abrasive. Thoughts????
they use hardwood chips in removing and polishing small metal parts in a tumbler from what my uncle used to tell me when he was stamping out metal parts and it worked well.
I know tumbling works real good on brass shells. once you find out what best abrasive you need for the type of tumbling your going to do. should yield some nice results.
Get an old cement mixer, take out the paddles. You might have to slow it down a little, but it is about what you want.
I've seen a lot of parts polished that way. I'vve seeen everything from steel shot to walnut shell used to polishing media. I think Eastwood sells some of that stuff.
consider a used / free dryer, hook the motor up to a variable speed switch, kill the heat source, make a strong latch for the door.
I use electolisys regularly to remove rust from all kinds of parts. with the right setup it is relatively fast and simple to do
I think the molasses tank works best, especially when heated. If you have ever purchased custom fab brackets alot of the time they have a distressed look with hundreds of little dings in them. Tumbling in a barrel or mixer would have to be slow and parts realively the same size and weight with lots of abrasive to keep the nicks and gouges to a minimum from banging into each other.
Grange co-op or livestock feed store. I think you can get it from grocery stores also but don't know if it is as strong. There are severall molases threads on here that will answer that question positivly.
It would be interesting to see a side by side comparison of the two methods, molasses and vinegar. I've used vinegar to get rid of rust for years, but have never tried molasses.
Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZCFcxf5IBw Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-gBAjEga1s&feature=related
The molasses from the feed store is the kind you want, it is different than the stuff at the grocery store. Feed store sells in bulk so I had to bring my own container. I mixed up a batch 4-1 with water last spring in a Rubbermaid tote. I derusted stuff all last summer, until it froze into a solid block. When it thawed out this spring I tried it again and it still worked, so I am still using it. I usually let the stuff sit a while, take the parts out and wire brush the loosened stuff off and throw them in again. When they are pretty clean I wire brush, then wash off with soap and water. Then I give the parts a clean up in the blast cabinet. It seems to me if you leave them in too long it appears to etch the surface deeper where the rust was as compared to the unrusted surface. I recently bought an Eastwood tumbler for small parts, it seems like a pretty slow process to me so far. Think I will put it in the shed where I don't have to hear it. I used the green stuff that came with it, anyone used anything that worked better?
Did you add a little heat to your molasses? It may have been a little chilly yesterday, I don't think that it got over 115.
I'm pretty sure all these shiny new Holley and Edelbrock carbs and fuel pumps etc are polished by tumbling.
I use this method exactly, except that I leave the paddles in as I still use the mixer to mix concrete. I use several shovel fulls of sand, unless the parts are really rusty, then I use some pea size gravel as well.
I have a friend(long time body man) who uses the shop's paint shaker to clean small parts.He breaks a tempered glass window,collects the glass chunks, and puts them in a gallon paint can with the small parts. a few minutes of vigorous shaking,the hardware looks like new.Doesn't seem to tear things up like blasting does.
for some parts i just use muratic acid for small parts i use q tips and apply by hand for larger or badly rusted parts i dip the whole part just don't leave the parts in for to long or there will be nothing left lol and remember acid doesn't care if its metal or flesh he he
I use citric acid, it's about 6-7 USD I guess for 2 lbs pounds of powder posted, over here. Tried vinegar but the citric is loads better and doesn't have the horrible stink, nor the danger of other acids. I use cheap plastic containers / tanks, or even drainpipe with one end blocked for long thin stuff. Nice & easy and cheap.
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