Liam
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| posted on 7/12/03 at 09:05 PM |
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Electrolysis. See the light!
This is the single best thing I've ever found out!
Somebody quietly posted this link a little while back on TOL...
The Rust Removal FAQ
Opened it, read it, was sceptical, then tried it anyway. Wow!! I just cant find enough stuff to 'electrolyse'!
I first tried one of my 4x4 front uprights. I had already drifted out the bearing outer races (a complete bitch) and given it a good 20 minutes of
'The Tool' - not the soft wirey one but the voilent twisted one that leaves you looking like you have a piercing fetish, not to mention
the instant parkinsons/arthritis. It was still covered with stubborn lumps of rust especially in all the hard to reach places.
After several hours in the tank, the rest of the rust fell off in my fingers under a tap (or with a tiny bit of wire brush persuasion), and with a
quick dry in the oven it looked every bit as good as the day it came out of Henry Ford's finest casting shop. Totally amazing and no effort or
money!
Then I tried my other upright straight off the car, covered in years of filth and rust, left the bearing races in. Same result. Awesome! All the
crap just rubs off with your fingers!
Here's what others had to say...
"It's so cheap and easy! I just leave it going over night and in the morning my component is like new!" - Jessica, Middlesex.
"The best thing for me is it doesn't attack clean metal so it wont harm machined surfaces and parts like bearing races! I'll never
use sand blasting again!" - Peter, Dudley.
"I find electrolysis very useful for dismantling rusty donor car assemblies like hubs, struts and the like!" - Jean, Doncaster.
"I'll never touch 'The Tool' again! Too bad I already got arthritis!" - Winston, Hereford.
It's fantastic. I used baking soda and it works fine. I use a bit of thin walled 6" diameter stainless tube i found as the electrode,
and occasionally a small bit of inch tube to insert inside tricky bits if required. Draws about 2 amps with the electrode nice and close to the
piece.
Give it a go. Even if you're already drivingyou must have something rusty.
Liam
EDIT: IMPORTANT!!!
In case you dont read the rest of the thread, read this: Be VERY careful with stainless electrodes. In fact - best not to use stainless at all.
Produces nasty hazardous waste!! See the thread for more info!
[Edited on 16/2/05 by Liam]
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JoelP
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| posted on 7/12/03 at 09:14 PM |
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i assume washing soda is different to caustic soda?! sounds like a good process, i may try my hubs soon...
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mackie
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| posted on 7/12/03 at 09:23 PM |
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Very cool. Although it doesn't say anything about the kind of charger or voltage to use. I have a car battery charger kicking about, so as long
as that's ok I may just give it a go.
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Liam
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| posted on 7/12/03 at 09:47 PM |
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Didn't really know what the hell kind of soda they were on about in the faq but baking soda is fine. Water softener which claimed to be soda
based didn't work.
I just use my halfords car battery charger which is essentially nothing more than a 12V power supply capable of supplying a few amps. The current
drawn depends on how close you get your electrode to the rusty lump of crap. Draws about 2A for me.
From this...
 
Rescued attachment rearbefore.JPG
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Liam
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| posted on 7/12/03 at 09:49 PM |
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To this. With no effort. Apart from a bit of a rinse/scrub, prime and a squirt of WD40 into the bits i dont want to paint.
 
Rescued attachment rearafter.JPG
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Liam
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| posted on 7/12/03 at 09:50 PM |
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This happenned while i was asleep!
 
Rescued attachment frontupright.JPG
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JoelP
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| posted on 7/12/03 at 09:54 PM |
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it'll be the elves...
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robinbastd
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| posted on 7/12/03 at 11:17 PM |
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Liam,
Many,many thanks for the info. I've got lots of stuff to be reconditioned,and now the pixies can do it!
Cheers
Ian
Only a dead fish swims with the tide.
http://smuttygifts.com/
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RichyMkIndy
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| posted on 8/12/03 at 01:38 AM |
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im off to start my own company selling recon sierra bits ! tee hee !
bye !
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Jumpy Guy
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| posted on 9/12/03 at 05:28 PM |
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Liam - what did you use as an electrode?
how crucial is it to 'surround the object';??
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mackie
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| posted on 9/12/03 at 05:34 PM |
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I tried it last night with just a bit of RHS as the anode. It worked a treat but i'm going to make one out of some sheet because it'll get
better results. It sort of works on "line of sight" because the current will flow along the easiest path, so if you make the easiest path
wider you get better coverage. I'm not sure if my explanation was good or not but that's how I see it.
The solution gets very manky very quickly though! I looks like someone shat in it now 
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Liam
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| posted on 9/12/03 at 11:58 PM |
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My electrode is a piece of thin walled stainless tube about 5" diameter. Was gonna strap it under my 205 for that 'big bore' look
but I think I've put it to better use now.
Surrounding the object dont seem massively important if you leave it in long enough. I tend to turn the rusty object round about half way to try and
'expose' the other side to the electrode. It just works much faster close to the electrode cos more current can flow.
I had a stubborn bit inside one of my uprights so i switched my normal electrode for a bit of inch round mild tube so i could get it in there. That
learned that bit of rust to stick to my upright. Even after a few hours though the mild steel electrode was getting fairly well eaten, wheras the
thin bit of stainless I usually use hasn't been touched.
Liam
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The Shootist
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 posted on 10/12/03 at 03:46 AM |
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Washing Soda?
I think the washing soda may mean Borax. Borax is used to flux some metals for casting so I can see where it might do for this usage.
Since Borax is for washing it would also act as a degreaser.
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Ben_Copeland
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| posted on 10/12/03 at 08:42 AM |
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Think i will try this.... not sure what rusty bits i have now.... I'll have to keep my eye's open for some
Ben
Locost Map on Google Maps
Z20LET Astra Turbo, into a Haynes
Roadster
Enter Your Details Here
http://www.facebook.com/EquinoxProducts for all your bodywork needs!
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Mix
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| posted on 11/12/03 at 09:45 AM |
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Chemistry Lesson
Chemical name for 'washing soda is Sodium Carbonate, clear or whitish crystals used to 'soften' water. Should be obtainable from
your local chemist.
Mick
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Ben_Copeland
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| posted on 11/12/03 at 12:18 PM |
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Excellent That can go on the shopping list
Ben
Locost Map on Google Maps
Z20LET Astra Turbo, into a Haynes
Roadster
Enter Your Details Here
http://www.facebook.com/EquinoxProducts for all your bodywork needs!
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James
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| posted on 11/12/03 at 01:33 PM |
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Liam, all I want to know is why you waited until I'd 'Tooled' everything to de-rust it before you posted this!
I'm gonna have to go buy another Sierra now just so I've got something decent to try it with!
James
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JoelP
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| posted on 11/12/03 at 01:45 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by James
I'm gonna have to go buy another Sierra now just so I've got something decent to try it with!
James
if you want, i can lend you some hubs to de rust?! want em back sparkling though!!
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Mix
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| posted on 11/12/03 at 04:00 PM |
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Just tried my first 'experiment', what a result !!
Guess that's the bottom dropped out of the second hand market for angle grinders and twisted wire brushes.
Mick
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CairB
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| posted on 14/12/03 at 09:35 PM |
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Good find.
I'm having a go at the moment with a few bits that I never quite got round to. To busy driving
I found this explanation as to whats actually going on:
electrolysis_explanation
One point though, anyone blown up their garage yet with the by products?
Cheers,
Colin
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paulbeyer
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| posted on 14/12/03 at 11:56 PM |
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Hmmm, if you swapped the +ve and -ve leads from the battery charger and used gold instead of stainless steel would you end up gold plating your bits?
7 out of 10 people suffer with hemorrhoids. Does that mean the other 3 enjoy them?
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greggors84
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| posted on 15/12/03 at 01:25 AM |
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Shame this wasnt discovered earlier, richy almost killed himself with my twisted wire brush on angle grinder trying to get in those hard to reach
places. This seems a hell of a lot easier. I mite leave my chassis out in the rain, just so i can try it!!
Chris
The Magnificent 7!
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steve m
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| posted on 15/12/03 at 02:47 AM |
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Its going to be a big glass jar for chassis
to go into it
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blueshift
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| posted on 15/12/03 at 06:11 AM |
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maybe greggors has a handy swimming pool and a skip full of washing soda?
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Browser
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| posted on 18/12/03 at 12:45 PM |
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Thanks for the post, I was not looking forward to the start of my de-rusting process, I'm not so bothered now! Only improvement to this
setup that I can think of would be an agitator to stir the solution, maybe that'd get it to those 'hard to reach' places.
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