I have recently set up a studio in my garage. My tools have begun to
rust and the rust spreads quickly on the tools. I have gone to the
local hardware store and purchased a Naval Jelly rust dissolver and
3M multi purpose lubricant spray. The Naval Jelly works OK at
removing the rust however the steel is discolored from where the
rust was. I use the lubricant spay to hopefully keep the rust from
coming of from appearing on the tool. Does anyone have any
suggestions?
Thanks,
Naomi
For rust protection light motor oil works better than things like
WD40, a real thin film works wonders and doesn’t feel greasy or oily.
The smell can be a bit objectionable, but I find the trade off smell
vs lack of rust is in my favour.
Just a note, DON’T use used oil, and motor oil isn’t that good for
you, so try not to get it on areas of the tool that you handle often,
just the working surface is really enough.
Oh yeah, tools that see regular use rust less than the ones that
only get used once in while!
Cheers, Thomas.
Janstrom Designs.
Naomi
Unless it is actually pitted, the discoloration is non-harmful to
your tools.
I do have a couple, one is clean the stuff up with a fine steel wool
to remove the rust, use alcohol to make sure any grease or oil is off
then apply auto polish. I had a protracted period of time where my
woodworking tools were stored at my parent’s farm in one of the
sheds. Not a great environment but the auto polish saved my tools in
an open shed for about 5 years.
Here lately, I have been having success using a product called PG
2000 which is really a woodworking product for saw blades. This stuff
I apply by spraying, letting it sit for awhile and then wiping it
off. It leaves little residue, and seems to protect for several
months in the basement. Mostly I use it on the highly polished stuff
like dapping punches/blocks, flat plates, anvils and hammer faces.
So far I have had pretty good luck but it has only been about a year
of use.
Hope this helps.
Terry
I work a lot with rusty stuff and use a product called EvapoRust.
http://www.orisonmarketing.com/corrosion/evaporust/evapo-rust.html
I purchased it from Orison but there may be better prices online. The
acid based rust removal products come with all the issues of acids.
This product is environment friendly, can be handled safely and
easily, and it works well.
The converted iron oxide does result in a dark residue but I have
been able to brush/buff away any discoloration.
If a light coating of product is left on the metal it prevents rust.
Ralph
yulemshop.com
I have recently set up a studio in my garage. My tools have begun to rust and the rust spreads quickly on the tools.[snip] Does anyone have any suggestions?
My studio is also in my garage. I bought a dehumidifier which runs
constantly in the warmer months. This is actually handy for me in a
way, because there is no running water in my (detatched)
garage/studio…
On a related note, I have discovered another use for my anodizer
(power supply). I use it to color titanium and niobium, of course,
and I posted a while back, I believe, that by reversing the polarity
I can use it as an ionic cleaner (with different solution). Well,
now I have figured out that I can reverse the polarity and use it to
remove rust, right in the “TSP-Not” solution I use for anodizing. It
is slow because it is only 1 amp, but I was cleaning some ball burs
that got Black Max spilled on them (which caused pretty bad rust),
and it worked pretty well!
Noel
Prevention is easier than removal. Finger prints contain acids and
can cause accelerated rust, so wipe them down with a rag dampened
with light weight (5w20) clean motor oil (not WD-40 or spray oil)
after use and occasionally thereafter when not used much. They may
get fuzzy with dust as oil is attractive to dust, but as my shop
teacher put it, “Dust don’t rust”.
Dave
Keep your tools contained where possible with drawer liners that
inhibit rust. You must also keep a coating of light machine oil,
beeswax, cosmoline or dry lithium grease on each tool that contains
iron in humid areas in particular.
If rust has set in, have any bench blocks reground- it is unlikely
that you will be able to restore them to perfectly flat, you can use
micro-polishing papers, films, etc. on doming punches, bezel punches,
mandrels etc. if the rust is still light. I would toss the naval
jelly as the acids it contains etchs the metals deeper than the rust
and just ruins most jewelry tools in my experience. prevention is the
best plan. Buy some tool chests, or boxes and create a gasket out of
rubber gasketing material or just run a small bead of silicone
sealant around the closures as a quick remedy- not heavy enough to
prevent a good closure, but enough to prevent ambient humidity from
getting in where you have no drawers to store your tools and
equipment. If you have a locker, or drawers, you can use the liner,
seal any gaps, holes, etc around handles, hardware etc. the more
moisture you prevent entering the better condition your toolswill
remain. I coat everything, even stored tools and equipment with a
light oil if I use them frequently ( not burs or drills though) or
cosmoline if I use them less frequently. I also recoat after using.
It is easier to clean the precious metal workpiece in acetone to
dissolve dirts and oils than to remove all oils, lubricants etc.
before using them. One man that was frequenting Orchid to promote
his product came up with a polymer coating that is effective to some
degree, but has many drawbacks, nonetheless, a small amount applied
to your tools and equipment does help - but is far more expensive
than simply using a non-penetrating (W-D40 contains petroleum
distillates that when combined with oily rags in a closed or open
container poses a greater fire hazard than say, a light vegetable
based oil ).
David, I find motor oil’s odor somewhat unpleasant. Could one use
olive oil or something less noxious?
Cheers,
Carol
I found a diluted solution of phosphoric acid gets rid of all the
rust ‘it just bubbles away in front of your eyes’ leaving a
phosphate coating on the tool that just does not rust- oil afterwards
it is slightly textured (non slip) - sharp edges need honing again
tools that very rarly get used Icover with a coating of 3M Inner
Cavity wax rust protector and leave em in a rag. GETS A BIY STICKY
BUT A FEW WIPES AND SOME SOLVENT gets them right as rain again. i
live 100 yds from the sea major rust.
Greetings:
One product I’ve been very pleased with over the years is called
LPS-3. It’s a rust inhibitor, intended for stored tools. I’ve had it
on large machine tools that were mothballed for years, and had them
come out with no rust at all. I also use it on my rolling-mill
rollers & etc when I’m not planning on using them for a few days, and
it works great. You can get it from MSC or Enco, or (at least in
California) OSH stocks it.
It’s a spray on coating that’s sort of like a thick, waxy oil. Much
easier to remove than cosmoline, and it makes a pretty good thick
lubricant for tools too. But it does leave a waxy coat, so it’s not
for daily use tools. Comes off easily with WD-40 or any other light
oil.
FWIW
Brian Meek.
http://www.wr6wr.com/newSite/articles/columns/wp0906/wp0906.html
I love the idea of a molasses bath for my tools!
Stacy Hosler
I have been reading high praises for Oxalic Acid as a rust dissolver
on bicycle restoration forums. Apparently oxalic acid will dissolve
only the rust and not harm ferrous metals in any way. The acid is
available in hardware shops in the form of wood bleach; the label
should state that oxalic acid is the only active ingredient.
The acid is consumed when dissolving rust, the concentration is not
critical, and an over-night soak should do the job.
Alastair
http://www.wr6wr.com/newSite/articles/columns/wp0906/wp0906.html I love the idea of a molasses bath for my tools!
Wow! That’s a heck of a find Stacy. Thanks for sharing that.
(molasses begins to disappear from kitchen. wife looks askance at
yet another mysterious, odd-smelling fluid being used in the
study/shop. cats are desperate to investigate.)
Cheers,
Trevor F.
in The City of Light
Visit TouchMetal.com at http://www.touchmetal.com
Check out shooting/outdoor suppliers. They sell Hydrosorbent Silica
Gel that is used in gun safes to prevent rust. I put it in every
drawer I have metal tools in.
Rick Copeland
rockymountainwonders.com
I find motor oil's odor somewhat unpleasant. Could one use olive oil or something less noxious?
Are you the one keeping your tools in your garage? If you don’t like
the smell of motor oil, open your garage door (while you’re in
there.) Olive oil, as far as I know isn’t going to keep your stuff
from rusting…
Hi Brian, Folks…
One product I've been very pleased with over the years is called LPS-3. It's a rust inhibitor, intended for stored tools.
The LPS lube products should be available at most Industrial
Distributors…
You want to make sure it’s LPS-3, not LPS-1 or LPS-2…1 and 2
are different animals…
LPS-3 can also be had in 1 and 5 gallon containers as a liquid…
Great stuff for storage, as Brian mentioned…
Gary W. Bourbonais
L’Hermite Aromatique
A.J.P. (GIA)
Could one use olive oil or something less noxious?
olive oil turns rancid very quickly, and it is too heavy for jewelers
needs…a lighter alternative is safflower, sunflower, apricot kernel
or soy oil. Avocado, almond, hazelnut, pecan, corn or peanut are less
desireable due to the weight. cocnut oil is fairly light but the main
feature of using it is that it does not stain fabrics…however, if
you get oil on clothing that you want to wear outside the studio or
workshop, take jeweler’s pounce (a. k. a. -talc) and drop a pile on
the spot(s) after a while ( depends on humidity, temperature, and
size of spot) turn the fabric over and tap it from behind a few times
to get rid of loose powder, then brush away the remainder and if
necessary apply liquid soap or detergent (the more alkaline the
better: any oily hair shampoo, or non-moisturizing shampoo, lemon
joy, dawn, yardley lavender liquid, etc. - not Dr. Bronner’s or a
castile liquid as they are generally too soft), let it sit a few
minutes, add water & lather then rinse in cool to tepid water (if it
is hot water and other than coconut oil you may set the spot as
opposed to removing it.
olive oil turns rancid very quickly, and it is too heavy for jewelers needs..a lighter alternative is safflower, sunflower, apricot kernel or soy oil. Avocado, almond, hazelnut, pecan, corn or peanut are less desireable due to the weight. cocnut oil is fairly light but the main feature of using it is that it does not stain fabrics.
In the application being discussed one major problem with most
vegetable oils is that they are air-hardening, some faster than
others.
I’d have to dig up my old woodworking reference books to get the
technical jargon but the bottom line is that exposure to air causes
most begetable oils to polymerize and (slowly) turn into a solid.
Tung oil, from a species of Asian nut, is a fine excellent: pure,
untreated, tung oil has long been used in woodwork to provide a
fairly durable, food-safe finish on wooden kitchenware.
FWIW, the thinner the layer of oil the faster the transition, so
again, in the application being discussed that’s not going to be an
attractive feature. Other oils do this air hardening thing too of
course, but the vegetable oils are particularly prone to it.
Not sure about you and your tools but a layer of gummy gunk turning
to a sticky solid on my tools would not be a desirable thing, not to
mention attracting bugs, etc.
If an odorless, and non air-hardening, oil is of interest try
mineral oil, though it has the downside of tending to evaporate if
applied in thin layers on non-absorbent materials… and it’s not
particularly water repellent.
Some oils actually absorb moisture from the atmosphere so that’s
something to watch out for too.
Cheers,
Trevor F.
in The City of Light
Visit TouchMetal.com at http://www.touchmetal.com
olive oil, in the sort term yes it will protect, but longer term
(read that as weeks, not months) it goes rancid and becomes acidic
and so will start to damage your tools after a while. I dimly
remember reading somewhere of a vegetable oil (non-cooking) that is
used in this way, but can’t recall what it’s called for the life of
me.
Cheers, Thomas.
Janstrom Designs.
I keep my tools in my studio in back of my home-- it has no climate
control yet, so it can get hot and humid in the summer-- I’m sure
contributing to the oxidizing atomosphere in there.
CS