Crusty, Rusty

[longrifle]

I have heard olive oil will soften and loosen built rough crusty rust in a gun barrel is there any truth to it has anyone tried it.

[JCKelly]

Dunno about olive oil, can't hurt, though.

Best thing for loosening rust, if you are not in a hurry, is good ol' Automatic Transmission Fluid, available at your local auto parts store. Leave it soak for awhile.

If you are in a hurry & don't mind damaging internal organs, you can add acetone.

Kroil is good but ATF better (slow, though)

When cleaning rust off of steel, whatever the oil yoiu choose, do NOT use steel wool. Use bronze wool, or scrape with a piece of copper or brass. The copper alloy will help scrape off the rust without damaging whatever finish or engraving may remain under it.

Chinese "merchandise" has displaced bronze wool for kitchen cleaning with copper plated plastic. Yechh  I got my real bronze wool on line.

Steel wool is too @!*% hard -it IS steel, you know.

[eddillon]

Since Kroil is one of the products I sell on my website, it is my favorite!

[FALout]

I don't sell Kroil and I do like and recommend it.

[Ky-Flinter]

I don't know about olive oil, but I recently used some stuff called Evapo-Rust and it's darn near magic on rust.  Just makes rust disappear.  If the piece is badly rusted, the surface will be dark grey to black after soaking in Evapo-Rust.  The item to be treated has to be submerged.  Or in the case of your barrel, plug the vent and pour it full.

-Ron

[ddoyle]

Unless I am mistaken evapo rust is a molasses product. Base this on the fact that the de rusting solution they spray on boiler tubes and the consumer evapo rust product all smells the same as the molasses and water de rusting agent I use on engine parts. Someone in Australia told me it would 'eat the parent material'. Did some research and found that the de rusting action is caused in large part by bacteria. In warm areas you get different bacteria then in cool areas. That is where I would start.  Keep meaning to get a WHIMIS sheet on Evaporust to see exactly what is in it.
 
I noticed that walmart is now selling south American molasses and not Canadian Crosbys can't vouch for that stuff.

Re the olive oil I once laughed at an old guy who said he used olive oil to free stuck engines. (like engines dredged off the floor of harbors and found in landfills). He assured me that nothing works as well.

[Molly]

Only works if you also use 1 tbls garlic.

[Ky-Flinter]

ddoyle,

I don't think Evapo-Rust is made from molasses.  Evapo-rust is a pale yellow color and is the consistency of water.  It doesn't smell like molasses.  And it definitely doesn't harm the item being treated.  The instructions say to submerge the item or in the case of a container with rust inside (like a barrel or a gas tank), pour it full.  It doesn't work to just spray it on.

http://www.evapo-rust.com/product-info/technical-info/#msds

-Ron

[ddoyle]

That is right they are both Chelating agents.  Evapo rust does not tell you what they use but the nose knows. that once you soak rusty objects in either product the smell is the same. (does not smell like molasses) . You will also get that exact same 'blackening' of the surface. Leave it it wont rust again. Ron, did you not notice the smell on your hands after handling the slimy black part? That is the same smell as you get from a molasses mix or from the product they spray by the tanker load on boiler tubes.

Could be  Evapo rust uses something else as a chelating agent but the results you get will be the same. You either use a DOW chemical product (nothing wrong with that as DOW likely grew the cane LOL) or you use a cane sugar by-product.  (maybe think of it as ferric nitrate crystals vs. vinegar and steel wool?)

Try mixing a quart of Crosby's Fancy Molasses with equal parts boiling water. Throw in something rusty and check up on it in a week or three.  Handy jar to have in the shop. (just keep the yeast out of it LOL)

re harming the part, I have never seen molasses do so. I have left Morse Taper drills and a Morse Taper socket in a bucket for a summer.   I just mention that some Australians do claim it can eat parent material and I do know that there is a difference in the bacteria that colonize a chelating slurry depending on temp/environment.  


Edit:

just did a google search and the ratio of water to molasses varies by source. Museum in Auckland reports using as little as 10:1 (pale yellow), Chemical hauling ships 6:1, tool restoration in new england 1:1.

I aint inventing any wheels........

 

[JCKelly]

Olive oil. Molasses?

Guess I'll try them. If they don't work I can eat well

Beats having a 3/4 - full jug of ATF sitting around.

[J Henry]

  anyone ever try a Ultrasonic cleaner for cleaning a real nasty barrel.Used on in the Navy that was heated ,vibrated and had a cleaning fluid that would lift anything, given time.

[ddoyle]

Both olive oil and molasses are excellent on tea biscuits.

[David R. Pennington]

I had an old mechanic tell me once that iodine was the best penetrant. Any one ever tried it?

[ddoyle]

Just don't use it on aluminum blocks, with heat in the rain. vague memories of chemistry class and danger.