removing rust

[greg49]

hi all,
I am starting another project now that my 49 Cub "Cindy Lou" is finished (are they ever finished?) I'm restoring a Deering hay rake somewhere in the 1900-1920's range.I realize that most folks just let 'em sit around to rust away, but i don't want to go that route.That means getting all the rust off to prepare it for a paint job that will last a long time.I don't have a sandblaster, and to have it done is expensive.What do you folks reccommend? I can wire wheel a lot of the smaller parts.do you think that the wire wheeling is effective in getting the rust off and getting a good surface that paint will ahhere to? Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance for the replies.
Greg
"Greg 49"

[Don McCombs]

Have you considered electrolysis? Do a search on that term and look in the "How To" forum. You'll come up with lots of suggestions.

[Rob in NH]

you could also try a rust converter like rust mort. after you have clean the rust as best you can you apply it anlet dry then prime and paint.

[CapeCodCubs]

I have a cool sandblsting set up but I really like the 60 gallon e tank I have with a "garage type" battery charger that really cooks the parts. I did see some product in Farm Show (the publication) that would convert rust on large equipment. I'll see if I can find the copy. Results looked great. Maybe it was rust mort? How's your Dad doing by the way?

Chris

[Bill V in Md]

Greg,

A wire wheel (cup brush) works great for removing rust on smaller parts, provided you can get to all the surfaces. For hard to reach areas a needle scaler does a nice job also. I used a wire wheel on the following parts, and as you can see it does a pretty good job. Just takes a little longer than sandblasting.

[ricky racer]

A wire cup brush on a good 4" grinder will do wonders. I did my whole Cub with one. The small parts like bolts and the like I did on a bench grinder with a wire wheel. Wear a dust mask when you do it though, that old paint contains lead and you don't want yourself or family to breath that stuff.

[Jerry M]

I recently have been using OSPHO. It's a rust converter/inhibitor. I have found that the paint job last much longer using this whether I use electrolysis or wire wheel. It's very simple to use too. Just spread a thin coat on using a brush and making sure you work it into all cracks and pits, let it dry on for 24 hours and paint over it. No primer necessary.

[Rudi]

Greg:

A couple of options are avaialble to you.

hi all,
I am starting another project now that my 49 Cub "Cindy Lou" is finished (are they ever finished?) I'm restoring a Deering hay rake somewhere in the 1900-1920's range.I realize that most folks just let 'em sit around to rust away, but i don't want to go that route.That means getting all the rust off to prepare it for a paint job that will last a long time.I don't have a sandblaster, and to have it done is expensive.What do you folks reccommend? I can wire wheel a lot of the smaller parts.do you think that the wire wheeling is effective in getting the rust off and getting a good surface that paint will ahhere to? Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance for the replies.
Greg
"Greg 49"

Electrtolysis is a really good method to get the rust off and when using TSP it has been my experience and of many others, that flash rust is minimized. Some have also experienced this phenomenon when using TSP Free and even Washing Soda. However, TSP is usually the best at preventing flash rust for long periods until all the parts are ready for priming/painting.

You can make a pair of electrolysis tanks of varying sizes rather inexpensively and with stuff usually available in a normal garage/workshop scenario. Check these links for some interesting info on making and using an electrolysis tank

All About Electrolysis

1. How To Understand Electrolysis in a Nutshell
   
2. How To Find TSP in the US and What Charger to Use?
3. How To Build Kodiak's 5 Gallon Electrolysis Tank
4. How To Build Rudi's 55 US Gallon Electrolysis Tank
5. How To Build Corky's Home Brew Electrolysis Tank

For a rather large tank to do say the wheels of a hay rake.. I would suggest acquiring a used plastic oil tank around say 400 US Gallons. These can usually be had for simply taking them away. Check with your local heating oil suppliers. They could have an old one that is no longer useable for it's intended purpose but would be great for a large e-tank.



Acquiring a sandblaster is not all that difficult or expensive. You can easily make your own Sandblaster for next to nothing. Oh, you will need MS PowerPoint or the PowerPoint Viewer for IE to view the project file. The Mozilla plugin FireFox Extension is also available for those who use Firefox. This works for 2.5 and previous. 3.0.1 may need an update but FireFox will advise you if that is the case.

Hope this helps a bit.

[CapeCodCubs]

Greg...here is a big tank close by to make an insanely large E tank...
http://providence.craigslist.org/grd/862767727.html

[Rudi]

Greg:

As Chris said, this is an awesome electrolysis tank candidate for a few reasons:



These tanks are routinely used by Landscaping, Construction and Paving companies to bring water onsite for a myriad of uses. The aluminum/light steel enclosures provide a level of rigidity yet provide sufficient access for larger items. Wonderful item. You can actually leave only a marginal amount of the lip sor structural strength. Boy, it will accept a lot of larger items but you probably would be wise to utilize a shop crane etc., to load up the tank.

That is exactly my idea with my tank. To accept very large objects such as steel wheels and manure spreader sides. Very useful.

[CapeCodCubs]

Rudi,
I would buy this myself but am trying to grab that York Rake tonight. I can have someone from work who lives in Foster get it. I could put my entire transplanter in there! I'd have to hook up battery chargers in series to really do some cooking.
Greg, I think you have my number so call me if you want someone to bring it down your way from Foster, Rhode Island.
Could even put it on a roll off for delivery, you are right up the street from work...

Chris

[2cubs2cases]

If you use a wire wheel and just remove the lose rust you could use Por 15 or Zero Rust. This works well and keeps the rust locked in.

[Buzzard Wing]

I will have to ask again what my friend in NH uses... paint it on over rust and it seems to work well, perfect for what you want to do. (Unless you want a big project)

[Rudi]

Greg:

I forgot to ask:

I'm restoring a Deering hay rake somewhere in the 1900-1920's range.I realize that most folks just let 'em sit around to rust away, but i don't want to go that route.Greg
"Greg 49"

I have my wife's great granddad's hay rake, it is a McCormick-Deering Type "M" Self-Dump Hay Rake. Is that similar to yours? If so I actually have the Owner's Manual for it. The manual is a 1950 revision, but it still has the Thills, Solid Tongue, Eveners and Neckyoke plus the front truck tree and the tractor hitch tree in the manual. If it helps, let me know.

[Arizona Mike]

Greg, for something as large as your rake, I would recommend that you clean it up using a strong cleaner such as Krud Kutter. I'de get a gallon for your rake...about $14.00 at Lowes. Also pick up a few 'coarse', 3M "Sandblaster" sanding sponges.

Wet down a section of your rake by spraying with full strength cleaner. Keep it wet for a couple of minutes by continually spraying it. Then take the sanding sponge and a bucket of water and start scrubbing. Work in areas the size you can keep wet and rinse out the sanding sponge frequently. When you have scrubbed off all the rust, rinse it off with clean water and wipe it off with a clean rag. Scrub, rinse and wipe until the rag wipes off the surface without that familiar brown color

When you have it as clean as you like, let it dry and brush on a coat of one of those "metal conditioner/primers, that the others have mentioned. I use something called Metal Prep. Let it dry and you will have a good paintable surface without primer (the prep turns to primer after it dries). You can prime and sand more with regular primer if you want a smoother surface for your color coat.

Good luck, and lets see some pictures of the finished rake