Electrolytic Rust Removal

[thomasarnold]

Having started to take my M100 apart, I was looking into alternative ways of rust removal. So far I mainly used my electric drill with an attached wire wheel to accomplish this task. This works pretty good on even, flat surfaces but when it comes to irregular pieces with inside corners, it pretty much fails. This dilemma lead me to try electrolytic rust removal, a method of rust removal i briefly tried two years ago on the hubs of my M38.

The setup is quite cheap and all I needed to purchase was the soda since I already had the battery charger that is used as a DC power source.

I filled a plastic bucket with 4 gallons of water and 4 table spoons of washing soda, hooked the negative lead to the partially submerged break shoe and the positive lead to the submerged anode.



After a cleaning time of only 20 minutes, I washed the black residue off the break shoe with warm water.



I guess a longer reaction time would produce better results but I was still surprised with the outcome!



Naturally, the break shoe was not coated with paint when I started my little experiment, but I wonder if it is necessary to even strip the paint using this method. Maybe the electrolysis takes the paint off as well.

Does anybody here use electrolysis as a method of rust removal and if yes, what is your experience with it?

Greetings,
_________________
Thomas G. Arnold
Augusta, Georgia

http://www.flickr.com/photos/1952m38/sets/72157622371250594/show/

http://s93.photobucket.com/albums/l47/1952m38/

1952 M38
1951 M100

[Jeeps4Brains]

I tired it on a driver’s side M37 door one time. Lots of bubbles but not much rust removal except for close to where the sacrificial metal was. I think the door had too much surface. I could not get enough of the sacrificial metal in with the door. So I soaked it in phosphoric acid instead.

You might like this link:

http://www.rockymountains.net/~m38mike/kateskarriage/2007_04_21.html

[mtdave]

I learned this method from my fellow nuisance wildlife control operators and have used it on my smaller M38 parts. Make a 50/50 mix of water and vinegar sometimes stronger sometimes weaker just experiment. After about a 24 hour soak almost all rust should be gone and paint at least loose. Be carefull with small thin metal parts to strong a solution or to much soak time and the part might disappear. OOPS!

[DMCarpenter]

I have built a large electrolytic bath out of a ~200 gallon plastic tank. I use four pieces of rebar in the corners as the sacrificial metal. I purchase pool supply sodium carbonate from Lowe's and mix it with the water. The part is suspended in the middle and a manual battery charger supplies the juice. It works okay, and the sweetened water does help to remove paint as well. My rig does not work quickly, but it gets the job done.

The four pieces of sacrificial metal are connected by wire, just to make that clear.

Dave