How you remove rust
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 6,937
Likes: 848
From: melbourne florida
2023 C3 of the Year Finalist - Modified
Just got back from chil fila a picked up some extra packets of ketchup so I can start. De-rusting the frame of the car this shouldn't take long at all.
Team Owner
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 40,412
Likes: 792
From: Redondo Beach, California
Don't have a media blaster. Using dips.......
(1) most successful is Krud Kutter Rust Remover and Inhibitor. It is really phosphoric acid. Very light light rust goes in 15 minutes or so. Soak time increases with the level of rust. Pretty much all gone in a couple of hours. The really good feature of this stuff is that although the de-rusted parts come out dark gray, the surfaces have a rust preventative coating. No problem with the parts immediatley starting to corrode from humidity in the air. That plus painting gives the parts good rust protection. Another advantage is that phosphoric acid is not so "hot" that you can't put your bare fingers in the solution. You will have to wash your hand off with water so on though as your cuticles will start burning.. A disadvantage is cost. ~$26 dollars a gallon is actually the most economical. Smaller quantites are more expensive.
(2) Vinegar. The chief disadvantage of vinegar is that it takes a long time. The chief advantage of vinegar is that it takes a long time. Acetic acid, the active ingredient in vinegar, is not very "hot" so it acts very slowly and if it's starting to eat into a metal part, you have plenty of time to remove the part from the vinegar. And you can safely dip your fingers into the vinegar.....you can even drink it straight from the bottle! You can expect to soak a part in vinegar for two, three days. Unlike phosphoric acid (Krud Kutter), it doesn't leave a protective film on the part, and unprotected metal will start to corrode from air humidity. Vinegar is relatively cheap. The grocery store clerk will give you a quizzing look as you check out a couple of gallons.
(3) Hydrochloric acid (muriatic acid). This stuff works fast. But it soon starts eating into the metal, so you have to keep an eye on it. You can't safely dip your fingers into this acid. Rubber gloves. I gave up on using muriatic acid since it's too troublesome to deal with.
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With all the acids (above) watch out for "fizzy" parts. If a part is fizzing, it's being attacked vigorously by the acid, so you'll need to keep an eye on it and remove it from solution before it does damage. Acids will remove cadmium plating, leaving cadmium in solution with your acid. Cadmium is highly toxic so if you're using a mild acid dip, don't put your fingers in it.
(1) most successful is Krud Kutter Rust Remover and Inhibitor. It is really phosphoric acid. Very light light rust goes in 15 minutes or so. Soak time increases with the level of rust. Pretty much all gone in a couple of hours. The really good feature of this stuff is that although the de-rusted parts come out dark gray, the surfaces have a rust preventative coating. No problem with the parts immediatley starting to corrode from humidity in the air. That plus painting gives the parts good rust protection. Another advantage is that phosphoric acid is not so "hot" that you can't put your bare fingers in the solution. You will have to wash your hand off with water so on though as your cuticles will start burning.. A disadvantage is cost. ~$26 dollars a gallon is actually the most economical. Smaller quantites are more expensive.
(2) Vinegar. The chief disadvantage of vinegar is that it takes a long time. The chief advantage of vinegar is that it takes a long time. Acetic acid, the active ingredient in vinegar, is not very "hot" so it acts very slowly and if it's starting to eat into a metal part, you have plenty of time to remove the part from the vinegar. And you can safely dip your fingers into the vinegar.....you can even drink it straight from the bottle! You can expect to soak a part in vinegar for two, three days. Unlike phosphoric acid (Krud Kutter), it doesn't leave a protective film on the part, and unprotected metal will start to corrode from air humidity. Vinegar is relatively cheap. The grocery store clerk will give you a quizzing look as you check out a couple of gallons.
(3) Hydrochloric acid (muriatic acid). This stuff works fast. But it soon starts eating into the metal, so you have to keep an eye on it. You can't safely dip your fingers into this acid. Rubber gloves. I gave up on using muriatic acid since it's too troublesome to deal with.
................................
With all the acids (above) watch out for "fizzy" parts. If a part is fizzing, it's being attacked vigorously by the acid, so you'll need to keep an eye on it and remove it from solution before it does damage. Acids will remove cadmium plating, leaving cadmium in solution with your acid. Cadmium is highly toxic so if you're using a mild acid dip, don't put your fingers in it.
Last edited by 68/70Vette; Oct 11, 2021 at 02:48 PM.
