Great Rust Remover --> Vinegar
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 2,672
Likes: 1
From: New Cumberland PA
Great Rust Remover --> Vinegar
A few months ago someone recommended throwing rusty parts into a container filled with household vinegar and let it sit for a week. I have a lot of parts off the car, and the rear swaybar parts are pretty rusty. I placed them in a quart container and left them sit for 24 hours. I pulled them out and they looked better, but decided I would hit them with a wire brush ( the small one the size of a toothbrush) and I took off 90% of the rust with easy. The items were down to bare metal except for a few little spots. Dropped them back in for another 24 hours and hit with the brush again. The parts are now down to the bare metal and even the areas where there are pits are down to metal. Looks like they were sandblasted. I will treat them with Metal Ready and Por15.
I will be soaking all my small items including bolts in the future.
Mike
I will be soaking all my small items including bolts in the future.
Mike
Melting Slicks
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 2,320
Likes: 2
From: Salem Oregon
I saw that also, and took all the small upper pieces of the steering column, and soaked them. I left them in for a little over a week, till I needed them, and they were clean. Works really well. Thanks to the person that posted that idea. 
Safety Car
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 4,004
Likes: 2
From: Severna Park Md
Vinegar is the frugal wonder. Many many uses and its very cheap. I used it to clean the mold on my bathroom walls before painting. Mold hasnt come back in over a year. I had used bleach before but the mold came back in 6 months. It makes a great cleaner for anything. I used a 50/50 diluted with water to clean the leather seats in the vette. Sure it smells a bit funky but it soon evaporates and the odor is gone.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 2,672
Likes: 1
From: New Cumberland PA
Originally Posted by Red_Shift
So was it dilluted or pure vinegar?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 5,381
Likes: 415
From: N J
That was my post . Glad it helped. I saw it here from a previous post about a year ago so I tried it. I used the white vinigar for my pedal assembly and couldnt belive the results. Like ya said ,it looks like it just came out of a blast cabinet. Good luck
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Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 1,205
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From: "Too Low, Too Fast, Too Loud" TX
Guys I picked up a 23 year old licsence plate frame is chromed with some cross flag rescessed areas, as well as, 1981 script on the top with recessed area behind it with black paint to fill in..to highlight the 1981. The viniger wont hurt the chrome finish will it???
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 4,286
Likes: 4
From: Guam
Originally Posted by 81' Corvette Guy
Guys I picked up a 23 year old licsence plate frame is chromed with some cross flag rescessed areas, as well as, 1981 script on the top with recessed area behind it with black paint to fill in..to highlight the 1981. The viniger wont hurt the chrome finish will it???
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 7,098
Likes: 378
From: Las Vegas - Just stop perpetuating myths please.
Originally Posted by mandm1200
A few months ago someone recommended throwing rusty parts into a container filled with household vinegar and let it sit for a week. I have a lot of parts off the car, and the rear swaybar parts are pretty rusty. I placed them in a quart container and left them sit for 24 hours. I pulled them out and they looked better, but decided I would hit them with a wire brush ( the small one the size of a toothbrush) and I took off 90% of the rust with easy. The items were down to bare metal except for a few little spots. Dropped them back in for another 24 hours and hit with the brush again. The parts are now down to the bare metal and even the areas where there are pits are down to metal. Looks like they were sandblasted. I will treat them with Metal Ready and Por15.
I will be soaking all my small items including bolts in the future. Mike
I will be soaking all my small items including bolts in the future. Mike
Well what about plated pieces like hood hinges (I think cad or zinc plated)? Will it remove plating if it base metal is not alum? Guess what I'm asking is a lot of small parts/trim pieces contain cheap alloys, are there others like alum that with corrode with vinegar?
Intermediate
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 28
Likes: 0
From: NSW Australia
hi guys,
I heard that eucalyptus oil works really good too. It will get the rust off nicely on chrome work.
A friend of mine has been using it when he restores old motorcycles and reckons it works well.
I heard that eucalyptus oil works really good too. It will get the rust off nicely on chrome work.
A friend of mine has been using it when he restores old motorcycles and reckons it works well.
