Dip 'n' strip - Corrodip combined with Ultrasonics

[Zeddedhed]

Some time ago a retired Doctor friend gave me an Ultrasonic water bath cleaner thingy, suggesting it may be useful for cleaning up old tools. I tried it a few times and whilst it proved useful for cleaning up the monthly workshop teaspoon it didn't really do much that hot water and fairy liquid could handle.

After my weekend haul from my Great Uncle (is that a thing?) I'm now in possession of some seriously rusty plane irons and the like, so remembering our very own Jimi H I ordered some Corrodip and today it arrived.

Whilst reading the blurb sent with it I noticed it suggested the effects could be improved with agitation and heat.

The light bulb appeared above my head and I thought I'd share the process with you all.

For the record I've used a solution of approx 1:5 as suggested and it all went in at about 11:10 this morning.
The machine allows you to set the desired temperature so in the spirit of in for a penny and all that I set it to max - 60 degrees Centigrade.

I'll bung some pictures up later today to show progress.

 

[Zeddedhed]

 

[NazNomad]

Interesting experiment, I see no reason why it shouldn't be a resounding (although above the range of human hearing) success.

 

[bugbear]

That's a truly enormous ultrasonic bath - I've only seen them big enough for necklaces and ear-rings before!

BugBear

 

[Cheshirechappie]

Whilst reading the blurb sent with it I noticed it suggested the effects could be improved with agitation and heat.

If that's the case, PLEASE don't put any cap-irons in it...........well, not for a few months, anyway! :lol:

 

[D_W]

What does it ultimately do with the rust scale. Does it work it off of the tool, or does it turn it black like an acid bath would?

 

[Zeddedhed]

So far the liquids gone quite dark.

Here's a picture of the Sash Pocket chisel I posted about yesterday.

This is after 3 hours:

BEFORE

AFTER

 

[Sheffield Tony]

Are you sure that bath's OK in conjunction with the Corrodip ?

Looks to be doing the job. You need some controlled experiments - with / without agitation !

 

[Zeddedhed]

Are you sure that bath's OK in conjunction with the Corrodip ?

In a word, No, I'm not sure. So far no one has died, nothing's caught fire and the 'prentice is still making good coffee, so all the important indicators of impending doom are checking out as OK. Oh and the WiFi is still sending retro 90's tunes through the surround sound set-up via Spotify.

You're absolutely right that i should be doing this a bit more scientifically but I'm not really wired that way.

More of a chuck it in, crank it up, fingers crossed and we'll see what happens kinda guy!!

I have turned the heat down though as it seemed to be imparting a dull grey sheen to everything.

It's got about 4 irons and a couple of chisels currently marinating away that i'm going to leave overnight. The agitation stops after 30 minutes anyway so we'll see what it's all like in the morning.

 

[Bod]

Try putting an old dirty oil stone in.
Use a little detergent rather than Corro dip.

Those baths are very useful things!
That one is a baby compared to some I've seen.

Bod

 

[Michelle_K]

May I ask how much you pie for the corrodip and where you got it from. All of my tools are old rusty boot fair finds and I would love a quicker way to remove the rust then sandpaper or white vinegar when I can find it. I have heard and read amazing things about corrodip and I wanted to get some a few years ago but it was a little more then I could afford. Hopefully it's less expensive now.

Thank you

Regards

 

[Zeddedhed]

I bought it from Liquid Engineering online.

You should be aware that fresh from dipping it odes leave a dark grey patina on items. This will come off but does need a good rub with wet and dry.

 

[Sam R]

All of my tools are old rusty boot fair finds and I would love a quicker way to remove the rust then sandpaper or white vinegar when I can find it.

Sorry for butting in, but I get the white vinegar from a supermarket in pint/568ml bottles - caterer's also get it in 5 litre bottles but I've not looked that far - and have you added a decent amount of salt to it? I ask, because I tried all this recently and was amazed at how scaled rust simply fell off a cast plane like I wouldn't have believed after 12 hours. Info here salt-and-vinegar-with-your-plane-sir-4-1-2-restoration-t94917.html

and here http://www.finewoodworking.com/item/113 ... st-remover

vinegar here http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WHITE-VINEGAR ... 1185426102

and here http://www.tesco.com/groceries/product/ ... lsrc=aw.ds

Apologies for the tangent.

 

[ED65]

All of my tools are old rusty boot fair finds and I would love a quicker way to remove the rust then sandpaper or white vinegar when I can find it. I have heard and read amazing things about corrodip and I wanted to get some a few years ago but it was a little more then I could afford. Hopefully it's less expensive now.

Is speed the priority or are you mainly after a reliable and repeatable method that won't break the bank?

Not to take anything away from the Corrodip but as well as some of the commercial rust removers do work you can get the same results using just about any of the four or five common DIY solutions to soak off rust, all of which are likely to be cheaper, and some are sooo much cheaper. Personally I think using inexpensive methods is nicely in keeping with buying cheap secondhand tools in the first place