Manky Monkey Motors

I have been cleaning up a few parts for my   SCT trials car, my mate rolls up on his bike and as we are looking at the progress and generally yarning about, he mentions (quote) Why not use a battery charger and get rid of rust in salt water, i have heard some where you can.
    Well that as fatal and a good excuse to go indoors make some tea  and give it a coat of looking at on the tinternett.  8)
    Absolute cart loads of youtube vids bits of threads on various yank and ausie hot rod forums mig welding uk site and others i cant remember.
  Anyhow i got an old storage container a five  gallons of water and 5 tablespoons of  washing soda the wife  gets from savers for  65p a KG, couple of lats and a bit of 2 core wire a old marlin u bolt and hung a A40 brake drum off a old coat hanger positive on the scrap and negative on the work  and switched on the battery charger.
    It works loads of rust bubbling about clan as a whistle like a dull blackish crud floating near the scrap metal.   8)
 Seems i must be the only one in the world not to know about this.  ;D

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Can we see some before & after photos?
You're not alone mate. I know about home plating, but not seen this before. Interesting.

 I am on the first brake drum and was not even sure it would work, when Trev went home i went for a spin on my XT and came back home full of enthusiasm and went and cobbled up that rig. so i will take some before and after pics tomorrow in daylight.  Loads of stuff on youtube about this method, and another youtube vid off an  Ausie hot rod lad sticking rusty panels in water and molasses that looked a good thing too, and on the same proses some Again an Aussie cleaning up a barbaque burnner, it looks alright that molasses idea. 

i,v heard about it,,,read about it,,,been told about it by someone that does it ,, threatenend to try it ,,,,but,,,as yet never done it ,,may be i ought to try it,, ::)

This is that molasses method off that Aussie hot rod lad i was on about, this looks good to me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZCFcxf5IBw&feature=player_detailpage
and another vid 2 ... same theme
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-gBAjEga1s&feature=player_detailpage

http://www.mankymonkeymotors.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=9158.0

Blimey it is like a mirror image right down to the molasses  ;D
   By the way... I got some molasses lined up watch this space, i think that looks the best. but not sure yet. What i have done of the battery charger method is it leaves like a soft black surface stuff it wipes off dead easy like. Not anything like rust. I used a u bolt not ideal as i found out and you mention, will use a lump of plate from now on .
     See it was on here all the time why look any where else. :)

lol i never did find that link. i work in a bottling plant and one of the guys spilt some phosphoric acid on his bunch
just whiping it up took most of the surface rust off his bench

Yes been looking at phosphoric acid from an outfit in Goole north Humberside was about 17 quid for 5 litres was  cheaper for 20 litre though  50 quid.
  Molasses looks good to me 7 quid for 5 litre and will knock a quid off per 5 litre for anything over 15 litre.

Before and after .. About half an hour with the charger method. that black stuff is like a softish carbon sort of stuff  scrapes off with your nail. If you clean stuff off and give it another go it comes out cleaner each time, oil old paint etc holds back the proses some what.

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(http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w91/tikka25/Picture899.jpg)

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That's quite impressive. Looks as effective as wire brushing & certainly a lot less effort.

The charger method is effective to a point, if you set up a few things and a tidy suspension frame so items surround the scrap metal you could clean a lot of fiddly bits no effort at all and no abrasion. That soft black stuff you could shift with a brass brush and stick it back in for another half hour, it gets clean then. I will stick that clutch fork back in and post some more pics once that black stuff is off.. 
    Next up Molasses  :) I have great hopes for this method.  Then don't go thinking we are done oh no its Phosphoric acid after this .
   


The next stuff up this ....  Molasses .....7 quid for 5 litre know where i can get it cheaper give us a yell. 

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Got the malasses rust removing up and going last night, found this an old drill stand looked ok for tests, and some other bits and bobs added to the mix latter. Three guesses what it mixed in . ;D ;D
Long wait now though a week or even three.perhaps. :)

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Taz uses Molasses at her stable yard, but I'm not actually sure what it is -a sort of thick treacle isn't it?

 Yea that's about it, totally harmless, we have used it on occasion for winter store cattle, that's how i knew where to get it straight off.  As that aussie lad on the video link says  it pongs a bit so wear gloves.
 Marmite as molasses and the kids eat crates of the stuff so must be ok  ;D   

I have not played with the battery charger but stuck no pun intended ;D to the molasses, it is very effective. I will take some pics of the drill stand and a few other bits i photoed since i last posted. It really is a good way of cleaning up rusty parts it is slow but effective and according to those vids i found look as though the solution lasts about six months so i am trying to get as much done as i can on this tank.
    I cleaned up the devon front inner wing panels, i took the horrible bituminous under seal they were lathered in off the wheel side with a heat gun, the remaining paint i got off with cellulose thinners and this revealed as you would expect lots of rust, the molasses did the trick in a week i had 80percent at a guess off the rust off  and they are in now for hope fully the last swim.

PS that zink primer stuff the ausie used can you get that over here or similar stuff. ?

Yeah, Loony buys it in aerosol cans from his local paint shop. Not sure of the make, but can find out.

Galvafroid is a cold zinc coating (as the name suggests) we used to use it on galvanised steel after repair work etc. I have used it as a base coat on a frame a long time ago just as a trial. I hand painted it then rubbed it down and it worked pretty well.

This looks like the current incarnation of the stuff the ausie rodder bloke was using on his vid, .



http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/POR-15-Prep-and-Ready-previously-called-Metal-Ready-3-78-litres-NEW-/380454704182?pt=UK_Body_Shop_Supplies_Paint&hash=item5894de1436

I have come to a conclusion on what is the best rust removal system between soda and battery charger and molasses.
MOLASSES  :)... NO! ....i hear you say .. ;D ;D ;D But MOLASSES it is folks, based on my totally unscientific tests  Molasses 1 part to 9 parts water is slower than electrolysis but is gentle and less messing about just dump stuff in and leave it if you leave an half decent panel in it will get under loose paint brings the steel up like new in the end, i like this did from the start and it lasts six months so it will get you through most project clean ups i should imagine.  If you are on with a big pile of rust at the moment give it a shot i like it.

So there we have it -conclusive proof from the Manky lab!

:)

 ;D ;D