Lyle, as I stated in the past it bothers us inside that anything mechanical doesn't work, we have to fix it. I think it was instilled in me by my father. A job well done Sir.
Isn't that strange how we operate? Dad was a good carpenter but he allowed many different mechanical things for me to fiddle with. Heck he brought them to me.
In the UK, I found paraffin (you call it kerosene) worked; sometimes 3in1 oil diluted with paint thinners. You had me fooled with mare’s urine!! 😂😂😂 👍🇬🇧👍🇺🇸👍
@@derekmills1080I have a set of 3, 4, and 6 inch Moore and Wright precision toolmaker squares made in England. They’re very accurate and I wouldn’t take anything for them.
I do this similarly, but put the jar in an ultrasonic bath, running several times over a few days. The ultrasound gives a bit of heating and the vibration helps the penetrating oil.
Lyle - Thanks for more good edutainment for the first cup of coffee on a Sunday morning. Been there, done that - just don't have the Starrett tee shirt. LOL.
I got a Mitutoyo digital micrometer that was not stuck but was very stiff, turns out it was probably dropped and the nut was bent so that the anvil was rubbing on the hole in the frame, I fixed it by figuring out which way if was bent and giveing it a few taps with a dead blow hammer in the opposite direction. It now moves very smoothly.
This is another video I watched, and remembered it. Rewatched it and fixed a couple of mics. Great teaching video, keep up the teaching. We watch and learn Mr Pete. Thanks.
For a rusty and stuck hardware I use a mixture of half automatic transmission fluid, half acetone. It works wonderful. I keep it in the spray bottle. Anytime I buy something rusty and corroded. I give it a couple sprays the night before I take it apart. Great video. Thanks for your generosity of your time.
Nice job. Since probably around 20 years younger so I still hoard them. That said I pass tools on to young fellows who don't have the means because they are just out of schools or or a new parent that won't be able to afford them. By the way when I was charged way back for bachelor parties I would give the attendees a list of tools they could give him. Women had parties and got gifts, the groom usually didn't get anything to keep his house and vehicle running.
Retired Navy Aviation wrench thrower here. I was MetCal Manager for my last squadron. I was the person who hauled all the calibrated tools like micrometers to AIMD for servicing. I learned there that micrometers and the natural environment of the Navy is not great for micrometers. The discoloration is due to plating loss from corrosion. So long as you keep it oiled, and clean, it'll be fine. For stuck-stuck micrometers, and I mean STUCK, SOP was putting the stuck micrometer into a heated ultrasonic cleaner with something like WD40 set at 120f and leaving it a few hours. 120f you can handle with bare hands, and if that doesn't work? wrap the C-Frame with a rag, and pack the spindle in Dry Ice for a minute. The temperature differential should shrink the spindle enough to break it free from the thimble. If that doesn't work, its assumed something got bent... which, can happen in the Navy.
I grew up using Sloan's Liniment as a penetrant. Not sure why. Don't remember it working either. Sure remember the smell. Thanks for this very interesting video. Always something to learn!
I was taught not to store them fully closed not due to seizing but thermal expansion. When the temp fluctuates and the materials change size it can really load up the threads and damage them. Not sure if that's true or not but it stuck with me. I've packed away most of my mechanical measuring deices as my eyes got worse and now use digital but I know they are all still free, Cosmoline is a wonderful thing.
I use brake fluid and acetone (about 50/50) and I put it in a square-shaped glass Pyrex bowl, so the mics lay flat. Next, I place the bowl on the dash of my old truck (roll the windows up) in the summer time and leave it for a week or two. This gets the brake fluid/acetone mixture very hot and almost always frees-up the mic. Once the mic is free I clean everything in a small ultrasonic tank and after removing the mic I dry everything by disassembling the mic and VERY BREIFLY running my propane torch over the parts to ensure that they're completely dry. Lastly, I apply a few drops of sewing machine oil to the parts.
I wonder if putting the micrometer with brake fluid & acetone in a zip-lock bag & placing the bag in your ultrasonic cleaner would help drive the mixture into the rusted spots quick also??? ... I might have to try that (if it doesn't eat through the bag first).
another great video . nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say . the outcome was great . I have used straight mineral spirits to lubricate things to get them working again , followed by lubricant . WD-40 has it's place . I don't think you would have had the same effect with trying them dry , I am convinced the lube helped.
Thanks Mr Pete. I really enjoyed this video. I have a stiff mic and I’m going to give it a soak. And know I feel like it’s not taboo to disassemble it.
Somebody gave me years ago a seized depth micrometer. I used penetrating oil on it. (Liquid wrench or other type). Within a couple days, it loosened. If I recall, seizure was in the threads. (Probably dried lubricant). To hold up thimble in the process on 0 to 1 in, I would use a lathe collet mounted in lathe spindle and lock spindle.
The best penetrant I have used, especially on things like gummed up electric motors, is Rust Buster in a plastic bottle with a pull out zoom spout (same container as Turbine Oil) Very thin, very little oil, with electric motors after they are free oil must be applied since the Rust Buster will evaporate. It says made by PG Products Mfg Co. Inc. of New York. I got it off the counter of my local HVAC/Appliance Parts store
Good morning Mr.Pete. I found a starrett 1inch micrometer im my uncle's toolbox when he passed away. Soaked it in wd40 and now its my favorite pair to use at work...soooo smooth!! Thanks for the video and for saving those beautiful tools!! Take care.
Tarnished and beat. Just like all of us. The older I get, the less I know. I didn't know any of this. School never stops unless we do. Crazy interesting video to me!
process, but I finally got the mic working as well as it was prior to disassembly. I think the proper advise would be to not touch the lock when the spindle is removed. Also the Starrett lock mechanism is a very impressive design. Might make a good "How it Works" video, if you feel so inclined. Thanks so much, I really enjoy your videos. Keep them coming.
Great job in showing that a little finesse works better that force. I have a needle oiler that I use on all tools that need oil ( joints, threaded and slides ) about every two weeks or so.
PTFE teflon based libricants like Slick50 works a treat. When the tiny high spots rub the teflon melts due to friction, then friction is bugger all. Spill some on the lathe bed and the tailstock won't lock until some abrasive removes the teflon. Been using this stuff on most things for 40+ years. 😅😊 Great on micrometers.
Blacksmith home made micrometer from around 1930 my grandad made and engraved, I still have it and it works, he said he used the steel from the half shaft from a lorry. I have photos of the shaper and thread turning lathe and in one photo you can see him shoeing a shire horse. If I put a photo link here in the comment YT will delete the comment.
am almost done making a bolt from aluminum. it is 2" x 16 thread, with a 12 point 2 1/4 head. I bored the shank out to a 3/16 wall. I cut off the cap, and i am boring it inside to 2 x 16 tpi. Once its done the threaded section will thread into the cap, and appear to be a large plain bolt, but it will have a 1 5/8 stash inside it. i am cutting the cap flats on the mill with a spindexer. Once i get my chuck mounted on the rotary table i should have better accuracy, but it looks good so far! Great channel!!
Sea water - Diving in Scotland on wrecks if you found any brass threaded items the trick was to unscrew them ASAP when everything was still wet; if you waited until you got home they would seize up. I guess any non ferrous large items might work for freeing up moving parts. However there are better "solutions" just cost a bit more than salt per gallon.
Can't believe I'm up to watch this, Good morning Mr Pete! Micrometers should be 40 TPI. Have to wonder if one of them newfangled Ultrasonic cleaners with say a really thin solvent ( like acetone) would loosen one up But do give you credit, never would have tried that approach
Over 30 years of racing on the Bonneville Salt Flats I have used every known trick and solvents there are. A 50-50 mixture of Acetone and ATF is the best thing to use.
Hey Mr Pete. Good video. I came across a large mahogany box while dumpster diving at a major lithography company. Inside the box I found a full set of Starrett C micrometers. Apparently they were changing to digital and just threw everything out. They WERE in perfect condition. But I had to put them in storage for 7 years. Now they are rusted and stuck. Is there any hope? There are 10 of them ranging in size from about 14” to about 3”. I wish I could send you photos. Also got a set of linear calipers 6, 12, 18” in mahogany box. You would not believe the stuff I found in their dumpsters over the 3 years I worked there. Thanks, Paul
I just got x3 starrett micrometers 7-8, 10-11 & 11-12" I found them on eBay. They are boxed and look like new but are stuck with standing. So i will be trying out this method, Mr Pete 👍🏻
Dear Lyle.....this is too Weird......2 years ago, I bought a Kennedy machinist box [the big one] from an older gent with his machinist tools...he had changed trades...his Last name was Kelly, and 2 months before, I bought a large lot of machinist tools from the 50 year old architect son of a machinist who had passed whose name was Jensen........ I feel as if both men are in the shop with me every time I use their tools......I did get the deal of the century as most were Starrett.... .thanks for the informative video on unsticking a stuck Micrometer......best wishes.....Paul
When I worked in aerospace, electro-mechanical actuator dept. this was such projects as the ISS cadram unit, carbon dioxide removal apparatus, abram tank and FA-18 vapor cycle cooling systems etc, us "technicians" and the engineers thought up a test. penetrating oil, we all thought up the way to test, we machined them, the other dept rusted them all up after tightening them all exact, nuts and threaded holes, all exact, long story short, we found aero-kroil actually creates more rust, but it sure is popular, and funny you mentioned it, 'liquid wrench' won under many test criteria. we didn't try atf & acetone however, fun times, made cool stuff, we were not production but machined prototypes and parts for one off and units under test. "Liquid Wrench" won
Did the same with a rusted one, though I did use electrolysis to do the rust removal, and it did come free after a while, and a coat of oil did help keep it that way.
Mr. Pete, you always present some very interesting and funny stuff and I always enjoy listening to and learning such things. My question today though is this: how in the world does one collect mares urine without getting kicked, trampled or contaminated from head to toe. ..I guess that this question should best be directed to your neighbor with the big old horse they call Lady. ..LOL!
Lyle, I am trying to salvage a Starrett #216 micrometer that is rusty but not stuck. Thanks for the video on calibrating a 216. When you chucked these up in the lathe, did you just use soft jaws on the thimble, or try to take the thimble off first? We are contemporaneous and I used to teach Auto Shop and Ag. Mechanics when Hoover was President.😄 Thanks! Super Videos!.
There's no doubt the WD40 helped free up the molasses old dirty oil/lube that dried up on the friction points. The best method was performed, even if it might take 7 days and nights or 14, soaking those in a solution meant to free up gunk. Even some of the home brew liquids were used as noted herein, time to soak is the least collateral damage method.
What sticks 'em? Old lube combined with sweat & dust & smegma, turn into a super glue? Is there any oil/lube that doesn't dry out & leave a hard/semi-hard residue?
Looking at where the corrosion was I would guess that coolant has got inside the mic and caused the rust , if you clean the mic with a cloth and wind it closed and open and wipe it again then you should get the coolant out , be careful if you disassemble the mic in case you get it into the threads as this can ruin them and you will lose accuracy if not end up with a seized mic . Ultra sonic cleaners are good and you can get some good solutions for them we used something called Lotoxane , a brand name .
A work colleague asked if I could free up his stuck 0-1” mic. I put it into a tin of machine oil and boiled it. On cooling, it opened up and with a little cleaning has worked ever since.
When I was a Senior Engineering at a power plant, the GE rep was having trouble breaking one of the nuts, 2", loose on the upper half of the turbine shell. No matter how hard the slugging wrench was hit the nut would not move. He had as call around until we could find pure oil of wintergreen, It had to be pure, not man made. Put oil on the nut and around a hour later the nut was off. Since then I have kept some in my shop.
I can't imagine your tool "karma" keeping you from fixing a broken tool. You have kept quite a few tools from the landfill, so you must have very good tool karma. ... However, you might have very bad toothbrush karma. Don't be surprised if one day you find your wife using your toothbrush to clean the grout on the bathroom floor. 🙂 ... Love your videos!
The problem is Starrett Mics. I was QC manager in a 7-acre precision machine shop, and we had hundreds of Mics. We used Browne and Sharp, Starrett, Mitutoyo, and a few Fowler. Hardly a week went by that a Starrett Mic didn't seize. It was the threads, that seized, not the shaft. I blamed it on the metallurgy, because none of the other Mics, ever galled and seized. Sometimes you get lucky and they would come off by hand with a lot of twisting (the threads actually get hot from the friction!) A little anti-seize made them feel great, but once cleaned and oiled, they would eventually seize up again. I just totally stopped buying them.
Thanks for another cool video . I have a No. 436 -1 too , very smooth until it gets to .7 , then it drags a bit . Back to smooth after .85 . Is there a fix ? Thanks .
My way of unsticking mics. was to soak in penetrating oil, then leave it on a running machine for a few days in a position where pumped oil is constantly flooding it along the spindle. te heat, vibration and oil flow usually do the job.
WD 40 may be the cause for them sticking. The company where I worked for years would spray adjustable reamers with WD40 before they put them in storage tubes. If not used for mouths, the blades would refuse to slide. Many blades were broken and others were put in the dumpster. It took a lot of soaking to get them loose. Today I would soak in a warmed CRC rust removal product.
Trying to get penetrant into small parts? Use a trick from the wood turners to get resin into porous wood. Vacuum. Even a couple of PSI from a bicycle pump would pull the air out and let the penetrant in. Do that a couple of times and the tightest spaces will be coated.
I use a Harbor Freight, heated ultrasonic cleaner, filled with tap water. The offending object is placed in a Zip lock bag, with enough ATF ( Automatic Transmission Fluid ) to cover the part. The now sealed Zip lock bag, is now placed into the heated water in the ultrasonic cleaners tank, and run through a few cycles, about 15 to 20 min per cycle. You will be amazed at the penetration ability of ATF, especially when it is heated a bit!!! As the micrometer is cleaning in the bath, you should see a faint stain trail of rust, or what ever, coming out of the frame, where the spindle passes through it. This is where they tend to freeze up, because moisture gets wicked into that very tiny space, where is does it's chemical rust formation. This chemical process creates FeO2, Iron oxide, which expands to tightly close the precision lapped space around the spindle. The O2 atom is, by its nature is larger when combined with the Fe atom. Given the small area, the bond created is very strong. Automotive lug nuts have the same problem, so despite the manufacturers warning to not use anti seize on lug nuts, the anti seize, with it's copper or Nickle micro particles in graphite and oil, the space is reduced between the lug threads, and the lug nut threads to prevent the egress of moisture, thus preventing rust seizure. Tim
Neverseize is too thick and not the right product for this application. Use Marvel Mystery or some other light oil such as Starrett for micrometers and other precision instruments.
I was told not to store a mic closed to prevent capillary action drawing moisture between the faces. Keeping a gap was to prevent corrosion. Thermal effects are not to be expected due to lack of dissimilar materials in the mic. Cheers.
Lyle (or anyone): Is there NO product or technique that will effectively get rid of "staining" on precision tools? I have purchased a Starrett 36" satin chrome ruler from E-Bay that has not only serious rust spots, but also some general staining along both of it's two sides that I would like to try and remove (or improve) somehow, even though it is definitely usable and readable as is. Any knowledgeable suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
I would tend to not trust a seized micrometer as the accuracy is in the thread accuracy so the measurements if freed may not be good . The reason why you don't leave a micrometer is closed is that the thread could become stretched . When you calibrate a micrometer one of the tests for wear is to use an optical flat and count the fringes , I had to calibrate a mic which one of the shop floor guys told me was over thirty years old , sadly the anvils had over time become domed and were not acceptable for calibration purposes , luckily we bought him a new mic and told him that his old mic needed to be retired . Oh well .
Fun (?) fact: mare urine is actually used for medicine! Now, it has to be *pregnant* mare’s urine, so the brand name is Premarin. and I suppose they might have some other processing steps. But it’s used for its estrogen in dealing with menopause issues, etc.
You bringing the vise grips close to the thimble raised my heart rate a little
lol
Lyle, as I stated in the past it bothers us inside that anything mechanical doesn't work, we have to fix it. I think it was instilled in me by my father. A job well done Sir.
Isn't that strange how we operate? Dad was a good carpenter but he allowed many different mechanical things for me to fiddle with. Heck he brought them to me.
There is no known cure. 😔
Best break free fluid I found is homemade. Equal parts ATF and acetone. Better than anything store bought
What is ATF?
@@carrollprice1213Automatic Transmission Fluid
And old ATF if you can get some.
Thanks.@@steve_weinrich
jWe use that mix too. It works great.
Thank you Mr Pete.
Kan-O-Kroil has amazed me many times. It smells like top job.
Well, i just turned the coffee maker on and per my weekly routine it's time watch an episode from Lyle. Good morning everyone.
Good morning!
In the UK, I found paraffin (you call it kerosene) worked; sometimes 3in1 oil diluted with paint thinners.
You had me fooled with mare’s urine!! 😂😂😂
👍🇬🇧👍🇺🇸👍
Many of my measuring tools are old Moore and Wright brand - a premier British name, still around today. 👍
@@derekmills1080I have a set of 3, 4, and 6 inch Moore and Wright precision toolmaker squares made in England. They’re very accurate and I wouldn’t take anything for them.
@@ellieprice363 Excellent! 👍
I believe WD40 is mostly just kerosene(parafin)
@@jason86768 👍
I do this similarly, but put the jar in an ultrasonic bath, running several times over a few days. The ultrasound gives a bit of heating and the vibration helps the penetrating oil.
I’m using ultrasonics for pretty much everything now. Different fluids for different purposes.
Nice euphemism for Heineken, never thought that stuff would loosen a stuck micrometer
Lyle - Thanks for more good edutainment for the first cup of coffee on a Sunday morning. Been there, done that - just don't have the Starrett tee shirt. LOL.
👍
I got a Mitutoyo digital micrometer that was not stuck but was very stiff, turns out it was probably dropped and the nut was bent so that the anvil was rubbing on the hole in the frame, I fixed it by figuring out which way if was bent and giveing it a few taps with a dead blow hammer in the opposite direction. It now moves very smoothly.
This is another video I watched, and remembered it. Rewatched it and fixed a couple of mics. Great teaching video, keep up the teaching. We watch and learn Mr Pete. Thanks.
I'd be pleased to have either micrometer in my tool set. Thanks for another informative and entertaining video. 😀
For a rusty and stuck hardware I use a mixture of half automatic transmission fluid, half acetone. It works wonderful. I keep it in the spray bottle. Anytime I buy something rusty and corroded. I give it a couple sprays the night before I take it apart. Great video. Thanks for your generosity of your time.
Kerosene works pretty good...
2:05...no, that's a BAD idea...(!)
4:54...THAT'S DISGUSTING-(!)
Nice job. Since probably around 20 years younger so I still hoard them. That said I pass tools on to young fellows who don't have the means because they are just out of schools or or a new parent that won't be able to afford them. By the way when I was charged way back for bachelor parties I would give the attendees a list of tools they could give him. Women had parties and got gifts, the groom usually didn't get anything to keep his house and vehicle running.
I learn so much from you, Lyle! Crocus cloth... never heard of it but what I need to clean a metal piece!
Scotch brite pads work just as well
Black oxide sandpaper...'wet' sand with light oil.
Retired Navy Aviation wrench thrower here. I was MetCal Manager for my last squadron. I was the person who hauled all the calibrated tools like micrometers to AIMD for servicing. I learned there that micrometers and the natural environment of the Navy is not great for micrometers. The discoloration is due to plating loss from corrosion. So long as you keep it oiled, and clean, it'll be fine. For stuck-stuck micrometers, and I mean STUCK, SOP was putting the stuck micrometer into a heated ultrasonic cleaner with something like WD40 set at 120f and leaving it a few hours. 120f you can handle with bare hands, and if that doesn't work? wrap the C-Frame with a rag, and pack the spindle in Dry Ice for a minute. The temperature differential should shrink the spindle enough to break it free from the thimble. If that doesn't work, its assumed something got bent... which, can happen in the Navy.
👍👍👍
I grew up using Sloan's Liniment as a penetrant. Not sure why. Don't remember it working either. Sure remember the smell. Thanks for this very interesting video. Always something to learn!
Liniment! I'd bet we'd recognize that smell yet today.
I was taught not to store them fully closed not due to seizing but thermal expansion. When the temp fluctuates and the materials change size it can really load up the threads and damage them. Not sure if that's true or not but it stuck with me. I've packed away most of my mechanical measuring deices as my eyes got worse and now use digital but I know they are all still free, Cosmoline is a wonderful thing.
👍👍
I use brake fluid and acetone (about 50/50) and I put it in a square-shaped glass Pyrex bowl, so the mics lay flat. Next, I place the bowl on the dash of my old truck (roll the windows up) in the summer time and leave it for a week or two. This gets the brake fluid/acetone mixture very hot and almost always frees-up the mic. Once the mic is free I clean everything in a small ultrasonic tank and after removing the mic I dry everything by disassembling the mic and VERY BREIFLY running my propane torch over the parts to ensure that they're completely dry. Lastly, I apply a few drops of sewing machine oil to the parts.
👍👍👍👍
I wonder if putting the micrometer with brake fluid & acetone in a zip-lock bag & placing the bag in your ultrasonic cleaner would help drive the mixture into the rusted spots quick also??? ... I might have to try that (if it doesn't eat through the bag first).
@@davelister796 I'm guessing that the acetone would eat through the bag, but I'm not sure.
And all of the plastic in your truck is cracked and eaten up.
@@TgWags69 No, the plastic in my truck is fine because the liquid is in a glass bowl.
Ahh, now I know what WD40 is made from! great tutorial Mr Pete,,,cheers
That's a beautiful lathe in that catalogue.
I wish you could buy them for $63-50 nowadays.
Thanks Mr Pete I went and checked out my mics after this video all good 👍
I did the same.
I just love it when a plan comes together
another great video . nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say . the outcome was great . I have used straight mineral spirits to lubricate things to get them working again , followed by lubricant . WD-40 has it's place . I don't think you would have had the same effect with trying them dry , I am convinced the lube helped.
Thanks Mr Pete. I really enjoyed this video. I have a stiff mic and I’m going to give it a soak. And know I feel like it’s not taboo to disassemble it.
Somebody gave me years ago a seized depth micrometer. I used penetrating oil on it. (Liquid wrench or other type). Within a couple days, it loosened. If I recall, seizure was in the threads. (Probably dried lubricant). To hold up thimble in the process on 0 to 1 in, I would use a lathe collet mounted in lathe spindle and lock spindle.
The best penetrant I have used, especially on things like gummed up electric motors, is Rust Buster in a plastic bottle with a pull out zoom spout (same container as Turbine Oil) Very thin, very little oil, with electric motors after they are free oil must be applied since the Rust Buster will evaporate. It says made by PG Products Mfg Co. Inc. of New York. I got it off the counter of my local HVAC/Appliance Parts store
Great tip!
Good morning Mr.Pete. I found a starrett 1inch micrometer im my uncle's toolbox when he passed away. Soaked it in wd40 and now its my favorite pair to use at work...soooo smooth!! Thanks for the video and for saving those beautiful tools!! Take care.
Tarnished and beat. Just like all of us.
The older I get, the less I know.
I didn't know any of this. School never stops unless we do.
Crazy interesting video to me!
👍👍
process, but I finally got the mic working as well as it was prior to disassembly. I think the proper advise would be to not touch the lock when the spindle is removed. Also the Starrett lock mechanism is a very impressive design. Might make a good "How it Works" video, if you feel so inclined. Thanks so much, I really enjoy your videos. Keep them coming.
👍👍
Great job in showing that a little finesse works better that force. I have a needle oiler that I use on all tools that need oil ( joints, threaded and slides ) about every two weeks or so.
PTFE teflon based libricants like Slick50 works a treat. When the tiny high spots rub the teflon melts due to friction, then friction is bugger all. Spill some on the lathe bed and the tailstock won't lock until some abrasive removes the teflon. Been using this stuff on most things for 40+ years. 😅😊 Great on micrometers.
Thanks
Blacksmith home made micrometer from around 1930 my grandad made and engraved, I still have it and it works, he said he used the steel from the half shaft from a lorry. I have photos of the shaper and thread turning lathe and in one photo you can see him shoeing a shire horse. If I put a photo link here in the comment YT will delete the comment.
👍
am almost done making a bolt from aluminum. it is 2" x 16 thread, with a 12 point 2 1/4 head. I bored the shank out to a 3/16 wall. I cut off the cap, and i am boring it inside to 2 x 16 tpi. Once its done the threaded section will thread into the cap, and appear to be a large plain bolt, but it will have a 1 5/8 stash inside it. i am cutting the cap flats on the mill with a spindexer. Once i get my chuck mounted on the rotary table i should have better accuracy, but it looks good so far! Great channel!!
I learned how to use the little wrenches and you got 2 more micrometers.Thank you mrpete.
Sea water - Diving in Scotland on wrecks if you found any brass threaded items the trick was to unscrew them ASAP when everything was still wet; if you waited until you got home they would seize up. I guess any non ferrous large items might work for freeing up moving parts. However there are better "solutions" just cost a bit more than salt per gallon.
Thanks for your videos. I have always loved shop and the knowledge the shop teachers always gave us.
My pleasure!
Can't believe I'm up to watch this, Good morning Mr Pete!
Micrometers should be 40 TPI.
Have to wonder if one of them newfangled Ultrasonic cleaners with say a really thin solvent ( like acetone) would loosen one up
But do give you credit, never would have tried that approach
Off to see if I can loosen up Dad's old 230. Thanks for this one Mr. Pete!
Well done, perfectly useable now for most applications, like welding clamps, gluing clamps, LOL.
Over 30 years of racing on the Bonneville Salt Flats I have used every known trick and solvents there are. A 50-50 mixture of Acetone and ATF is the best thing to use.
Thanks for sharing!
this is timely, I Have 2 Micrometers that need some repair....thank you Lyle.....Paul
I have a mic that's stuck. Now I'll have to dig it out and get it unstuck.
Thanks MrPete.
Well the WD 4- came to the rescue instead of needing to head over to the mare! Good tips on repair that precision instrument.
Nice! Soaking corroded things like that in "Marvel Mystery Oil" is another good choice. (It's one of the things people used to do before WD-40.)
Thank you for sharing Pete.
Hey Mr Pete. Good video. I came across a large mahogany box while dumpster diving at a major lithography company. Inside the box I found a full set of Starrett C micrometers. Apparently they were changing to digital and just threw everything out. They WERE in perfect condition. But I had to put them in storage for 7 years. Now they are rusted and stuck.
Is there any hope? There are 10 of them ranging in size from about 14” to about 3”.
I wish I could send you photos.
Also got a set of linear calipers 6, 12, 18” in mahogany box.
You would not believe the stuff I found in their dumpsters over the 3 years I worked there.
Thanks,
Paul
Wow, that would be dumpster diving at its best. All I can say is soak them for a few weeks.
I used ATF fluid and some minutes later, magic, now it works as new, mine is a Brown & Sharpe No. 8
I just got x3 starrett micrometers 7-8, 10-11 & 11-12" I found them on eBay. They are boxed and look like new but are stuck with standing.
So i will be trying out this method, Mr Pete 👍🏻
Good luck!
Dear Lyle.....this is too Weird......2 years ago, I bought a Kennedy machinist box [the big one] from an older gent with his machinist tools...he had changed trades...his Last name was Kelly,
and 2 months before, I bought a large lot of machinist tools from the 50 year old architect son of a machinist who had passed whose name was Jensen........
I feel as if both men are in the shop with me every time I use their tools......I did get the deal of the century as most were Starrett....
.thanks for the informative video on unsticking a stuck Micrometer......best wishes.....Paul
👍👍👍
Thank you so much mr pete for sharing this!😊
Good Sunday Morning Mr Pete!!!
The Tennessee Mole Man
👍🇺🇸🍊🍊🙏✝️
My yesterday comment disappeared. 🤔
What happened?
Repairing a stuck micrometre is like a play game of luck. For get things unstuck I have used kerosine, it is similar as aka wd 40. Good luck!
When I worked in aerospace, electro-mechanical actuator dept. this was such projects as the ISS cadram unit, carbon dioxide removal apparatus, abram tank and FA-18 vapor cycle cooling systems etc, us "technicians" and the engineers thought up a test. penetrating oil, we all thought up the way to test, we machined them, the other dept rusted them all up after tightening them all exact, nuts and threaded holes, all exact, long story short, we found aero-kroil actually creates more rust, but it sure is popular, and funny you mentioned it, 'liquid wrench' won under many test criteria. we didn't try atf & acetone however, fun times, made cool stuff, we were not production but machined prototypes and parts for one off and units under test. "Liquid Wrench" won
I have been using liquid wrench since I was a boy. But it doesn’t seem to be very popular anymore.
Great how to.... and I love your humor.
Oh, and 40 tpi.
Yeah, I Googled it, but at least I know now. 😁
Excellent!
Did the same with a rusted one, though I did use electrolysis to do the rust removal, and it did come free after a while, and a coat of oil did help keep it that way.
thats a good result mrpete !
cheers ben.
Our maintenance man was Joe Miller. CR36 was Joe in a can. Soak them in CR36. Joe never fails.
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Mr. Pete, you always present some very interesting and funny stuff and I always enjoy listening to and learning such things. My question today though is this: how in the world does one collect mares urine without getting kicked, trampled or contaminated from head to toe. ..I guess that this question should best be directed to your neighbor with the big old horse they call Lady. ..LOL!
I must confess that I got pretty wet
Very nicely done. Thank you Mr. Pete
Mare's urine 😂 that was so funny Mrpete 👍👍👍 good job sorting those micrometers out 👍👍
Lyle, I am trying to salvage a Starrett #216 micrometer that is rusty but not stuck. Thanks for the video on calibrating a 216. When you chucked these up in the lathe, did you just use soft jaws on the thimble, or try to take the thimble off first? We are contemporaneous and I used to teach Auto Shop and Ag. Mechanics when Hoover was President.😄 Thanks! Super Videos!.
If that were true, you would be 110 years old. I started teaching when Johnson was an office.
There's no doubt the WD40 helped free up the molasses old dirty oil/lube that dried up on the friction points. The best method was performed, even if it might take 7 days and nights or 14, soaking those in a solution meant to free up gunk. Even some of the home brew liquids were used as noted herein, time to soak is the least collateral damage method.
I have a stuck one that I've been holding on to for 25+ years. I'm going to try this.
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What sticks 'em? Old lube combined with sweat & dust & smegma, turn into a super glue? Is there any oil/lube that doesn't dry out & leave a hard/semi-hard residue?
Looking at where the corrosion was I would guess that coolant has got inside the mic and caused the rust , if you clean the mic with a cloth and wind it closed and open and wipe it again then you should get the coolant out , be careful if you disassemble the mic in case you get it into the threads as this can ruin them and you will lose accuracy if not end up with a seized mic . Ultra sonic cleaners are good and you can get some good solutions for them we used something called Lotoxane , a brand name .
A work colleague asked if I could free up his stuck 0-1” mic. I put it into a tin of machine oil and boiled it. On cooling, it opened up and with a little cleaning has worked ever since.
That's a great idea!
Draft horses are awesome, I'd love to see the Belgian. I was surprised how much crud was in them
Thanks Mr Pete 🖖
good morning. Crack detection fluid is a wonderful penetrant for tightly toleranced parts.
When I was a Senior Engineering at a power plant, the GE rep was having trouble breaking one of the nuts, 2", loose on the upper half of the turbine shell. No matter how hard the slugging wrench was hit the nut would not move. He had as call around until we could find pure oil of wintergreen, It had to be pure, not man made. Put oil on the nut and around a hour later the nut was off. Since then I have kept some in my shop.
Very interesting, I have never heard of that
Thank you, Mr. Pete, for another informative video! I was wondering if using WD-40 with an ultrasonic cleaner would aid in loosening the barrel?
Would be interested in a video showing how to make and use the mare urine collector...
Could you strain the used WD40 through coffee filter paper to remove the sediment?
I can't imagine your tool "karma" keeping you from fixing a broken tool. You have kept quite a few tools from the landfill, so you must have very good tool karma. ... However, you might have very bad toothbrush karma. Don't be surprised if one day you find your wife using your toothbrush to clean the grout on the bathroom floor. 🙂 ... Love your videos!
lol
The problem is Starrett Mics. I was QC manager in a 7-acre precision machine shop, and we had hundreds of Mics. We used Browne and Sharp, Starrett, Mitutoyo, and a few Fowler. Hardly a week went by that a Starrett Mic didn't seize. It was the threads, that seized, not the shaft. I blamed it on the metallurgy, because none of the other Mics, ever galled and seized. Sometimes you get lucky and they would come off by hand with a lot of twisting (the threads actually get hot from the friction!) A little anti-seize made them feel great, but once cleaned and oiled, they would eventually seize up again. I just totally stopped buying them.
thanks for sharing
I have a Starret 436 that I got off eBay. It came in the original box with a price tag marked $10.75...
Thanks for another cool video . I have a No. 436 -1 too , very smooth until it gets to .7 , then it drags a bit . Back to smooth after .85 . Is there a fix ? Thanks .
My way of unsticking mics. was to soak in penetrating oil, then leave it on a running machine for a few days in a position where pumped oil is constantly flooding it along the spindle. te heat, vibration and oil flow usually do the job.
Great solution
WD 40 may be the cause for them sticking. The company where I worked for years would spray adjustable reamers with WD40 before they put them in storage tubes. If not used for mouths, the blades would refuse to slide. Many blades were broken and others were put in the dumpster. It took a lot of soaking to get them loose. Today I would soak in a warmed CRC rust removal product.
Trying to get penetrant into small parts? Use a trick from the wood turners to get resin into porous wood. Vacuum. Even a couple of PSI from a bicycle pump would pull the air out and let the penetrant in. Do that a couple of times and the tightest spaces will be coated.
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Thank you Mr Pete
Hmmm working horses with Jim has a horse that fits that horse description! LOL
That’s exactly who I got my fantasy idea from
Great job 👍🇺🇲👊
I would have gone with the vice grips for sure!
Good job 😊
Nice work glad the horse piss worked figured it would mr pete .had to do that to one I got from a flea market got it thrown in on some other stuff.
I use a Harbor Freight, heated ultrasonic cleaner, filled with tap water.
The offending object is placed in a Zip lock bag, with enough ATF ( Automatic Transmission Fluid ) to cover the part.
The now sealed Zip lock bag, is now placed into the heated water in the ultrasonic cleaners tank, and run through a few cycles, about 15 to 20 min per cycle.
You will be amazed at the penetration ability of ATF, especially when it is heated a bit!!!
As the micrometer is cleaning in the bath, you should see a faint stain trail of rust, or what ever, coming out of the frame, where the spindle passes through it. This is where they tend to freeze up, because moisture gets wicked into that very tiny space, where is does it's chemical rust formation. This chemical process creates FeO2, Iron oxide, which expands to tightly close the precision lapped space around the spindle. The O2 atom is, by its nature is larger when combined with the Fe atom.
Given the small area, the bond created is very strong.
Automotive lug nuts have the same problem, so despite the manufacturers warning to not use anti seize on lug nuts, the anti seize, with it's copper or Nickle micro particles in graphite and oil, the space is reduced between the lug threads, and the lug nut threads to prevent the egress of moisture, thus preventing rust seizure.
Tim
Thank you for the great information
Hey, Mr. Pete. Would never-seize be ok to use on reassembly? Do you think Boeing T9 would help prevent further rust? ⭐🙂👍
Neverseize is too thick and not the right product for this application. Use Marvel Mystery or some other light oil such as Starrett for micrometers and other precision instruments.
Thanks again
7:52...for an inch micrometer, 40 threads per inch...
I was told not to store a mic closed to prevent capillary action drawing moisture between the faces. Keeping a gap was to prevent corrosion. Thermal effects are not to be expected due to lack of dissimilar materials in the mic. Cheers.
Lyle (or anyone): Is there NO product or technique that will effectively get rid of "staining" on precision tools?
I have purchased a Starrett 36" satin chrome ruler from E-Bay that has not only serious rust spots, but also some general staining along both of it's two sides that I would like to try and remove (or improve) somehow, even though it is definitely usable and readable as is. Any knowledgeable suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Rub gently with Cratex rubber abrasive, fine steel wool, or fine scotch-brite with WD-40.
I don’t think there’s any way to get rid of staining
I was waiting for the video of the 98 year old man convincing a horse to pee in a jar .
Lol
I would tend to not trust a seized micrometer as the accuracy is in the thread accuracy so the measurements if freed may not be good . The reason why you don't leave a micrometer is closed is that the thread could become stretched . When you calibrate a micrometer one of the tests for wear is to use an optical flat and count the fringes , I had to calibrate a mic which one of the shop floor guys told me was over thirty years old , sadly the anvils had over time become domed and were not acceptable for calibration purposes , luckily we bought him a new mic and told him that his old mic needed to be retired . Oh well .
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7:26...the only abrasive I'd use for something like that, is metal polish and a soft cloth-(!)
A product I have little faith in, that's why I buy it by the gallon. lol
What a funny video with that highly secret rust-busting mixture. Question nobody asked. “How many threads per inch in a metric micrometer?”
fyi. Crocus Cloth is 1000 Grit. 🤓 I use black oxide sandpaper of various grits depending on the stage of polishing.
Fun (?) fact: mare urine is actually used for medicine! Now, it has to be *pregnant* mare’s urine, so the brand name is Premarin. and I suppose they might have some other processing steps. But it’s used for its estrogen in dealing with menopause issues, etc.
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