Great video thanks. I do a last stage before painting - treat with phosphoric acid, Kurust for little bits. Love to see the CA van. My Dad had a 1960 CAL Kenex Yeoman, 3213 K. Mid-60s I got the job of panel beating & painting the o/s front wing when a malicious lamp post attacked it. Managed a total no-filler repair & brush painted the deep red & cream to match with Tekaloid. Keep up the great work, your tremendous efforts are appreciated!
Thanks Trev - I think I'll give it a whirl. I have 6 cast iron heat registers from 1910 to clean. No rush, so this'll work! Love your channel - never a better metal doctor have I seen. Keep up the great content. Chuck in NE Kansas, USA
If you're not in a hurry for the part, you can use the old school Molasses/water bath at a ratio of 7 parts water to one part molasses. We put entire body parts in a molasses bath and the good thing is that it removes rust ONLY (acid just keeps eating). The downside is that it smells pretty funky in the summer so you'll want to keep it away from the house and put a lid on it to minimize evaporation and to contain the smell.
Thanks to this video I refreshed the front of my Morris 1000 Traveler this summer. Once everything was stripped to bare metal and de-rusted as much as practicable with a knotted wire brush I used a 1-2% solution in a wheelie bin. Twice a day I removed the parts, washed and wire brushed the rusty areas, washed again and then back in the bin. Took a few days but all the rust was removed. A final rinse and then dry quickly with a heat gun before than removing the light grey oxidation that formed, wipe down with degreaser and finally prime with epoxy primer. It worked a treat. I then did the same with 4 steel wheels. All painted and car back together. I'm about to do the same with the back end and the kick plates etc. but I'm expecting it to take much longer in winter!
Thank you. A great alternative. I normally used water vinegar with salt, and let them seat for 1 or 2 days, depending on the amount of rust; then rinse them with water, and soak them for a few minutes in water with baking soda mix; and give them a final rinse with water. Please keep on doing videos where you "teach" how to do things.
Is Trev coming from the UK? I'm here in Canada working on a 1993 Plymouth Acclaim. Bought it used low Kim's. Previous owner never washed the road salt off from Winter. The factory painted all the rims and suspension parts with that thin electrostatic black paint. Well the salt ate through it and rusted everything. So I disassembled the front and rear ends. Washed the oil, dirt and grease if any. Used paint stripper, scraped, wire brushed and rotary wire brushed with a electric Die grinder. Then filled a plastic tub to submerge the wheel rims and soaked them for two days in a 50/50 mix of Muriatic Acid and water. Removed all the rust deep into the pits. After used Ajax and liquid soap to wash and clean the metal, flushed down with water. Then used a milder acid called metal prep to prevent flash rusting, washed off with water again then sun dried and ready to Prime with metal Primer. Two to three coats of Primer, lightly sand and top coat. Don't waste your time removing heavy rust with other vinegars, mild rust removers etc. you will there to Christmas. Use Muriatic cleans fast and is Violent. Cleans heavy rust fast. Sandblasting can be use after. Sandblasting can not get down in the pores. Also did electrolysis using a battery charger. Ok to a degree. But Acid gets it cleaner faster.
I have the same or similar result with molasses Time soaking depends on the temperature of the solution . I can get great results like you did in summer But in winter a lot slower for sure
I'm glad you mentioned hydrogen embrittlement. I was thinking of soaking a corroded gearbox in a solution that contains citric acid. I think that the gears are subjected to a little too much stress to risk embrittlement. But, I have found out that it only occurs at room temperature, so maybe a very hot bath might prevent it ? Also, if the piece is heat treated to about 220 degrees C within 4 hours of hydrogen exposure, that gets rid of the hydrogen. But I cant fit the gearbox in the oven.
Plating on those parts either zinc or cadmium which has been passivated after plating. If worried about hydrogen enbrittlement suggest place parts in hot oven for 30 minutes after your stripping process. Heating will drive off hydrogen. Information comes from Aviation MilSpecs for Electroplaters. Rather important for the springs you mention.
Gonna' mention that myself - you beat me to it. For general purposes on steel, about 450° F. Also useful for critical parts that have been arc welded (esp. w/o low-hydrogen filler) as well as plated stuff
If you can wait for a few days try Molasses (5l costs about £7) diluted 1:10 with water so 50l for £7 slower than citric acid but more gentle. Thanks for video will try Citric acid for smaller parts.
Again a very informative video Trev. Yours is about the first channel to mention the use of thin "plastic" sheets when applying paint stripper whereas (if that's the right word) it makes a tremendous difference. ATB Marc - Belgium
Happy to see you back after the primer sanding T&T #22. In the T&T playlist, the twenties are not there. Could find them by scrolling the videos list. It’s really a very good « blog » Trev’! Thanks for your work to share with us your skills and experiences. Cheers from France.
personally I am using a high pressure sanding. It requires strong air supply, but cleans rust effective. After I put over Loctite 7505. 2 days ago I was using your dent flipping technology and was happy with the final result on Ford Fiesta doors. Good luck !
I've seen a test where Evap-O Rust did absolutely nothing to dissolve rust. the test was done by a youtuber who tests various products equally and scientifically. muratic acid which I've personally used will dissolve the rust in about 10-15 minutes soak. I usually dilute it to about 10% Hydrochloric acid instead of 37.5% which muratic is. products with phosphoric acid are the next quickest. vinegar works too but is rather slow but its also pretty safe as you can drink vinegar without a problem. if you prefer the non toxic and bio degradable properties of Evap-O Rust then go ahead.
@@darkshadowsx5949 Evap-O-Rust doesn't work if the metal has oil on it. I saw that video. Something was off there, maybe oil, maybe something else. A dip in any strong acid will emulsify any oil, then it can be rinsed and tossed into the Evap-O-Rust for a week. There won't be any rust on it after that. Unlike acids, the metal won't turn brittle or soft, and you don't have to hurry to prime it because it won't corrode until you rinse it really well. It's not as fast as other methods. Other than tax refunds and pizza deliveries, how often is faster better.
I like to use Dairy Wash from the farm store for rust removal. It is phosphoric acid and a bit of soap. It dissolves rust faster than steel and will leave an iron phosphate coat on the surface which acts as a protection to flash rusting.
That coating was a chromate dip a standard anti oxidation treatment for automotive and all industrial parts for decades. It has been replaced here in the US by e-coat which is not as good but much more environmentally friendly.
What a great idea about paint stripper. I've been trying to strip the paint off the Lada Riva (10 tons of Russian pride) bonnet for weeks, ended up more like a polish. Shined it up a treat, I'm going to try that tip tomorrow and cover it with paint stripper and cling film. "Oh those Russians" ( Boney M, Rasputin)
Believe it or not I've let rusted pieces soak in a bucket with Coca Cola for 24 hrs. It worked great. Took the pieces out and used a drill with circular wire brush and cleaned em up pretty good.
The protective effect of chromate coatings on zinc is indicated by color, progressing from clear/blue to yellow, gold, olive drab and black. Darker coatings generally provide more corrosion resistance. -wiki. Also isn't phosphoric cheap enough while more conserving to the steel.
Trev! Bravo on the re-do of this vid- great info! You give a great tip about the paint stripper at 2:45 or so... Might want to consider if you dont want to use so much stripper giving the piece a brisk stainless steel wire brushing first... gets the surface oxides and generally the dirt and crud off so the strip can work directly ON the paint- and you dont use quite so much of the chemicals to boot! Love the channel and gotta say well done indeed!
There's a lot of things you can use that citric acid for, and the "food-grade" rating keeps the options open. If you're in a hard water area, it works for kettle de-scaling, and costs a lot less. But I'd keep the kitchen supply separate from the workshop supply, maybe re-use a jam jar, and label it. You mentioned alternatives such as white vinegar, and I can confirm that works, helped clean the bottom of a saucepan and it was within easy reach in the kitchen.
I just use white vinegar and let it soak for days, scrub with a green pad and rinse / repeat. For stronger cleaning add a little table salt, works perfectly! Also cleaned electrical terminals really well. I’d save the money on the heater etc and use this.
Hi Trev. Love your channel, loads of really good info, particularly all the panel beating stuff. For rust removal, though, I can't recommend anything more than electrolysis. It's dead simple, all you need is some sugar soap, water, some scrap steel and a DC power supply. There's no need to worry about leaving your parts in too long, no need to neutralise the parts after treatment, and no need even to strip paint or to degrease - it'll pretty much all come off during the process, especially if you drive the process with a DC welder as opposed to a battery charger. The reason I prefer electrolysis over anything else is that it doesn't remove any good metal, and converts the rust from the dreaded red death, Fe2O3, to stable, non-cancerous, Fe3O4 (magnetite). I use it for rust removal on machine tools, lathes and the like, where precision is important, and abrasives are pretty much a no-no. As for the whole hydrogen embrittlement thing, I used to worry about it, but decided to do a test. Took a bunch of identical springs, rusted most of them by dipping in and out of salt water. Kept a couple of rusted and a couple of clean springs as controls, chucked the rest in the electrolysis bath, DC welder at 20A for an hour or so. Pulled half out, dried and oiled them, then hooked up the battery charger and left the rest electrolysing for 2 days. I then pulled them to destruction using work's little load cell and a hand winch. Result - no discernible difference. Less than .5N spread between all the springs, they all went to plastic deformation at about 30N. No premature snapping. None of which is to say that hydrogen embrittlement is not a real thing, but I couldn't see the effects.
I know someone else suggested it, but a small media blasting cabinet would have been perfect for those hinges. Probably not so good for those thinner metal parts, depending on the media used. I like to use POR-15 metal prep on a lot of things because it leaves a phosphoric coating afterwards to protect the metal. It almost looks like you used a single stage paint for the hinges? Your panel gaps look PERFECT. Love seeing the progress on the van and appreciate your tips and tricks massively!
Excellent instructional and practical video, thank you so very much. The yellowish plating appears to be Zinc Dichromate (aka yellow chromate - Cr2O7 ) . If you wish to apply it to some other parts for protection from oxidation it is fairly easy to do...
I haven't tried the citric acid yet but that looks very good. Whenever I use rust removers I find that any grease or oil on the parts really creates a barrier to the rust removal. I thought about dunking the parts in lye first and using the pressure washer before the rust remover. Maybe that would cut down on the number of steps you needed to go thru.
Surface tension is broken you are correct they use it in spraying weeds also, so the chemical won't just run off the leaves. It forces the chemicals to stick and stay put. Without it it's spotty at best then you have to go back over , and over to kill the weeds. Makes it less effective for killing weeds if it's just water and weed killer so detergent added really solves the problem calling it a surfactant.
The most common substrates material for zinc are carbon steel, unalloyed steel, low alloyed steel and cast iron. By applying a heat treatment after zinc plating hardened steels can also be zinc plated. The heat treatment is necessary to avoid hydrogen embrittlement. Source: uk-finishing.org.uk
I use household vinegar to do the same job. Acetic acid, vinegar, same thing. You can water it down if you need to and it can be had cheaply. Once your done, you can neutralise it with baking soda, rinse it off, then on to prep and paint. Also, that gold-ish coloured plating looks exactly like zinc. You can buy bolts with that same cheap look to them. Awful looking stuff, but I guess it did its job... I prefer the look of nickel plating myself.
Definitely use washers, the paint will be ruined under those bolts, and use stainless bolts and washers. More importantly, when are you going to show us how you get your hair so perfect?? Love the videos keep up the good work, are you going to Beaulieu for the custom show this year? Be nice to buy you a beer and have a chat, or any other beverage that takes your fancy. Cool music too.
Vans looking beut Trev, I’m restoring a car that was 14 years outside and I’ve used Electrolosis for doors (no prep required and cuts through grease) Envirorust for S and Giggles on nuts and bolts, My favourite finisher now is Phosphoric acid, I prep with Vinegar a bit but like sandblasting it has its disadvantages in that the clean up is a lot of labour. All hinges, brackets etc I used Mollasses, very slow process, parts needed prepping similar to the much nicer looking process of Citric acid, I’ve bought new old stock parts prepped in Citric acid and was told that’s the correct way to do it so nice to see the process thx
Think your correct yellow iridescent passivated zinc.. There's another process they use that's kind of a yellowish gold but not iridescent they call cadmium plate. But this process you have does work great I'm going to use I've been doing it the hard way rotory wire brushing, stones, and sanding discs. Thank you sir ! Will coke work you think Trev ? They say work smarter, not harder.
I’ve used citric acid for years but never knew what ratio to use. It is so much cleaner than using molasses and not having the part completely submerged is not an issue. I’ve also found that if I pressure wash and dry the parts the do not flash rust even after two years.
I have used the electrolysis with some successes, but it’s “line of sight”. So takes longer and may not get into all areas. I have also used agricultural grade molasses, but it’s messy and leaves a film itself that needs removal. I’m looking forward to your citric acid method.
Same method I've been using for years. Hydrogen embrittlement is very low risk, but certainly worth mentioning. Hydrochloric on the other hand almost guarantee hydrogen embrittlement. I've only had one cast piece damaged using this process. I don't know exactly what the cause was. It is possible it was riddled with rust throughout the porosity , or for some reason the excessive soak time ate it away. I've tried with other sacrificial cast pieces and never experienced it again.
Yet another top video, thank you! I think the temperature will determine the speed of the process whereas the amount of acidic acid should be proportionate to the amount of rust to be removed. And the amount of water should just be enough to keep every bit in contact with the solution.
Not to change the subject, but as a post below indicated another chemical has been banned, but going into my local home improvement store, I usually pick a another gallon of paint stripper for my automotive projects. As of 2019, none of the common brands contain methylene chloride. With out this aggressive and some what dangerous product, requiring correct handling but it too has been removed from access to the general public. It maybe found at professional distributors but not for the DIY's as this is the only common chemical that will attack and remove catalyzed clear coat or single stage catalyzed products. Sad. It has almost doubled in price over the last two years from 2017 - 2018, not gone in 2019. Good video and well spoken accent. Like! ASE Master Tech since 1978 / Retired.
We still got it in thailand. Its full strength n burns like a bastard! Its amazing how parts of you start stinging even when brushing it on slowly and taking a piss is to be avoided even after removing the marigolds...
I would try vinegar with citric acid. Vinegar is a very good neutralizer. Certainly it wouldn't be bad to give these things a bath in it and maybe a scrubbing with a greenie after. Scotch bright pads are amazing for spiffing things up. Neat video.
I kind of like the bead blaster method with very fine blasting media that cleans off rust and paint and cleans the parts leaving them smooth and not pitted. 😁👍
Trev, just a suggestion, if you add common table salt to your citric acid solution it will speed up the process and the solution will last longer. I know, salt, water and steel don't make a good combination and I'm not sure about the chemistry but it really works, give it try.
Hi Trev you're right. it is zinc pasaphate , youcan use this technique to get the zinc coating on nuts and washers to prep them for welding top tips again mate, I think you can get washers that are that narrow they sit behind/inside the hex so you can't see them but at least you have one on.
Good tip re the plastic on the paint stripper -- not that this has anything to do with cars (HA - it can) - but I often use cling wrap (Glad Wrap here) to keep paint rollers wet -- the roller will stay useable for days - even weeks before unwrapping (as long as not left in a HOT Australia Summer heat shed -- HA - as I have done in the past).
Top tip about the embrittlement, lucky here as French supermarkets sell citric acid powder and 14° vinegar off the shelves. I use the vinegar for stripping galvo off fasteners etc as I hate welding the stuff, but it was interesting to see CA will strip it as well. I wonder if stainless bolts and washers would look good on those hinges? , stainless can look a bit classier than zinc sometimes. You can of course run some heat over SS to give it some colour if thats your thang. Aquarium heater good idea, something for the shopping list lol.
@@joejojo4751 Yes, its usually in a packet, you should also see bicarbonate de soude there as well. I just found 20° strength vinegar in Cora. Leroy Merlin Brico may have it as well. I just tried citric acid solution on millscale, it does loosen it, bit obviously neat strong vinegar is faster.
I would put the fasteners in a lathe and take the markings off the heads. Hardware store fasteners will look out of place. You can even use knurled bolts (like wheel studs) and turn them down to look like rivets. The knurl will keep it from spinning when you tighten the nuts.
I vote the shifter cover was zinc with a yellow chromate and not passivated. You can get the same results doing Cadmium with a yellow chromate. The cost would be lower with zinc. (Only speaking from 19+ years in a plating shop.)
You are referring to Cadmium plating on the gear shift boot plate. It is usually uneven gold colour and a bit better than zinc plating in terms of resistance. I doubt your solution will embrittle suspension parts that much, they are usually much stronger than required on British cars. Cheers.
Another great video. Trev, keep it up! I do love that most of you're videos are low cost, but high skill. Meaning, many videos just go ooo let me go over to my €$1000+ piece of equipment and do this. That piece of equipment is probably out of the cost range of many watchers (like myself).
Nate Hankins Thanks you get it 🤩 hallelujah 🤩most people trying to make a point are always saying ahh yeah but there’s a better way..... of course there’s a better way, there always is but you can’t get much more simple than a bucket and some elbow grease. We’ve got two 700 cfm compressors and a dedicated blasting booth at work but what would be the point in showing that off. Cheers much appreciated Trev 👍
I have the 35 year old boiler tubes out of a Fowler steam engine, rust like you've never seen. I've started with electrolysis and washing soda and am pretty happy with the result. It's such high quality steel that it's brilliant as structural tubing. It'd be great to see how they compare. Thanks Mate.
@@ryandavis7593 No Mate, they're going to be used in gate hinges and anything else I decide to make. After 35 years in a boiler you might be amazed at it's quality for structural use. Please don't panic, theres about $3000 worth of NEW boiler tube waiting to go back in, LOL.
Wow, I would never have believed that those hinges could not only be salvaged but that they would come up so well! Top, tip! Well done! As for washers, I think you should put them on. We probably lost our industrial might to the Japanese because we insisted on using washers on bolts instead of investing in better fixings like they did. However, any man who insists on knocking up rubber gaskets for the hinge to door meeting probably won’t be able to sleep at night if he didn’t put the washers on the bolts. Think of the better spread of force! That’s proper British engineering, that is: You can’t see it and you can’t tell it’s there but you’ll know... And one day, when a man in a brown work coat with four pens in the top pocket eyes your work, he will nod approvingly, rather than suck his breath through his teeth and tut. And then you’ll be glad you did...
That citric acid de rusting came up tops 👍. Had you thought of using dome head Allen bolts in stainless for securing the hinges on .. I used stainless countersunk Allen bolts for my Escort van hinges instead of Phillips screws , looks way better 😎
I would have varnised or clearcoated the top side of that shift cover, then it would probably still be there. Better rust prevention in future, even if you want to paint it later. Oh well, you can re-plate it if you can be bothered. Bice video. Easy to listen to this knowledgeable guy. Lovin the channel, Trev.
Hi Trev. Another good video. Thanks. I have used white vinegar with similar results. A gallon of white vinegar is not expensive. I did not dilute which would take some experimenting to see if it improves the results or makes it less effective. A thought on the washers. Use AN washers (AN stands for ArmyNavy) that are utilized on aircraft. I would imagine British aircraft use them. They are close tolerance and the outside diameter is smaller than automotive or hardware store variety. They are available in stainless steel or cadmium plated- real cadmium and not look alike zinc. The finished hinges are fantastic. Older Jeeps (military and CJ) never painter parts separately. Hinges were bolted onto the body and doors, then everything was sprayed. Removal of door or hood hinges always reveals rust. It is done differently today.
The yellow was zinc chromate conversion. To get the job done way faster, use Muriatic acid. Would have been done in an hour. The fastest way I have ever seen.
Tezzr Terry true but while not terribly expensive it costs a lot more. It does make a nice final step as a finisher / converter primer . Prime with epoxy primer or POR 15 and coat with a nice hard urethane and you’re off to the races.
Morning Trev, I went back through your videos this morning as I remembered I watched one about rust removal, do you think it would work on removing rust from the inside of a petrol tank?
Julie Blackwell a friend if mine has used it to do just this but I haven’t personally, I know that you can get sealers to put in tanks to seal off the metalwork inside and seal up leaks etc, perhaps it would be an idea to use that afterwards. Just make sure you rinse and dry the tank thoroughly before using anything after. Cheers Trev 👍
Phosphoric acid works about 1000 times faster and wont attack the steel. its used as concrete wash and available at hardware stores. About 15 minutes and the surface rust is gone. multiple treatments for heavy rust. apply it with a spray bottle and wait, no soaking.
Trev, came back to watch this a second time a year later because I'm about to try this method on an old motorcycle tank. On the second go-round, I found myself asking, what was wrong with the original hinges on the truck?
The brass balls were badly worn. The only new ones I could find were too small, but i used them anyway. The doors were then too low so I drilled out the mounting holes which enabled me to raise the doors. The problem I had was because the holes were larger the bodywork distorted as it tried to pull through the holes. The replacement hinges although rusty had hardly any wear. Cheers Trev 👍
Finally, someone doing a rust removal vid with ACTUAL rust rather than really superficial rust. Those hinges look like mine! Thanks (again!) Trev.
Great video thanks. I do a last stage before painting - treat with phosphoric acid, Kurust for little bits. Love to see the CA van. My Dad had a 1960 CAL Kenex Yeoman, 3213 K. Mid-60s I got the job of panel beating & painting the o/s front wing when a malicious lamp post attacked it. Managed a total no-filler repair & brush painted the deep red & cream to match with Tekaloid.
Keep up the great work, your tremendous efforts are appreciated!
Thanks Trev - I think I'll give it a whirl. I have 6 cast iron heat registers from 1910 to clean. No rush, so this'll work! Love your channel - never a better metal doctor have I seen. Keep up the great content. Chuck in NE Kansas, USA
If you're not in a hurry for the part, you can use the old school Molasses/water bath at a ratio of 7 parts water to one part molasses. We put entire body parts in a molasses bath and the good thing is that it removes rust ONLY (acid just keeps eating). The downside is that it smells pretty funky in the summer so you'll want to keep it away from the house and put a lid on it to minimize evaporation and to contain the smell.
Thanks for this gem - all I need now is a bucket big enough to fit the car in :-) .
Are you sure that there would be a car left if you did that?
@@markwatson9816 I could always call it the SL :-).
It gives me ideas for the kids pool.
Brilliant! I`m not too worried about embrittlement ,all I need is a bucket big enough to get my van in!
Thanks to this video I refreshed the front of my Morris 1000 Traveler this summer. Once everything was stripped to bare metal and de-rusted as much as practicable with a knotted wire brush I used a 1-2% solution in a wheelie bin. Twice a day I removed the parts, washed and wire brushed the rusty areas, washed again and then back in the bin. Took a few days but all the rust was removed. A final rinse and then dry quickly with a heat gun before than removing the light grey oxidation that formed, wipe down with degreaser and finally prime with epoxy primer. It worked a treat. I then did the same with 4 steel wheels. All painted and car back together. I'm about to do the same with the back end and the kick plates etc. but I'm expecting it to take much longer in winter!
Definitely my favourite bodyshop channel
Sweet work dude 👍
Keep it coming
Brilliant as always Trev. ...How can anyone in their right mind give this a thumbs down!!
Claire Pendrous usually green eyed reasons I guess👍😘
Trev's Blog probably the sooks that whine about not wearing gloves!
Thank you. A great alternative. I normally used water vinegar with salt, and let them seat for 1 or 2 days, depending on the amount of rust; then rinse them with water, and soak them for a few minutes in water with baking soda mix; and give them a final rinse with water. Please keep on doing videos where you "teach" how to do things.
Is Trev coming from the UK?
I'm here in Canada working on a 1993 Plymouth Acclaim. Bought it used low Kim's. Previous owner never washed the road salt off from Winter.
The factory painted all the rims and suspension parts with that thin electrostatic black paint. Well the salt ate through it and rusted everything. So I disassembled the front and rear ends. Washed the oil, dirt and grease if any. Used paint stripper, scraped, wire brushed and rotary wire brushed with a electric Die grinder. Then filled a plastic tub to submerge the wheel rims and soaked them for two days in a 50/50 mix of Muriatic Acid and water. Removed all the rust deep into the pits. After used Ajax and liquid soap to wash and clean the metal, flushed down with water. Then used a milder acid called metal prep to prevent flash rusting, washed off with water again then sun dried and ready to Prime with metal Primer. Two to three coats of Primer, lightly sand and top coat.
Don't waste your time removing heavy rust with other vinegars, mild rust removers etc. you will there to Christmas. Use Muriatic cleans fast and is Violent. Cleans heavy rust fast. Sandblasting can be use after. Sandblasting can not get down in the pores.
Also did electrolysis using a battery charger. Ok to a degree. But Acid gets it cleaner faster.
I'm a woodworker myself but I must say, You have some extremely Mad Metal working skills! Just beautiful!
hydrogen embrittlement can be reversed by backing the steel in the oven to get the hydrogen out.
How hot and for how long?
@@bjrgjohannessen5184 4h at 400F
Jan Van Ruth, you beat me to it... Yup, bake your steel parts if they've been acid etched - or plated, and they're in a highly stressed application
I have the same or similar result with molasses
Time soaking depends on the temperature of the solution .
I can get great results like you did in summer
But in winter a lot slower for sure
Thanks trev for taking the time to share your knowledge. Regularly helped me restore my 69 Chevy C10
I'm glad you mentioned hydrogen embrittlement. I was thinking of soaking a corroded gearbox in a solution that contains citric acid. I think that the gears are subjected to a little too much stress to risk embrittlement.
But, I have found out that it only occurs at room temperature, so maybe a very hot bath might prevent it ?
Also, if the piece is heat treated to about 220 degrees C within 4 hours of hydrogen exposure, that gets rid of the hydrogen. But I cant fit the gearbox in the oven.
wife was in the kitchen thinking, trev's finally jetwashing the patio, how little did she know XD
I would use washers, I can't bear the thought of that gorgeous paint cracking off under the bolt heads.
Paint the washers!
Plating on those parts either zinc or cadmium which has been passivated after plating. If worried about hydrogen enbrittlement suggest place parts in hot oven for 30 minutes after your stripping process. Heating will drive off hydrogen. Information comes from Aviation MilSpecs for Electroplaters. Rather important for the springs you mention.
Gonna' mention that myself - you beat me to it.
For general purposes on steel, about 450° F.
Also useful for critical parts that have been arc welded (esp. w/o low-hydrogen filler) as well as plated stuff
If you can wait for a few days try Molasses (5l costs about £7) diluted 1:10 with water so 50l for £7 slower than citric acid but more gentle.
Thanks for video will try Citric acid for smaller parts.
That’s brilliant just buying a Saab 96 that needs work, will be my first restoration gulp! Where to start!!
Again a very informative video Trev. Yours is about the first channel to mention the use of thin "plastic" sheets when applying paint stripper whereas (if that's the right word) it makes a tremendous difference. ATB Marc - Belgium
If a new Trev Blog video comes out right before bedtime, looks like I'm gonna lose some sleep. #Worthit
Happy to see you back after the primer sanding T&T #22. In the T&T playlist, the twenties are not there. Could find them by scrolling the videos list.
It’s really a very good « blog » Trev’! Thanks for your work to share with us your skills and experiences. Cheers from France.
personally I am using a high pressure sanding. It requires strong air supply, but cleans rust effective. After I put over Loctite 7505.
2 days ago I was using your dent flipping technology and was happy with the final result on Ford Fiesta doors. Good luck !
Evap-O-Rust and electrolysis are all I've used. I'm definitely going to try citric acid. These parts turned out perfectly. Thanks!
I've seen a test where Evap-O Rust did absolutely nothing to dissolve rust. the test was done by a youtuber who tests various products equally and scientifically.
muratic acid which I've personally used will dissolve the rust in about 10-15 minutes soak. I usually dilute it to about 10% Hydrochloric acid instead of 37.5% which muratic is.
products with phosphoric acid are the next quickest. vinegar works too but is rather slow but its also pretty safe as you can drink vinegar without a problem.
if you prefer the non toxic and bio degradable properties of Evap-O Rust then go ahead.
@@darkshadowsx5949 Evap-O-Rust doesn't work if the metal has oil on it. I saw that video. Something was off there, maybe oil, maybe something else. A dip in any strong acid will emulsify any oil, then it can be rinsed and tossed into the Evap-O-Rust for a week. There won't be any rust on it after that. Unlike acids, the metal won't turn brittle or soft, and you don't have to hurry to prime it because it won't corrode until you rinse it really well. It's not as fast as other methods. Other than tax refunds and pizza deliveries, how often is faster better.
Brilliant, as always. So informative and easy to follow, a proper UA-cam gent
Love the tip about covering paint stripper to keep it active longer. Never heard that one 👍 love it as usual.
I like to use Dairy Wash from the farm store for rust removal. It is phosphoric acid and a bit of soap. It dissolves rust faster than steel and will leave an iron phosphate coat on the surface which acts as a protection to flash rusting.
That coating was a chromate dip a standard anti oxidation treatment for automotive and all industrial parts for decades. It has been replaced here in the US by e-coat which is not as good but much more environmentally friendly.
Zinc gold chromate is still being done .
Wow!!!!! I love your attention to detail. It is so cool to see the progress on this van! We don’t have that make in the US, so it’s so cool to see.
What a great idea about paint stripper. I've been trying to strip the paint off the Lada Riva (10 tons of Russian pride) bonnet for weeks, ended up more like a polish. Shined it up a treat, I'm going to try that tip tomorrow and cover it with paint stripper and cling film. "Oh those Russians" ( Boney M, Rasputin)
A cheap slow cooker works well and no need for the fish tank heater 👍🏻
Believe it or not I've let rusted pieces soak in a bucket with Coca Cola for 24 hrs. It worked great. Took the pieces out and used a drill with circular wire brush and cleaned em up pretty good.
The protective effect of chromate coatings on zinc is indicated by color, progressing from clear/blue to yellow, gold, olive drab and black. Darker coatings generally provide more corrosion resistance. -wiki. Also isn't phosphoric cheap enough while more conserving to the steel.
Your metal skills, you truly are an artist
Trev! Bravo on the re-do of this vid- great info! You give a great tip about the paint stripper at 2:45 or so... Might want to consider if you dont want to use so much stripper giving the piece a brisk stainless steel wire brushing first... gets the surface oxides and generally the dirt and crud off so the strip can work directly ON the paint- and you dont use quite so much of the chemicals to boot! Love the channel and gotta say well done indeed!
Hi Trev, Sand and polish the heads of the stainless bolts to get rid of the numbers, makes for a super clean look. Also I vote on smaller washers!
Nice process. Try adding a fish tank aerator/bubbler as well. This really helps circulation of the mix around the parts.
Nothing like some agitation to really advance things
There's a lot of things you can use that citric acid for, and the "food-grade" rating keeps the options open. If you're in a hard water area, it works for kettle de-scaling, and costs a lot less. But I'd keep the kitchen supply separate from the workshop supply, maybe re-use a jam jar, and label it.
You mentioned alternatives such as white vinegar, and I can confirm that works, helped clean the bottom of a saucepan and it was within easy reach in the kitchen.
That plating was zinc and colour passivate 👍
Those parts came up lovely! Good old citric acid!
That's a cheap and easy way to remove rust i love it thanks for the awesome tip
I have used Ospho and it works great.Been using it for 30 years.I will always use it,but I might give this a shot too.
I just use white vinegar and let it soak for days, scrub with a green pad and rinse / repeat. For stronger cleaning add a little table salt, works perfectly! Also cleaned electrical terminals really well. I’d save the money on the heater etc and use this.
Hi Trev.
Love your channel, loads of really good info, particularly all the panel beating stuff.
For rust removal, though, I can't recommend anything more than electrolysis. It's dead simple, all you need is some sugar soap, water, some scrap steel and a DC power supply. There's no need to worry about leaving your parts in too long, no need to neutralise the parts after treatment, and no need even to strip paint or to degrease - it'll pretty much all come off during the process, especially if you drive the process with a DC welder as opposed to a battery charger. The reason I prefer electrolysis over anything else is that it doesn't remove any good metal, and converts the rust from the dreaded red death, Fe2O3, to stable, non-cancerous, Fe3O4 (magnetite). I use it for rust removal on machine tools, lathes and the like, where precision is important, and abrasives are pretty much a no-no.
As for the whole hydrogen embrittlement thing, I used to worry about it, but decided to do a test. Took a bunch of identical springs, rusted most of them by dipping in and out of salt water. Kept a couple of rusted and a couple of clean springs as controls, chucked the rest in the electrolysis bath, DC welder at 20A for an hour or so. Pulled half out, dried and oiled them, then hooked up the battery charger and left the rest electrolysing for 2 days. I then pulled them to destruction using work's little load cell and a hand winch. Result - no discernible difference. Less than .5N spread between all the springs, they all went to plastic deformation at about 30N. No premature snapping. None of which is to say that hydrogen embrittlement is not a real thing, but I couldn't see the effects.
the embrittlement comes from the acid surely?
I know someone else suggested it, but a small media blasting cabinet would have been perfect for those hinges. Probably not so good for those thinner metal parts, depending on the media used. I like to use POR-15 metal prep on a lot of things because it leaves a phosphoric coating afterwards to protect the metal. It almost looks like you used a single stage paint for the hinges? Your panel gaps look PERFECT. Love seeing the progress on the van and appreciate your tips and tricks massively!
Excellent instructional and practical video, thank you so very much. The yellowish plating appears to be Zinc Dichromate (aka yellow chromate - Cr2O7 ) . If you wish to apply it to some other parts for protection from oxidation it is fairly easy to do...
Hi TREV can you list your solution for the rust removal? THANK!!!
I haven't tried the citric acid yet but that looks very good. Whenever I use rust removers I find that any grease or oil on the parts really creates a barrier to the rust removal. I thought about dunking the parts in lye first and using the pressure washer before the rust remover. Maybe that would cut down on the number of steps you needed to go thru.
You seem to very detailed, I like that, Great job
Surface tension is broken you are correct they use it in spraying weeds also, so the chemical won't just run off the leaves. It forces the chemicals to stick and stay put. Without it it's spotty at best then you have to go back over , and over to kill the weeds. Makes it less effective for killing weeds if it's just water and weed killer so detergent added really solves the problem calling it a surfactant.
HAVE USED MURIATIC ACID....WORKS GREAT....NEVER TRIED CITRIC ACID.....VERY NICE JOB!!...
Nice work. I aim to be as good as you when it comes to body work one day. True skills sir.
Looks like the de' rusted surface would be good for powder coating. Much appreciated.
Thank for the info Trev. It's a really good video. And the music literally rocks!!!😁
The most common substrates material for zinc are carbon steel, unalloyed steel, low alloyed steel and cast iron.
By applying a heat treatment after zinc plating hardened steels can also be zinc plated. The heat treatment is necessary to avoid hydrogen embrittlement.
Source: uk-finishing.org.uk
I use household vinegar to do the same job. Acetic acid, vinegar, same thing. You can water it down if you need to and it can be had cheaply. Once your done, you can neutralise it with baking soda, rinse it off, then on to prep and paint.
Also, that gold-ish coloured plating looks exactly like zinc. You can buy bolts with that same cheap look to them. Awful looking stuff, but I guess it did its job... I prefer the look of nickel plating myself.
i think the zinc is zinc chromate and it is regarded as highly toxic.
Definitely use washers, the paint will be ruined under those bolts, and use stainless bolts and washers.
More importantly, when are you going to show us how you get your hair so perfect??
Love the videos keep up the good work, are you going to Beaulieu for the custom show this year? Be nice to buy you a beer and have a chat, or any other beverage that takes your fancy.
Cool music too.
Vans looking beut Trev, I’m restoring a car that was 14 years outside and I’ve used Electrolosis for doors (no prep required and cuts through grease) Envirorust for S and Giggles on nuts and bolts, My favourite finisher now is Phosphoric acid, I prep with Vinegar a bit but like sandblasting it has its disadvantages in that the clean up is a lot of labour. All hinges, brackets etc I used Mollasses, very slow process, parts needed prepping similar to the much nicer looking process of Citric acid, I’ve bought new old stock parts prepped in Citric acid and was told that’s the correct way to do it so nice to see the process thx
Think your correct yellow iridescent passivated zinc.. There's another process they use that's kind of a yellowish gold but not iridescent they call cadmium plate. But this process you have does work great I'm going to use I've been doing it the hard way rotory wire brushing, stones, and sanding discs. Thank you sir ! Will coke work you think Trev ? They say work smarter, not harder.
I’ve used citric acid for years but never knew what ratio to use. It is so much cleaner than using molasses and not having the part completely submerged is not an issue. I’ve also found that if I pressure wash and dry the parts the do not flash rust even after two years.
I have used the electrolysis with some successes, but it’s “line of sight”. So takes longer and may not get into all areas. I have also used agricultural grade molasses, but it’s messy and leaves a film itself that needs removal. I’m looking forward to your citric acid method.
Same method I've been using for years. Hydrogen embrittlement is very low risk, but certainly worth mentioning. Hydrochloric on the other hand almost guarantee hydrogen embrittlement. I've only had one cast piece damaged using this process. I don't know exactly what the cause was. It is possible it was riddled with rust throughout the porosity , or for some reason the excessive soak time ate it away. I've tried with other sacrificial cast pieces and never experienced it again.
Yet another top video, thank you!
I think the temperature will determine the speed of the process whereas the amount of acidic acid should be proportionate to the amount of rust to be removed. And the amount of water should just be enough to keep every bit in contact with the solution.
Not to change the subject, but as a post below indicated another chemical has been banned, but going into my local home improvement store, I usually pick a another gallon of paint stripper for my automotive projects. As of 2019, none of the common brands contain methylene chloride. With out this aggressive and some what dangerous product, requiring correct handling but it too has been removed from access to the general public. It maybe found at professional distributors but not for the DIY's as this is the only common chemical that will attack and remove catalyzed clear coat or single stage catalyzed products. Sad. It has almost doubled in price over the last two years from 2017 - 2018, not gone in 2019. Good video and well spoken accent. Like! ASE Master Tech since 1978 / Retired.
We still got it in thailand. Its full strength n burns like a bastard! Its amazing how parts of you start stinging even when brushing it on slowly and taking a piss is to be avoided even after removing the marigolds...
I would try vinegar with citric acid. Vinegar is a very good neutralizer. Certainly it wouldn't be bad to give these things a bath in it and maybe a scrubbing with a greenie after. Scotch bright pads are amazing for spiffing things up. Neat video.
I kind of like the bead blaster method with very fine blasting media that cleans off rust and paint and cleans the parts leaving them smooth and not pitted. 😁👍
The plating on the gear flange could be cadmium. Cadmium is a toxic metal when oxidised. Great video.
Trev, just a suggestion, if you add common table salt to your citric acid solution it will speed up the process and the solution will last longer. I know, salt, water and steel don't make a good combination and I'm not sure about the chemistry but it really works, give it try.
Hi Trev you're right. it is zinc pasaphate , youcan use this technique to get the zinc coating on nuts and washers to prep them for welding top tips again mate, I think you can get washers that are that narrow they sit behind/inside the hex so you can't see them but at least you have one on.
Mark Bennett Bald Creations thanks Mark👍
Good morning Trev, more good information. I will certainly give this process a try. Always more information and education that is useful. Take care.
you are correct that is zinc plating that dissolved off that gear shift part.
I think you mean Cadmium Plating.
@@richardmason902 Sorry but no I meant zinc It has been widely used in the automotive industry! Google it, it will back me up. Have a nice day
@@richardmason902 No I meant zinc, its widely used in the automotive industry.
Good tip re the plastic on the paint stripper -- not that this has anything to do with cars (HA - it can) - but I often use cling wrap (Glad Wrap here) to keep paint rollers wet -- the roller will stay useable for days - even weeks before unwrapping (as long as not left in a HOT Australia Summer heat shed -- HA - as I have done in the past).
Top tip about the embrittlement, lucky here as French supermarkets sell citric acid powder and 14° vinegar off the shelves. I use the vinegar for stripping galvo off fasteners etc as I hate welding the stuff, but it was interesting to see CA will strip it as well. I wonder if stainless bolts and washers would look good on those hinges? , stainless can look a bit classier than zinc sometimes. You can of course run some heat over SS to give it some colour if thats your thang.
Aquarium heater good idea, something for the shopping list lol.
Jaques Daniels what do I look for in my local Intermarché and is it with the cleaning products like the white vinegar ? Thanks joe
@@joejojo4751 Yes, its usually in a packet, you should also see bicarbonate de soude there as well. I just found 20° strength vinegar in Cora. Leroy Merlin Brico may have it as well. I just tried citric acid solution on millscale, it does loosen it, bit obviously neat strong vinegar is faster.
I would put the fasteners in a lathe and take the markings off the heads. Hardware store fasteners will look out of place. You can even use knurled bolts (like wheel studs) and turn them down to look like rivets. The knurl will keep it from spinning when you tighten the nuts.
I vote the shifter cover was zinc with a yellow chromate and not passivated.
You can get the same results doing Cadmium with a yellow chromate.
The cost would be lower with zinc.
(Only speaking from 19+ years in a plating shop.)
wikipedia regards zinc chromate as highly toxic. cadmium chromate is probably even worse.
You are referring to Cadmium plating on the gear shift boot plate. It is usually uneven gold colour and a bit better than zinc plating in terms of resistance. I doubt your solution will embrittle suspension parts that much, they are usually much stronger than required on British cars. Cheers.
Brilliant guide Trev, perfectly explained. Thank you.
Another great video. Trev, keep it up!
I do love that most of you're videos are low cost, but high skill. Meaning, many videos just go ooo let me go over to my €$1000+ piece of equipment and do this. That piece of equipment is probably out of the cost range of many watchers (like myself).
Nate Hankins Thanks you get it 🤩 hallelujah 🤩most people trying to make a point are always saying ahh yeah but there’s a better way..... of course there’s a better way, there always is but you can’t get much more simple than a bucket and some elbow grease. We’ve got two 700 cfm compressors and a dedicated blasting booth at work but what would be the point in showing that off. Cheers much appreciated Trev 👍
that gold coloured plating is Passivated Zinc
Surface converted zinc
Clear zinc
Zinc Chromate
Don't weld over it without fume extraction either, its toxic.
I have the 35 year old boiler tubes out of a Fowler steam engine, rust like you've never seen. I've started with electrolysis and washing soda and am pretty happy with the result. It's such high quality steel that it's brilliant as structural tubing. It'd be great to see how they compare. Thanks Mate.
306 CHAMPION Please tell us that they are not going back into a boiler. If the answer is yes please don’t.
@@ryandavis7593 LOL, No Mate, they're being used to make stuff. Theres a few grand's worth of new stuff to go back in but thanks for your concern.
@@ryandavis7593 No Mate, they're going to be used in gate hinges and anything else I decide to make. After 35 years in a boiler you might be amazed at it's quality for structural use. Please don't panic, theres about $3000 worth of NEW boiler tube waiting to go back in, LOL.
Try a fish tank bubbler as well to help speed things up.
Only prob using an air bubbler is can oxidise the Acid and reduce the effectiveness of the solution.
I use vinegar and salt in air tight container. Takes a few days, but works well.
Wow, I would never have believed that those hinges could not only be salvaged but that they would come up so well! Top, tip! Well done!
As for washers, I think you should put them on. We probably lost our industrial might to the Japanese because we insisted on using washers on bolts instead of investing in better fixings like they did. However, any man who insists on knocking up rubber gaskets for the hinge to door meeting probably won’t be able to sleep at night if he didn’t put the washers on the bolts. Think of the better spread of force! That’s proper British engineering, that is: You can’t see it and you can’t tell it’s there but you’ll know...
And one day, when a man in a brown work coat with four pens in the top pocket eyes your work, he will nod approvingly, rather than suck his breath through his teeth and tut. And then you’ll be glad you did...
That citric acid de rusting came up tops 👍. Had you thought of using dome head Allen bolts in stainless for securing the hinges on .. I used stainless countersunk Allen bolts for my Escort van hinges instead of Phillips screws , looks way better 😎
Hi Trev, that yellowish colour to me looks like the part was cadmium plated. Google cadmium plating and you'll see
I would have varnised or clearcoated the top side of that shift cover, then it would probably still be there. Better rust prevention in future, even if you want to paint it later. Oh well, you can re-plate it if you can be bothered. Bice video. Easy to listen to this knowledgeable guy. Lovin the channel, Trev.
Looks like Zinc Chromate
Hi Trev. Another good video. Thanks. I have used white vinegar with similar results. A gallon of white vinegar is not expensive. I did not dilute which would take some experimenting to see if it improves the results or makes it less effective. A thought on the washers. Use AN washers (AN stands for ArmyNavy) that are utilized on aircraft. I would imagine British aircraft use them. They are close tolerance and the outside diameter is smaller than automotive or hardware store variety. They are available in stainless steel or cadmium plated- real cadmium and not look alike zinc.
The finished hinges are fantastic. Older Jeeps (military and CJ) never painter parts separately. Hinges were bolted onto the body and doors, then everything was sprayed. Removal of door or hood hinges always reveals rust. It is done differently today.
Vingear is citric acid in dilute form.
@@WunHeart Isn't it called acetic acid?
@@4speed3pedals should have been citric acid
@@WunHeart www.thoughtco.com/chemical-composition-of-vinegar-604002
What an easy way to remove rust. Great!👍👍
I have found muriatic acid to works quite well, but within an hour or so depending on the depth of the rust.
That was absolutely amazing..and with food grade materials. Thank you so much for this new technique. And here's to ya..Cheers.🍻
Not that it would be of benefit but I would do a final rinse with baking soda before applying primer. Thanks for the video!
Baking soda first, then clean water.
Any chance it was zinc chromate?
The yellow was zinc chromate conversion. To get the job done way faster, use Muriatic acid. Would have been done in an hour.
The fastest way I have ever seen.
Not Cadmium????
@@richardmason902 could be either
The heater is good, most chemicals double their effectiveness every extra 10deg. C. Phosphoric acid is better, and will work colder.
Tezzr Terry true but while not terribly expensive it costs a lot more. It does make a nice final step as a finisher / converter primer . Prime with epoxy primer or POR 15 and coat with a nice hard urethane and you’re off to the races.
Morning Trev, I went back through your videos this morning as I remembered I watched one about rust removal, do you think it would work on removing rust from the inside of a petrol tank?
Julie Blackwell a friend if mine has used it to do just this but I haven’t personally, I know that you can get sealers to put in tanks to seal off the metalwork inside and seal up leaks etc, perhaps it would be an idea to use that afterwards. Just make sure you rinse and dry the tank thoroughly before using anything after. Cheers Trev 👍
wish i'd known about the ol citric acid trick a few years ago, but hey-ho. Thanks Trev
I think the yellow is Potassium Dichromate they zinc coat it and then carefully dip it into Potassium Dichromate or Sodium Dichromate.
Phosphoric acid works about 1000 times faster and wont attack the steel. its used as concrete wash and available at hardware stores. About 15 minutes and the surface rust is gone. multiple treatments for heavy rust. apply it with a spray bottle and wait, no soaking.
@billyfromtheusa in the USA kleen strip concrete and metal prep sometimes also called concrete clean and etch
@billyfromtheusa it's just acid though not paint stripper. Same viscosity as water but usually tinted green
Another brilliant tutorial. Definitely washers on!
Have used distilled vinegar on small tool parts and it worked very well
Trev, came back to watch this a second time a year later because I'm about to try this method on an old motorcycle tank. On the second go-round, I found myself asking, what was wrong with the original hinges on the truck?
The brass balls were badly worn. The only new ones I could find were too small, but i used them anyway. The doors were then too low so I drilled out the mounting holes which enabled me to raise the doors. The problem I had was because the holes were larger the bodywork distorted as it tried to pull through the holes. The replacement hinges although rusty had hardly any wear. Cheers Trev 👍