On 2010-05-10, Dave H. wrote:
If you're not in a hurry, I'd recommend electolytic rust removal - I was
pretty sceptical, so tried it on a small drill chuck that was rusted solid,
a couple of days in a washing soda (sodium carbonate) bath, chuck connected
to the -ve of a 12v DC supply (max. 5 Amps was all I had around), an old
steel exhaust clamp to the +ve as the "sacrificial" anode, and it's a) rust
free; b)freely rotating; c) back to the original steel surface (apart from
the pitting that was already there - nothing can replace the steel it
lost!).
Once it's cleaned up, oil/wax as normal after a bit of oven time to dry it
off, as the surface will be vulnerable to rust otherwise.

I did find I had to clean the crud off the anode fairly regularly, a quick
wire brushing every time I passed, but much more pleasant than messing with
strong acids etc! I'm told that a carbon rod works just as well but doesn't
fur up, so when I can find some I'll try that instead.

I did it once and did not like it, it was messy. This vise has a lot
of nooks and innards that may not be cleaned properly. But, I might as
well try, as the weather is nice.


i