On Sunday, July 21, 2019 at 3:58:37 PM UTC-4, William Bagwell wrote:
Got my de-rusting tank set up last night and it seems to be working
great! Plastic tote big enough to hold the two largest pieces. 3/4
cup of washing soda in approximately 7 gallons of water. (You Tube
videos were all over the place on how much. From "too much will not
work" to "the more the better".) Charger on 6 amp 12 volts. Ran it
for a few hours and unplugged it overnight since my charger seemed
to be getting slightly hotter than it does charging a battery.

About four more hours this morning and pulled them out. Most of the
red rust was gone and /some/ of the black rust scrubbed off with a
scrubbing pad in the sink. Back in and bubbling more vigorously than
before. Picked up a new wire brush today, sure it will work better
Think my goal is all the red rust gone and not worry about any
remaining black rust that will not come off easily?

Found some flax seed oil so will try that in a few days after all
the parts are done.
--
William

It sounds like you're on top of it, William. About the black rust: It's actually considered to be somewhat protective. Some of the conversion coatings actually convert to that black rust, which has a common name I can't think of at the moment. You don't have to get rid of all of it before applying whatever final treatment you have in mind.

Aside -- my desktop computer crashed; it may be the final push I need to get off of Usenet altogether. There is so little left of interest, and so much trash, that it really isn't worth the time. So if I don't reply, it's not because I'm ignoring anyone. It's because I've found better ways to use my time.

Good luck with your derusting. The electrolytic method is a really valuable tool to have in your toolbox.

--
Ed Huntress