Precise1 Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 Just like it sounds, I have a bit of a passion for repairing and reconditioning old parts and tools. New isn't always better and why dispose of salvagable items and buy a replacement when the replacement will probably quickly wind up the same way? Much better to rework what you have and learn how to treat, condition and store things so they last... Simply oiling or painting is not sufficient or appropriate in many cases, and what do you do when something is frozen or rust encrusted? Hint: WD-40 is not an option and will not be mentioned for the rest of this thread! Step One is to disassemble and remove the rust. The majority of rust is a surface condition (oxidation) and can be removed by sanding, wire wheeling, sand blasting and some chemical means. I avoid the chemical means, but if you have input, please share. If it is rusted apart, you waited too long and/or live where you shouldnt. Step Two is to degrease the metal, I usually use Simple Green in what ever strength is appropriate to ge it really clean, and have never had any issue so special cleaners are not necessary. Step Three is to chemically treat the metal, in this and most cases, ferrous metal. I like to use "Precision Brand Tool Black", a solution of acids and cupric nitrate, and remove any scale if appropriate. http://www.precisionbrand.com/FaqDetails.aspx?FaqCategoryid=8 http://www.victornet.com/subdepartments/Tool-Black/1060.html (best price I can easily find) Step Four is to treat or seal the surface. This comes down to usage AFAIC. If it is a tool, oil it with a light oil and wipe excess or spray it with a drying film such as Starrett M-1. If it is a static, no wear part, paint/coat as per you preference. If it is a hard use tool, try wiping it down with boiled linseed oil (remove excess), and letting it dry. Linseed oil is a drying oil that polymerizes so it will form a hard coat. It will wear off, but the combination provides significant protection and can easily be toched up when required. Here are a few items I have done recently, but I will add more from past/future if there is interest. An old hatchet head, a tow bar pin and pliers that the bolt twisted apart when I tried to remove it. Wire wheeled Tool Blacked and linseed oiled The clipper on the left was brand new but left out and severely rusted, and the right was found in a garden planter from the PO rusted solid and blade tip bent so it couldn't close. It is now my favorite and I will use it for decades. For the technical minded, the surface treatment is exactly that and can be worn off so it is not going to help much in high friction applications from what I can tell. The build up is minimal, aprox .0001-.0002", depending on how hard you de-scale it (0000 steel wool is my choice for critical components). I have used this on machinist 1-2-3 blocks, feeler gauges, etc without compromising them. I have been using my initial 32oz bottle for about 5 years and have treated car parts, crow bars/sledge hammers, machinist set up/measurement equipment, hand and yard tools, etc and I have only used 1/2 (1 pint left). I gather items in a box until I have a 'lot", then process them. It is quite effecient as the wire wheeling (my preferred) goes quick ,you degrease/wash the lot, set them out to dry, apply the acidic solution (wait 1+ minutes), then rinse and set out to dry again. Descale as necessary (not required on rough use tools) and coat as appropriate. In this manner, it only takes a few minutes per stage per item (surface area/complexity considered) so it isn't the time dump it seems like it would be. I apply the solution in my utility sink but have done it everywhere from outside to the kitchen sink. I put the solution in a glass shot glass and use a foam tip trim brush (1/2-1") to apply it with. Remember to wear gloves and eye protection and to wash up your work area well, but other than that, no worries. No holes in any skin, clothing and the cat is still alive... Hopefully this will help some of you with things in general, if not speciffically Pathy related. Any questions/input welcome. Reduce, reuse, recycle... B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 Todays age of buy new/old means wall ornament/i'm too lazy to work and am gonna steal everything not bolted down i can scrap for 20 bucks a pickup load while collecting welfare makes a lot of older stuff trash/a lost art/or 'collectable'. I'm a fan of re-using stuff myself (if anything for the savings=I'm cheap). I don't go to those limits and will re-purpose a broken item i liked before trash bin-ing it. Hope this topic catches on... I wanna see some projects! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nismothunder Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 You saved a Pin. Good job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted October 11, 2013 Author Share Posted October 11, 2013 ^well said! I am cheap as well, but I'll buy a $15 handle and re-live tools and be ahead for it, regardless of the long term foundry attitude. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Yea, but that 15 dollar handle can set a tool back up for another 10 years of use compared to buying a 50 buck replacement tool that's only designed to last 3 years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamzan Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Does de-rusting my whole truck count? lol. I use some kind of acid rust remover on a a lot of things, works fairly well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreus009 Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 You want to fix my rusty vice-grips.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted October 11, 2013 Author Share Posted October 11, 2013 I do? B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nismothunder Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 No, what I'm saying is you saved what looks like a hitch/quick disconnect pin. Good job. I simply would have left it alone or hit it with a $.70 can of flat black rattle can goodness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted October 11, 2013 Author Share Posted October 11, 2013 To each their own, but then most everything you own is rusty... The pins are actually for a tow bar for a king pin front end VW that I will be selling, so making them look nice will only put more $ in my pocket or make for an easier sale. I even treated the retaining clips the same way. Since I do everything in batches it only took a few minutes to do them as well. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linewar Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Batches? We don need no stinkink batches. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted October 11, 2013 Author Share Posted October 11, 2013 What did you call me?? Since Nunya seems interested, here are a few different items (that Nismothunder would have thrown away apparently). An upholstery hammer, cats paw, putty knife, 1-2-3 blocks and a tapping block. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
92Path_68CJ Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 I'm obsessed with doing that sort of thing. Classic car junky and military collectable junky in me I guess... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nismothunder Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 To each their own, but then most everything you own is rusty... B That's patina damn you. Nope, everything is given a government approved coating of oil before being returned too its proper place. I must say. Of the thing you posted, I have all. But, if I acutally used them, they would have been broke and scraped long ago. Except that putty knife, its has a pretty handle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted October 13, 2013 Author Share Posted October 13, 2013 How does one break and scrape a cats paw or 1-2-3 blocks for that matter? I'm obsessed with doing that sort of thing. Classic car junky and military collectable junky in me I guess... Add a hand hoe, crowbar and mattock to the list... B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nismothunder Posted October 13, 2013 Share Posted October 13, 2013 Skill. I would use that cats paw as a pry bar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted October 13, 2013 Share Posted October 13, 2013 (edited) Nice work! Hard to believe that those clippers came out of a flower pot, they look mint. I enjoy fixing tools too, though I don't generally make them that nice. (I have yet to find a tool underground, but I did find a rather nice set of wire nippers jammed in between the bumper and valance on my Pathy. Thanks, previous owner! ) Hope this topic catches on... I wanna see some projects! I present... the $20 Hoe. My friends and I decided to do a movie a few months ago, and the script involved a rototiller. (It was not a movie that made a lot of sense.) Our budget dictated that we buy one from the scrap heap behind a local small engine place. I gave the man $20 for the thing, gas tank full of wasps and all. None of us had worked on a small engine before, but how hard could it be? It would fire on ether, which was promising. The only thing obviously wrong with the engine was a cracked and burned fitting for the breather line (which I suspect is what actuates the fuel pump). We bodged that back together with some epoxy and a bit of heat shrink tubing and gave it another try. After a little more tinkering (probably priming it more than anything else), it fired up. The gearbox wouldn't hold oil, not because the oil seals were shot, but because the shaft was worn out where the seals were meant to ride. (I assume this was what landed it on the scrap heap.) I packed the box with something called corn head grease and called it good enough. I also changed the oil, bought it an air filter and a fuel tank cap, and cleaned/lubed everything that moved. It still needs a little work (a throttle linkage would be nice) but it ran great for the movie, and if I ever find something that needs rototilling, I've got the right tool for the job. Oh, and for anyone wondering what hardened bolts are for... this was holding one of the tine sets to the gearbox. Looks like it had a bit of torque on it. (I thought a cat's paw WAS a prybar?) Edited October 13, 2013 by Slartibartfast Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted October 13, 2013 Author Share Posted October 13, 2013 Nice work! Hard to believe that those clippers came out of a flower pot, they look mint. Thanks! They did turn out quite nice, and I did try hard since I liked them, but some things turn out better than others; I suspect the type/quality of the metal is a big factor. I think I got lucky with those clippers since they started out worse than the pliers in the first picture. Next time I find something in really bad shape, I'll document it all the way through the process. I actually look for ruined items at garage sales as well, knowing I can get them dirt cheap and fix them. Nice bolt! As for that roto-tiller, get rid of it. If you ever use it for real, it will drag your butt around all day and beat the tar out of you. I know, first hand... B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nismothunder Posted October 13, 2013 Share Posted October 13, 2013 As for that roto-tiller, get rid of it. If you ever use it for real, it will drag your butt around all day and beat the tar out of you. I know, first hand... B Coming from a city boy. I have one of those satanic animals currently caged. It is released for the yearly spring gardening. Which, later turns into the early summer garden, that then turns into, F-it I'll plant stuff next year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted October 13, 2013 Share Posted October 13, 2013 I used to walk a border collie/blue healer mix. The hoe ain't got nothing on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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