Electrolysis rust removal
 

I read about this in another forum one day and finally decided to try it. Don't know if anyone in this forum has tried this, but it works great! I was really impressed. Tried it on a few old rusty tools I had thrown in a box. Doesn't bring it back to new, but it sure is easy.

Besides that, I spent most of the day organizing my garage/shop.

What a great day!

Never really tried such, but then, haven't been exposed to it too much either. Care to link to it?

You should also be aware that any electolysis, including chroming, will also weaken the part.......

I assume you mean Hydrogen Embrittlement. I've read that it disapates with time and the process can be speeded by cooking the part at 300 degrees for awhile. I don't plan to use the process on anything critical though.

Also know that Stainless Steel should not be used as a conductor as some sites suggest.

Well, I read about it alot, and thought about it a long time before I decided to try it. Something about water and electricity that makes me wary.

Anyhow, here are a couple of the better sites I found on the subject:

http://antique-engines.com/electrol.asp
http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/andyspatch/rust.htm
http://users.andara.com/~pspencer/ns...is.html#safety

As a warning, my battery charger finally quit working after using it for this for a couple days - it was very fritzy anyhow, and is why I used it. I really don't think the electrolysis fried it, it was just its time. I plan to try it again.

Edit: I also was hooking the charger directly to the electrodes without using a battery as a buffer. Probably makes a difference too.