cleaning rusted grimey gritty parts /bolts
 

A horse tub ? man, your old truck must have a LOT of bolts in it :) The parts washer tub is a cool piece of equipment to have. It has a little pump in the tank that keeps mineral spirits recirculating over the rusty stuff. Maybe some others will chime in soon with better ideas , good luck and jmo

I just do them a little at a time. Once they are cleaned and maybe painted I put them in a ziploc bag and label it for later. I have a hard time remembering where they all come from otherwise.

I put them in a pan that was for draining oil into when you change it. Use a little varsol or other solvent and they come pretty clean.

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I have used paint thinner (not lacquer thinner) for years. It has a slow evaporation rate and although flammable, doesn't have the flashback problems related to other solvents.

I have seen ads for an orange cleaner (similiar to the orange hand cleaner I believe). It is nonflammable. I'm not sure now well it works.

I have seen some recommendations for Sodium Hydroxide (caustic soda, lye, Drano, & etc.) for cutting grease. I'm sure it does cut the grease but I real concerns about the associate hazards and disposal issues. By the way, if you get sodium hydroxide on your skin, it will feel slippery. That's because it turning the oil in your skin and tissue into soap. True story !! Well, true chemistry anyways.

coca cola and wire brush

Ok ,well i have plenty of mineral spirits and i have nuts/bolts all marked in bags for different parts so i'll try one bag at a time in a small bucket or something.I thought maybe i could delute some Zerorust in a horse troft and put parts like the battery tray and stuff like that in there.

Cleaning larger pieces/Steering Box
 

I would also like any recomendations for cleaning up the larger parts(inner fenders, front crossover support ect.). I have the front of the truck completly apart. The only thing left is the frame and cab/firewall. The only places where there is oil is around where the steering box was, where it ran down on the frame crossmember and around the king pins. I plan on painting afterward.
And just a little off this subject anyone ever change the seals in the steering box? Easy or hard? Special tools?

Wow, your in to a major restore it sounds like. :) I used simple green and purple power from my local auto store for my big cleaning. Both can be used in a pressure washer or scrub on with a brush and warm water , then rinse off . Might want to take your steering question to the " steering/ suspension " forum to get more replies on it. good luck on your truck

CLR takes the bolts down to bare steel. Taks 2-3 days. Castrol cleaner also works good for getting the grease off. -4speed

For the bigger stuff I'm fortunate to have access to a bead blaster. Works like a charm and doesn't take too much time. Pretty much ready for paint after that.
Other stuff I just scrape and scrub down with Varsol.

4Speed...Where did you get that castrol cleaner ,auto parts store???Thats the kinda stuff that was hope'n would be out there to use,Thanks,Sixgun

Walmart! It came in a gallon bottle and the bottle was purple. I used it soak my head bolts in after they were removed. After about 24hr soaking, I pulled the bolts out, and dried them with a paper towel and they were as good as new. -4speed

muriatic acid used to clean swimming pools will take the rust off down to the steel.works fast just rinse with water.

dont hold me respnosible for this if you blow something up cause its extremely flammable, but when i rebuilt my drum brakes, the small parts were filthy. i let them sit in a coffe can full of gas overnight, then took a toothbrush to them. worked pretty good but very dangerouls.

DON'T use it on 'soft metels'