Rusty Slip Gauges

[steamlaser]

I recently bid for at my club for a small set of Metric Slip Gauges. Sadly some of the slip have rust on them!
What method would you recommend to clean them?

[92220]

I don't think you can clean them without damaging the surface, and accuracy. I have bought spare slips off Ebay so if you don't need too many, I would suggest just replacing them. They don't cost a lot on Ebay.

Bob.

[barlowworks]

I wonder if you can rub them with aluminium foil similar to the way they restore chrome on handlebars. Just a thought.

Mike

[Gary L]

Nov 11, 2021 22:54:04 GMT 92220 said:

I don't think you can clean them without damaging the surface, and accuracy. I have bought spare slips off Ebay so if you don't need too many, I would suggest just replacing them. They don't cost a lot on Ebay.

Bob.

Having a smattering of rust pits will probably remove the ability to ‘wring’ them together, but apart from that, as long as the pits don’t actually join up, I can’t see that the accuracy will be reduced at all if the rust is removed, and few of us need the extreme accuracy that slip gauges are made for anyway.

Phosphoric acid will remove the rust effectively, but it will change the surface colour. Perhaps oxalic acid would be worth a try?

Gary

[92220]

Hi Gary.

That's a good point about not needing such high accuracy. I was only thinking of keeping them as they should be. Oxalic acid is very dodgy stuff to use..if you can still get it. I know because I used use it in my business. However, another thought comes to mind....ordinary malt vinegar will clean away rust and leave no discolouration to the surface. It just takes about a week, and it doesn't like heavy rust.

Bob.

[rrmrd66]

Coca-Cola?

[92220]

That was one I had forgotten. Yes. Coca Cola will clean off rust but it takes a week or more. But that may be a good thing because it probably wouldn't touch the original finish on the slips. I know that coins cleaned in Cola come out shiny clean.

Bob.

[ettingtonliam]

Depends what you mean by 'rusty'! If its just surface discolouration and no perceptible pitting, I generally use one of those green plastic scouring pads (about a quid for a pack of 4 from the supermarket), soaked in oil, and rub the item over with that, followed by cleaning off with kitchen paper.
Alternatively, oil soaked steel wool will do the job.

[simplyloco]

I have no wish to sound 'Holier then thou', but who lets their precious (and expensive) slips go rusty? 
Mine are oiled and kept under rust preventer brown paper!

[fubar123]

Wipe them clean after use with a cotton cloth putting them back into the box by holding them with the cloth , ie don't touch them after cleaning
When using them if they are reluctant to wring together it means those faces are dirty so rub the gauges on a clean piece of paper

[johnd]

I was faced with the same problem a number of years ago after purchasing a set of slip gauges with surface rust for £5 at a car boot.
Used the some of the finest wire wool on the bad spots with 3in1 as a lubricant then some fine metal polish soaked into craft felt on a flat surface.
Not perfect, slips don’t wring as they should, but very very usable and accurate enough for my use, but i also get a kick out of saving an old tool.

[norfolkandgood]

Just had to clean up a set of feeler gauges that had some light to medium rust spots and I found that a red 'Scotchbrite' pad with WD40 worked a treat and left no visible sign of abrasion.
Guy

[Gary L]

Nov 12, 2021 9:58:26 GMT 92220 said:

That was one I had forgotten. Yes. Coca Cola will clean off rust but it takes a week or more. But that may be a good thing because it probably wouldn't touch the original finish on the slips. I know that coins cleaned in Cola come out shiny clean.

Bob.

Isn’t it phosphoric acid that is the ‘active ingredient’ in Coca-Cola? Very dilute of course. It is why it is reputed to be bad for the teeth…

Gary

[92220]

Yes. Gary. You are right. It is very dilute phosphoric acid.

Bob.

[steamlaser]

Nov 12, 2021 16:41:45 GMT simplyloco said:

I have no wish to sound 'Holier then thou', but who lets their precious (and expensive) slips go rusty? 
Mine are oiled and kept under rust preventer brown paper!

Why were the gauges in such a poor condition? They came from a neglected workshop of a late club member. I rescued a number of small items for the club and the rest of the workshop went for scrap.
Amongst the small items were a small set of Imperial slip gauges which were not rusty and the Metric ones which were. Our club had a closed bid auction for some of the rescued items and I won the slip gauges.
I do not expect to use the metric slips for high precision measurements, so if I can get the rust off they should be adequate for my home use.
This is the fourth workshop I have had to deal with this year! This has motivated me to slim down my lifetime collection of useful items so as not to leave a problematical legacy for my family!

[samc88]

Evaporust is really good stuff which works overnight, it does discolour the metal slightly but that can be polished back to a natural finish. It isnt nasty stuff to use either like acids are, Ive used it quite a bit now on old tools and when I restored my old ML4

[jackrae]

Nov 13, 2021 22:00:56 GMT steamlaser said:

Nov 12, 2021 16:41:45 GMT simplyloco said:

This has motivated me to slim down my lifetime collection of useful items so as not to leave a problematical legacy for my family!

Strangely enough after cleaning up my workshop, sorting out what goes where and dumping a load of "useful" junk I feel a lot happier about what I'll be leaving behind after the grim reaper has called. Just need to ensure I keep it neat and tidy.

[Deeja]

I would try giving them a pickle in Citric acid (A weak acid akin to orange or lemon juice). I got mine from the swimming pool supply shop and use about 75g/litre. Chemists and supermarkets have it too, but price per gram is more.

Great for getting slight rust off things, and also the black scale on laser cut sheet metal. And also good for cleaning flux/crud off silver soldered things. Try for about 10-15 minutes and see how it goes. And citric acid is sewer friendly (and finger friendly too). If you leave things pickling overnight does not seem to erode anything more except the crud you are trying to get off.

[Gary L]

Nov 20, 2021 5:07:44 GMT Deeja said:

I would try giving them a pickle in Citric acid (A weak acid akin to orange or lemon juice). I got mine from the swimming pool supply shop and use about 75g/litre. Chemists and supermarkets have it too, but price per gram is more.

Great for getting slight rust off things, and also the black scale on laser cut sheet metal. And also good for cleaning flux/crud off silver soldered things. Try for about 10-15 minutes and see how it goes. And citric acid is sewer friendly (and finger friendly too). If you leave things pickling overnight does not seem to erode anything more except the crud you are trying to get off.

Hmmm. I use citric (strong) for pickling yellow metal, but leave steel in too long and it blackens and dissolves! I agree about its virtues, but use with care on anything ferrous.

If the pitting is bad enough to need acid treatment, dilute phosphoric (as in an earlier post) is a safer bet, but (specifically talking slip gauges) the phosphating will discolour the surface; not usually a problem, but could be here. Oxalic, as I mentioned before, is a traditional and effective rust eater, but I’ve never tried pickling steel in it, and (as Bob mentioned) it is poisonous, though it is also organic (found in rhubarb leaves).

Another method I’ve never tried is electrolysis, but I’ve read it gives good results.

Gary

Edit: PS. Citric is certainly sewer-friendly, but I wouldn’t be so sure about the payload of copper salts dissolved in it when it is spent as a pickle. I wonder if it would work as a weedkiller?

[flyingfox]

Greetings Gary, I am a great advocate of Citric acid, but am nervous of tipping any copper containing solution into a sewer, so as you suggest, I use it, under strict supervision from the Head Gardener, (she who must be obeyed) as a weedkiller on paths, and it works very well indeed I have also learned the secret of successful gardening, green side up.
Regards
Brian B