Removing Rust from Tools

boatiebert said:
What pH required for how long? Ta.
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No idea, avoiding it completely is easiest! I recall that you can heat treat (400C?) but it's not simple, and may effect tempering. It's the main reason that important screws/bolts, drill bits etc etc aren't plated - I believe it's possible but not cost effective.
 
I'll add to my original comment about rotary wire brushing. Get set up with a vice and it's so quick. For hidden moving joints thin oil and repeated back and forth and all the rust and dirt rinses out pretty quickly (I tried all the YouTube stuff and proponents have to admit that the real life results aren't exactly sparkling). I try to avoid rusted tools (with the oily rags mentioned by others), but sometimes the best laid plans etc.. Since I've realised that they are tools - to do a job - having them in perfect working order is the only important criteria - I've slowly adopted 'rust bluing'. Get it back to hard metal with the brush, don't worry about the colour because that slightly rusted surface will hold oil. Gradually it builds up to that black/brown shiny finish that all your granddad's tools had.
 
Charlie Boy said:
Swarfega Duck oil Works well as a preventative. I spray tools on the boat once or twice a year. WD40 is a water displacement spray rather than a rust preventer
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WD40 gets a bad rap as a rust preventer, but I think much of that is heresay. I read a test of rust preventative products where untreated mild steel was treated with various products and then left outside for months, occasionally sprayed with salt water. WD40 did a reasonable job. Not the best, but better than other products that claim to be rust preventers and was awarded the best value product gong in the test as its cheap and does work to an extent. Duck Oil was in the test, but I can't remember how it did. I'll see if I can find it and report back.
 
reeac said:
My solution is to use tool rolls rather than tool boxes. Include an old rag (sock?) soaked in some oily substance which will maintain a protective atmosphere within the roll. A tool roll has the added advantage that it automatically lays out the contents in a row, thus dispensing with all that rummaging around. Segregate the tools into different rolls according to type .......spanners, screwdrivers, metric, imperial or whatever to save time on searching. A roll also eliminates any rattling under rough conditions.
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Exactly this. Plus put them in a roll top waterproof bag (lomo watersport).

so far for 10 years my tools have kept well. Only rust is on cheap tools that were exposed to sea water frequently. Ie pliers.

i have brought more tool rolls to organise them as well as shuffling through the bottom of a tool bag/box is a pain. Much quicker to find your tool quickly.
 
I've had very good results with this stuff....

Evapo Rust

I recently soaked a lot of my old tools in it and they came out looking very good, and some were quite badly rusted.

It seems a bit pricey initially but you can re-use it several times for odds and ends that come up later, and it's very effective.
Just make sure you give it TIME. I left my tools in for about 2 days and they came out with about 90% of the rust gone, with no effort on my part. The rust just floated off into the solution which I then filtered ready for re-use.
Possibly a second immersion would have got rid of even more.

Good luck.
 
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