Acid dip, sandblast or other...

[Simpleton7016 2]

I have seen a lot (and I mean A LOT) of nice, good quality work on some of your machines in the show and tell area. I am a long way (at least a year) from doing any paint work on my tractor. But you guys have got me thinking about it. Do most of you sand blast your parts or have them acid dipped? I certainly don't have the time to make mine show quality, but do want to make it nicer looking. What is the best method for prepping the metal? Do you primer your parts? Is "Extend" or some other rust inhibitor advisable? Clear coat finish? Is there any coating I can put on after the paint that will make it more scratch resistant?

[MPH 12]

Because of lack of a sandblaster I wire brush mine with a 4 inch grinder, not a fun deal but it gets the job done. I use NAPA rust treatment on anything that is pitted because it get down into the holes and kills the rust. So far happy with results after 3 years. I use self etching primer the squirt can paint. Used clear coat on the B-112 but any gas drips seem hard on it. The only scratch that hurts bad is the first one.

[bigneil37 0]

I had my 101 glass beaded the cost is about the same as sand but it seems to be less damagingto the metal,it makes for a very smooth finish

[ehertzfeld 1]

I use alittle bit of heat. I use my tourch and carfully heat the part. It burns the pain grit and grim off decently. After a quick sanding and it's ready to prime. Elon

[BLT 717]

You can do an electrolysis and get paint and rust off. The ingredient is cheap and enviromentally safe. You can get it at Sentry in Butler.The other items are a battery charger, copper wire and clips, a plastic container and sacrifice rods. There are quite a few threads here and on the web about the subject. I have tried it on some items and had some sucess.

[Mick14 0]

I have tried that "extend",,it isn't a long lasting treatment,didn't last a year.I have had good results with a product called "rust lock" from west marine,i think Napa has a similar rust converter.if it contains phosphoric acid,thats the stuff you want.

[stevei46 0]

we had a guy do the sheet metal from my dads farmall H pulling tractor that used soda to blast the metal he is located in East Liverpool OH, i'm sure that there are other places that do this process the advantage over sand blasting is it won't warp the sheet metal and is pretty popular with antique car restorers, I also have used the electrolysis method bob mentioned above with good results but i used it to clean heavy rust from a antique flywheel engine that had been sitting out rusting for 40 or 50 years

[stevei46 0]

here is the link i used to make the electrolysis tank http://antique-engines.com/electrol.asp

[Simpleton7016 2]

Whoa ho ho Bob and Steve! You better hope that my wife never meets you! She'll want to kill whoever gave me this idea! And Bob, you are only five or ten miles away! This is so cool and like you said, cheap. My father has a great sandblasting booth about 15 miles from here, but this electrolysis method looks easy and will save me the multiple trips to his house. I looked over the link you provided and intend to do the research to design my own, reasonably sized electrolysis tank. If anyone knows of any other helpful links, I will gratefully explore them. Also, if there are any cons to this method, please let me know since I have two little boys (aged 1 and 2) who will be getting into all of Daddy's stuff in just a few years. It looks like stainless steel is a danger, but so far, that is the biggest danger I am aware of (well except for electrocution) :)

[RayS 79]

The tractors that I have done have been sand blasted. The guy does them cheaper than I am willing to sit and sand or use chemicals on them.

[BLT 717]

Here are some places to look at: http://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/rust/electrolytic_derusting.htm http://www.owwm.com/FAQ/electrolysis.asp http://www3.telus.net/public/aschoepp/electrolyticrust.html http://ianrpubs.unl.edu/homemgt/nf139.htm http://www.htpaa.org.au/article-electro.php http://www.thunting.com/geotech/pages/misc/projects/electrolysis1/ http://www.google.com/search?q=electrolysis+parts+cleaning&hl=en&lr=&start=20&sa=N

[Chris727 1,934]

I just sand the parts which are not rust pitted but if something is very pitted, I prefer to sandblast them clean. When I can't sandblast I have used a wire wheel on a drill to clean up the rust in the pits but that tends to really leave deep scratches in the metal and is not as effective for rust removal. Always use a good primer. If you do have scratches or pits you can sand the primer down and recoat. This will help fill the imperfections.

[MikeES 454]

I use paint stripper and a small sand blaster for the areas that I can't get into with the stripper. I also sand blast the rust pitted areas or use a product like Extend or Rust Reformer.

[firefoxz1 4]

Heavy metal parts are sand blasted and tin is just stripped and sanded, I have also used a torch to get the stubborn flakey rust out of pits that the blaster doesn't seem to get in to. I think I had a harder time deciding what paint to use than cleaning and priming the parts. I have the tub and ingredients for the elect idea but have yet to try it.