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05-29-11, 12:45 PM
Apologies for bringing up such a common topic, but I can't quite seem to find the answers by searching the archive.
So, I had some old Christophe toe clips that were in pretty sad shape (much of the chrome plating flaked off) and decided to give oxalic acid a try. This was my first time working with it.
I put them in a solution of 1/2 teaspoon powdered OA to 1 quart of water. I left them in overnight. When I pulled them out in the morning, they looked great!
I immediately put them in a fairly stout baking soda & water solution to neutralize the acid, swirled them around a bit, and left them there for about 5 minutes. Then I pulled them out and put them on paper towels to dry. At this point, they looked good: chrome shiny, chromeless bits black.
I went away for about five minutes. When I came back, all the de-chromed spots had rusted up severely. Bright red stains all over the paper towels. Though the chromed bits did look good, as a whole the parts don't look much better than they did before the treatment.
What am I doing wrong? Is there some way to prevent immediate re-oxidation? Thanks!
So, I had some old Christophe toe clips that were in pretty sad shape (much of the chrome plating flaked off) and decided to give oxalic acid a try. This was my first time working with it.
I put them in a solution of 1/2 teaspoon powdered OA to 1 quart of water. I left them in overnight. When I pulled them out in the morning, they looked great!
I immediately put them in a fairly stout baking soda & water solution to neutralize the acid, swirled them around a bit, and left them there for about 5 minutes. Then I pulled them out and put them on paper towels to dry. At this point, they looked good: chrome shiny, chromeless bits black.
I went away for about five minutes. When I came back, all the de-chromed spots had rusted up severely. Bright red stains all over the paper towels. Though the chromed bits did look good, as a whole the parts don't look much better than they did before the treatment.
What am I doing wrong? Is there some way to prevent immediate re-oxidation? Thanks!