Hi all,

Have an old Merckx MX Leader I recently got hold of. Had some mild rattling in the frame and when I took small the semi-stuck quill stem out, noticed evidence of rust - brown grease. Took it all apart and some flakes of what look like dirt and rust came out and looking inside, evidence of surface rust. It doesn't look too bad but there is also evidence of rust inside the seat stays (see photo of vent hole).

My plan is to seal of all the openings (except one) and fill with Evapo-rust (I have some). Then I will let sit for 24 hours and treat with framesaver.

All pretty straightforward, *except* that I am worried about the rinsing of the frame with water after using Evapo-rust. I need to get the water out & I imagine it will be the hardest in the seat stays. I read that drying with a hair dryer may cause it to rust again quite rapidly.

Any suggestions as to how I can acheive this? Maybe flooding internally with WD-40, then letting drain? Again, this would be so hard in the seat stays.

Any advice greatly appreciated!

There are a variety of liquid solutions that remove/dissolve rust. EvapORust is the one that I have. pour it in a container, soak the part/frame in it for a period of time, rinse it off. Doesn't affect paint. Not cheap but works well with little effort.

Most people will opt to just encapslulate the rust with Frame Saver or other coating. Andy.

A couple of rinses with pure alcohol (not 70% rubbing alcohol) should combine with and take the water out of your frame after a thorough rinsing. It should then evaporate quickly, leaving the frame ready for whatever preservative you choose. I am not sure I would go to the trouble of removing such a small amount of rust, but I can see your point in wanting it gone.

Looking at the instructions, you don't have to rinse off all of the Evaporust; once cleaned, dipping and drying it will help prevent re-rusting. "To prevent re-rusting simply dip the item back in EVAPO-RUST™
solution and allow to dry." Evapo-Rust MSDS - Evapo-Rust

Eastwood and several other companies sell rust converting primers for the auto restoration trade. Several of the products come with extension tubes that allow you to fog the product into enclosed areas and work well for bike frames. Use your rust remover of choice and rinse with water. Give the frame a final rinse with Prep Sol or other appropriate solvent/cleaner and take it out in the sun, tipping it in various directions to make sure that all the solvent has drained or evaporated. Protect the outside of the frame and any threaded areas with masking tape and/or other products designed for use with automotive primers and paint. Fog the rust converting primer into all the tubes through any opening. Try not to get much in the area where the seat post will dwell as it can cause a tight fit. Do this in a few lighter applications so you don't have primer running down the tubes and puddling. Tip and rotate the frame for a few minutes after each application to assure that no primer pools anywhere. Allow to dry overnight or longer before reassembling. The rust converting primer will make any specks of rust left behind by the rust remover chemically inert.

So it may not be necessary to rinse after soaking? This would be ideal but I am thinking it may interfere with the framesaver coat I will apply afterwards...

In place of Pure Alcohol (100% Isopropanol?), could I use WD-40 after the water rinse, assuming I go ahead with the water rinse...

Thanks for your help, too! :-)

I'd be concerned that the WD-40 with its oils, solvents and who-knows-what else would be more likely to have an adverse affect on your framesaver than the dried coating of rust remover. I believe that you may be over-thinking this. Rinse, dry, apply; why make things more complex than they need to be?

Keep in mind that this frame has some years on it and very little rust; it seems like you might get another decade or two without doing anything to it.

I'm a fan of Evapo-Rust. I use it all the time for small parts like nuts & bolts, but it's too pricy for bigger things like a bike frame. For frames, I pick up a small tub of oxalic acid, sold as wood bleach at my local hardware store. Mix the crystals with water in a big tub (a kiddie pool works great) and submerge the frame overnight. Remove & rinse and you're done. And rinsing typically isn't as hard as you might fear. Every tube, even a stay, normally has an opening at both ends. (There are normally vent/drain holes at the dropouts.)

After treating the rust, you may consider using a rust preventative. J.P. Weigle's Frame Saver is a common choice. I use Amsoil Heavy Duty Metal Protector since it's available locally.

You can use a rust convertor like Por-15,there are many others....Turns rust into primer/sealer.....You don't have to do anything when your done....Treat with rust convertor,done.

I rinsed mine with water after a naval-jelly soak... I did this in the middle of winter, when the heating system was on. I just hung the frame to dry in the furnace room. There was no evidence of any new-rust prior to applying the frame-saver.

The rust in your pictures looks very minor to me, i.e. a normally expected amount. Go ahead and apply your remedies, because they can help and they can't hurt. But I wouldn't even say it's necessary.

+1. The red stuff is just oxidized iron. It's the product of rusting, not the cause of it. It can exacerbate rusting if it gets wet and holds water. Get all the loose stuff out blowing out with compressed air and perhaps using a steel brush, and then apply the Frame Saver.

The 2nd shot down the seat tube looks all wrong , what is in there ?

Sorry to bring up oooooold thread. Bit did you find a way to clean thean the rust inside the seatstays? And is the frame still going strong? Have a similar problem with my Merckx SLX.