My bikes aren't actually classic or vintage, but I figured this would be the forum where people might have the most experience with this problem. I own three steel bikes and love them all. My latest acquisition is a 2011 Jamis Dragon Race 29er with Reynolds 853 tubing. I bought it off of ebay and was a little disappointed to spot a noticeable amount of rust inside the seat tube when I pulled the seatpost out. It's not like the bike is in danger of corroding apart from the inside, but I'd like to deal with it.

My guess is I'll have to fully disassemble the bike, treat it with a rust eating element (EvapoRust? Oxalyic acid?), and then a rust prevention element (FrameSaver?).

Thoughts, recommendations?
Thanks in advance.

If you have a chrome plater close ask them to drop it into the deplater. It removes the paint and rust.

i would just clean it out real well with a light oil and a long brush or long rag and then apply boeshield. the next time you overhaul the bike, inspect it again.

I would convert the rust to something stable that won't continue to corrode the base metal.

One very old method to convert rust to stable iron tannate uses a strong solution of hot tea.

Use a wire brush down the seat tube to remove loose scale and rust.
Invert the frame and plug the end of the seat tube, a seatpost with grease works fine.
Pour in a strong solution of warm/hot black tea and let it sit for a few hours.

Pour out, wipe dry and apply oil.

Better safe than sorry... give the frame a bath, or flush it a few times with naval-jelly, or maybe even try electrolysis since you have several frames it might be worth the extra effort.
John Allen gives a good summary of options: Bicycle Frame Refinishing

That is exactly what I mentioned with the plater. Give them an old piece of rusty metal a d he gives back the piece sans rust. The pitting will remain but rust is gone.

I would just remove any loose rust and apply some kind of sticky oil like frame-saver. I use Wurth 2000 or whatever it is... It's in a spray can and is really sticky. The oil will prevent the rust from growing. rust by itself will not cause more rust. If it's coated in oil and stays coated in oil, it will not rust further.

Corrosion Testing (New Pics - 5-08-12)

You can run a Hopps shotgun bore snake throught he tube too.

I've had luck getting rid of rust using WD-40 and wire wool followed up with a clean rag, WD-40 does a good job lifting the rust, It works really good removing rust from plated surfaces when used with fine wire wool.

Which is a great suggestion... except for the removal of paint part.

I was told that using Frame Saver would seal the existing rust from oxygen and that the rust would not continue.

So I just Frame Saver'd it.

Spray Ospho on any rusty ferrous metal. It will stop the rust, and leave a coated surface.

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...atabase-6.html

He didn't say anything about leaving the paint intact. Which is a great excuse for a repaint.

Hmm. This looks pretty effective, and easy. So I'd just have to spray it in the tubes once and be done, vs. some other procedures where I'd have to somehow plug the tubes and hold the substance in for a period of time.

Any downsides to this product when using it in a bike frame, do you think?

The EvapoRust solution. I am strongly considering going this route, but any suggestions about how to plug the bottom bracket and tubing openings to hold the solution in?

No worries, let it dry, and your done. It dries to a dark color .

For something the size of a frame, an oxalic acid bath is more practical than using Evapo-Rust because of the substantial price difference. Just pick up a tub of oxalic acid crystals (sold as wood bleach) at your local hardware store, mix it with water in a big tub (a kiddie pool works great), and submerge the frame overnight. Remove, rinse well, dry, and if you so choose, treat with the rust preventative of your choice.

I used plastic-wrap and rubber bands. You might be able to plug the small openings on the tubing with earplugs or something along those lines.

Put tape over the holes. Use a syringe to get the liquid into the tubes. Figure out an angle to support the frame to get the maximum coverage.

...sadly, there is no way to effectively spray the insides of all the tubes and stays on a bicycle cycle. Would that there were.

...What I did was covered earlier in that thread, I think. (maybe not)

Briefly, the BB is the biggest issue, and I just cut some rubber strips from wide (26 ")
discarded inner tubes, used rubber bands to hole them on some sort of paneling or plywood
scraps, and used a screw clamp to hold them in place and tighten down the gaskets so that
they did not leak. The other holes are pretty small and can be plugged with just about anything.

If you have bottle braze on holes, just insert the screws and tighten them down after greasing the threads.

The brazing pressure relief holes in the stays can be plugged with toothpicks or anything small that fits the holes.


It would be swell if that rust converter stuff could be sprayed evenly everywhere inside the frame,
but that has not been my practical experience here. If you do this Evaporust business (and it is a PIA),
take advantage of the last of the warm weather to do it outside, or you'll have to do it indoors.

The stuff takes forever to work unless it's warm.

Auto parts stores carry body panel rust proofing kits, with a large spray can containing a rust proofing solution that looks amazingly like Frame Saver. The kit also has a long flexible tube with a five way nozzle on the end, that will fit into the main tubes. Spray the solution as you slowly pull the tube out. Use the supplied thin tube to treat the fork and stays through the brazing holes.