3alarmer

...I did a long posting once here about stripping a frame of the components, plugging up all the holes and the BB shell openings, and then just filling the thing up with Evaporust. It worked pretty well, but was painful to accomplish.the stuff works faster in warm conditions, so where you are, unless you can do it indoors somewhere, I'd wait until next summer.

IT did leave the inside of the frame looking pretty good, and after rinsing with water and drying, I treated it with an anti corrosion oil. I've also done a couple outside in the summertime using OA in a big plastic bin from the home depot. OA makes me nervous because of the skin absorbance issue and the fact that it crystallizes in you kidneys.

Anyway, I think I'm done with restoring rust projects.

Spaghetti Legs 

I am an Evaporust fan. I will add a caution with one recent experience. My DeRosa had rusted top tube cable guides and I applied paper towels soaked in ER and covered with Saran Wrap to soak overnight. Next day the clear coat in the Saran wrapped area was whitish opaque. I panicked and scraped away some of the area but when it dried it seemed like the opacity cleared again. I’m not sure what to make of that and haven’t tried that again since.

bikemig 

Good to know. I was thinking of doing something similar (plugging up the holes, BB opening, etc. I'll do it once it gets warmer next year. It's a 1972 Fuji Finest so I want to save the frame for sure. The outside looks beautiful, the inside not so much.

3alarmer

...that was exactly what I had going on with this higher end Sekai 4000.
I bought it from some guy in front of his storage locker, at dusk, and the paint looked good.

It was not until I opened it up that i saw all the rust flakes inside the BB shell and the frame tubes.
I think maybe he had it in a storage locker for a while, maybe over near the coast with humidity and marine air.

I should have taken some pictures of the BB when I first opened it up. I think I ended up running a round wire brush (like they sell for cleaning copper plumbing pipe before you solder it) down through the seat tube, top to bottom, before I did the Evapo Rust. I closed up the BB using a bolt, some plywood squares, and some gaskets cut from inner tubes. The rest of the holes are pretty easily plugged or taped over.

Before and after:

wrk101

Your waterbed idea is genius.

Your comments about toxicity of oxalic acid solution are not accurate. Solution that is 0.5% to 1% acid does not have the same toxicity as 100% oxalic. But certainly if anyone is concerned about it, they should not use it.

0.5% oxalic acid solution is not considered hazardous waste.

Bar Keepers friend is 7.5% to 9.5% Oxalic Acid, here is their disposal instruction: "Bar Keepers Friend Cleanser & Polish may be disposed of in household garbage."

bikemig 

Is .05-1% the right percentage for giving a bike an oxalic bath? Don't you need to wear a mask of some type when mixing the oxalic acid crystals with water (as well as more obviously perhaps gloves and a goggles)?

wrk101

No, not 0.05 to 1%, more like 0.5% to 1%. What you wear when handling it at full strength is up to you. Myself, nitrile gloves are a must along with splash goggles. I am not handling it long. It comes right out of the package and directly into a gallon of warm water. At that point, its already very dilute. Its more like pouring it directly from the storage container to the water. I am not handling it directly.

Keep any chemicals away from food, don't do it in your kitchen.

Use your own counsel, don't rely on internet opinions including mine.


Read an MSDS on gasoline sometime, what precautions are you using when pumping gas, pouring gas into the lawn mower, mixing gas for the weed eater.

Here are some highlights from gasoline:

"If ingested, do NOT induce vomiting, as this may cause chemical pneumonia (fluid in the lungs). Contact may cause eye, skin and mucous membrane irritation. Harmful if absorbed through the skin. Avoid prolonged breathing of vapors or mists. Inhalation may cause irritation, anesthetic effects (dizziness, nausea, headache, intoxication), and respiratory system effects.

Long-term exposure may cause effects to specific organs, such as to the liver, kidneys, blood, nervous system, and skin. Contains benzene, which can cause blood disease, including anemia and leukemia."

Fire danger of gasoline is quite high. Ever seen someone pumping gas into their car with it still running? Or worse yet, smoking?


Any acid in the eye is worse. Eyes are very sensitive! So additional eye protection is a good idea.

I find in general people are fearful of handling any chemical they don't use, and careless handling chemicals they use routinely. A few examples are oven cleaner, drain cleaner, bleach, and gasoline. Being cautious is a good thing.


IMHO, the most hazardous chemical some on the forum use is oven cleaner to remove anodizing. Even then, there is a lot of variation between brands (all are hazardous, some are more hazardous than others).

Lascauxcaveman 

Funny, I've never even considered 'disposing' of my used OA. I just pour it back into a couple old gallon milk jugs and save it for re-use. All that's left behind is a little crusty residue, and I do dispose of that by letting all the water evaporate out and then tossing the container in the trash.

So, like this thread, my OA always comes back from the dead

jpaschall

We're cooking. Not much to post really besides what it looks like set up. Nothing to it:


Evaporust soak by Joshua Paschall, on Flickr

Honestly, this is really easy and I'm surprised with how well this set up works to surround the tubes with the Evaporust. I only had to use a gallon to get the level halfway up the tubes. I also used 3mil plastic top and bottom to save some money; the 6mil stuff is kinda pricey.

I think if I used 2x6's and 2 gallons I could cover the whole frame in one shot, instead of flipping it.

jonwvara 

That's it, man! That's exactly what my setup looked like, right down to the position of the piece of wood weighting down the frame. Nice work! Be careful you don't puncture the plastic, but 3 mil is still pretty tough. Come to think of it, I think I used 4 mil, not 6 mil.

jpaschall

Halfway through and just flipped it. I soaked a rusted up Cyclone FD as well, but it is pretty pitted and will need a lot of sanding and polishing.

Before:


Untitled by Joshua Paschall, on Flickr

After (not exactly the same side, but you can see it's working):


1/2 point Evaporust soak by Joshua Paschall, on Flickr


1/2 point Evaporust soak by Joshua Paschall, on Flickr

Some notes: I'm working beneath the recommended temperature. It got down to around 48F last night (though my garage is somewhat insulated). I lost some decals and the paint fill in the headbadge. I believe this is just age/condition related, and that any sort of extended moisture exposure would've done the same thing. Luckily, replacements are available.

The rust on the white areas was primarily above the surface, while on the green I see exposed metal. Chrome areas are rough as I expected. Some touch-up paint will be required I think.

jonwvara 

My Gitane had those metallic foil stickers instead of decals, and the ER did not seem to effect them. One of the things I like about the method is that you can leave an aluminum headbadge in place. Oxalic acid eats aluminum. ER only eats rust, but if there is rust under the decals or paint, it may leave the paint unattached to anything once it goes away, so you get some limited flaking. At least I think that's what happens.

VonCarlos

I had the same reaction to some paint. It did clear up over time.