| ================= Cleaning Reeds/Rust ================= There are several rust removal products. Most of them have the word "jelly" in the name. They seem to do a reasonable job of helping to remove rust. To clean rusted reeds or other rusted parts: It's best to work outside. Cover your work surface to protect it. Round up an old toothbrush or two. You'll probably want to discard them when you're done. Be sure to follow the directions on the container. I strongly suggest that you follow the part about wearing eye protection. Generally what you do is paint the jelly onto the reed or other rusted part. Let it set for a short time, (as instructed on the label). Rinse away the goo and rust with hot water. Repeat as necessary. If you let the jelly dry too long, it can harden. You can probably apply some more jelly to soften it up and then rinse it away. When you're through removing rust, you'll need to give the item a light coat of oil or some other rust preventative. Otherewise it will rust again rather quickly. Rod ----------------------------------------------------------------- While cleaning a nasty reed, I thought of something a little better than what I had been doing. I was at the stage where I had been vigorously brushing the reed with a brass bristled brush that welders use to clean scale from prospective weld areas. A film of rust kept hanging on the reed. Thought I, this is like a tooth brush and I'm cleaning "dents" so I got out the tooth paste and squeezed a little on the brush. I brushed and then rinsed the reed as usual. I repeated about every three inches of reed. I got the rust to disappear. Hmm, Now floss, perhaps? Juanita in Wisconsin. ----------------------------------------------------------------- I was searching for ideas on how to remove rust from steel parts. I came across an interesting concept, using tea to remove the rust. Use ordinary tea bags, boil about a quart of water and add about 4 or 5 tea bags i.e. a strong mix of tea. Stir well and let this brew for a few minutes and remove the bags . Let it cool down for 10 minutes or so and then put your rusty heddles in the tea, fully submerged. Add enough water to cover them. Depending on how rusty the heddles, leave them in there for between 1 and 8 hours - look now and again to see how they are doing. I left mine in overnight, the tea solution coming off of them was black, the tea certainly did its thing. What is happening I am told, is that the (very weak) Tannic acid is attacking the rust, neutralising it and turning the residue into a rust preventitive. I am not a chemist, so I can not vouch for the exact truth of this. What I do know is that when the parts are removed from the tea, they are a grey/blue color. In my case the heddles were a dark brown. After this treatment the heddles don't seem to suffer any harm. I adapted the method above, made enough solution to cover a batch of 100 loose 10 1/2 inch heddles that I have as spares. I soaked them overnight and sure enough this morning they were clean of rust. I rinsed them in cold water, shook the excess water off and placed them in my oven which was set at 200 and let them dry for an hour. I am going to spray them with clear acrylic. Philip Costa ----------------------------------------------------------------- Philip Costa shared his experience of rust removal using some stiff brewed tea. Surfing the net I came up with a few other things to try. It was suggested that Cola could be used for everything from degreasing truck engines to rust removal. I didn't have much luck removing rust with it. I did find that regular white vinegar works great. After soaking for 8 hours or so, the rust brushed or rubbed off. But, even better, after soaking for a day or two, the rust easily rinsed off. After drying, there is just the bare, drab gray metal left. The vinegar soaks into the nooks and crannys too. I cleaned several different items, including heddles, and all came out pretty much rust free. Rod ----------------------------------------------------------------- Rusted Heddle Bars I recently cleaned up 3 rusted heddle bars. My method of choice is soaking in vinegar. However, at 48" the heddle bars were too long to fit in any of the plastic bowls, trays, or buckets I had. After looking around, I found a piece of PVC (plastic) pipe a little longer than the heddle bars and a cap to close off one end. The pipe had about a 5/8" inside diameter. This was more than large enough for the heddle bars, but small enough volume that only a few cups of vinegar were required to fill and cover the bars. Three days of soaking pretty much took care of the rust. After removing from the vinegar, the parts have a black messy coating. (Black oxide?). I rinsed with water and wiped off the black stuff. Then I put on a light coat of oil to prevent re-rusting. Rod, t.f.c. ------------- I've spent more time in the past year cleaning up and repairing looms than actually weaving. As a result, I have some experience with the rusty metal. I use Jasco metal prep (Home Depot) for all the metal parts except the heddles. I use an old toothbrush to brush on the metal prep, then I brush the metal part with a wire brush (looks like a toothbrush). The rust turns to a "muddy water" and I wipe it off. The metal shines like new. Only work on a small (8" or so area) at a time. Then, coat with oil to keep it from re-rusting. If you leave the Jasco on the metal piece, it will neutralize the metal and turn the piece to black. Wear rubber gloves to protect your hands as Jasco is a chemical. Be careful when cleaning reeds as you don't want to bend them. (Brush up and down gently) I found that this method is quick and clean and requires much less muscle. For the heddles, I clean them in vinegar. (Also use gloves) part II --------------------- Buy a bottle of JASCO metal prep and primer. It's not cheap, but is worth it. I promise! Use a cheap foam brush or old tooth brush to coat the rusty metal with JASCO. The JASCO will turn the rust black as it neutralizes it. I don't like the black stuff, so I take a step to clean it off before this happens. Immediately after brushing the JASCO on to an area, I use a wire brush (looks like a toothbrush only a little wider - wooden handle and metal bristles) to brush off the rust. As you brush with the wire brush, the rust will turn to a liquid that looks like mud. Then, I use a cotton rag, t-shirt, or paper towel to wipe it off. If the reed is extra rusty, I may need to go over the area more than once. I brush in the same direction (up and down) as the reeds (like you do when you brush your teeth). You will need to wear rubber gloves and work in a well ventilated area. It is not very messy and works quickly. I cleaned 7 reeds in less than 1 hours this week and plan to demonstrate the technique at a guild meeting in June. Shopping list: JASCO Metal Prep and Primer Foam Brush Wire Brush Paper Towel Rubber Gloves Michele ---------- I had a couple of reeds I wanted to get the rust off. I usually use my Dremel with a steel brush then oil it- too much work! Another list I was on mentioned a spray rust remover. I could not find the brand they mentioned but upon a visit to a local farm store I found something called "Rust Buster". You spray it on- period! The rust literally melts off!!! I could not believe it! I took an old tooth brush to get off the stubborn stuff but it really did a job. No goo, no rinsing, and it is supposed to leave a coating to prevent further rusting. I didn't have to wipe it down either. I just laid it on newspaper to dry. Good Luck with getting rid of your rust! Karen --------- |
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| Vinegar Toothpaste Rust Buster Jasco Tea Jellies |
| Thought I, this is like a toothbrush... |