Ancient airgun restore

[Pyrate Jim]

I found it interesting...

Very Rusty Ancient Airgun Restoration - YouTube

[Rusty Brass]

Okay, that was pretty cool. The electrolytic rust removal though? Does that actually work? Don't know that I've ever heard of such a thing before and if it's that effective it seems like it would be more well known.

[Painthappy]

That's really cool. Would love to know more about that rust removal.

[DocsMachine]

Okay, that was pretty cool. The electrolytic rust removal though? Does that actually work? Don't know that I've ever heard of such a thing before and if it's that effective it seems like it would be more well known.

-Yes, it does, and it works very well.

It's very simple: old-style (that is, not one of the new "smart" style) battery charger for automotive batteries, a bucket of water (or tub or whatever, needs to be plastic though, and possibly disposable, as it'll get stained) some baking soda or washing soda (sodium bicarbonate or sodium carbonate) and a chunk of "sacrificial" steel.

There's a ton of how-tos out there, and it's easy. I turned this, which had been out in the Alaska weather for a decade...



Into this (still not done yet.)



It can't, obviously, put metal back, but it's great for getting rid of the rust. For smaller parts, I'll still use white vinegar or Evap-o-Rust, but for the big parts, electrolytic is much cheaper.

Doc.

[Rusty Brass]

Looking good there, Doc. Inspiring even. I'll have to look around for some old rusted PoS to try it out on.

[NONOBLITUS]

That was really cool and impressive.