Rust removing with lemon juice

[David M Anderson]

I have seen this question quite often

What is the best way to remove rust..?

.
Most often I use electrolysis on larger objects, but in the last couple years have been using lemon juice, with some great results.
You can pick up a quart at the dollar store, one gallon..four bucks...not bad.

Here is a pic of my electrolysis set up..

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Not to costly and can do a Stanley #8 bed and smaller with no problem.

Lemon juice set up.
Lemon juice setup.jpg

I have a few different methods,
Vinegar...find it too aggressive.

Lever cap etched by vinegar

Comparison lever cap.jpg

Molasses...to hard to get off..poor results. Sorry no pics, fingers where to sticky.

Here is a pic of a stainless steel diamond disc, cleaned by half submerging in lemon juice.
The rust staining of the disc was do to my improper cleaning of the disc after I was done grinding.
What lemon juice will do.jpg

I will add to this thread on a clean up of a Stanley 71 type2.
Evapo Rust, citric acid also work great..lemon juice is already mixed and is cheap.
Have also used 1 gallon to clean up five small hand planes, so it can be re-used.

[David M Anderson]

Here is a pic of a Stanley 71, needs to be cleaned up and knobs repaired.
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Now after a bath in lemon juice, 24 hours

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Clean up was just with hot soapy water.
Further clean up will be with a green scotch pad.

[David M Anderson]

Here it is after the clean up..

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Some good results...with very little money spent..and labor.

[Maurice Ungaro]

Wow, very impressive results!

[Jim Koepke]

David, Thanks for taking the time to share this.

I have used powdered citric acid and mix it up when needed.

My recollection is one member posted about using a powdered lemon juice product with similar results.

jtk

[george wilson]

Citric acid is good for cleaning brass.

[David Ragan]

Looks like I'll be going to lemon juice next time!

[Mark Stutz]

I'm a little unclear. Are you using lemon juice as the electrolyte solution for your electrolysis set up? or just soaking in the lemon juice?

[David M Anderson]

Mark, just dropping the parts in the lemon juice..fish them out with a telescoping pen magnet.
Hot water and dish soap is used to clean off the parts, have also used brake cleaner to clear the water off faster.
Here is a Seymour Smith & Son spokeshave I have done couple of years ago..

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Have done over fifty planes or there parts using this method..no joke.

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Hope this helps someone

[Judson Green]

I'll have to give this a try next time. About how long does the lemon juice last?

[David M Anderson]

I usually throw mine out after a month, just pour it out in the grass, safe and bio-degradable.
Lol..have greener grass in that area.

Have also d-rusted other tools...one time forgot a auger bit in the LJ for about a month.

Point is still sharp, no harmful effect.
Auger left in L.J. 1 month 2 pic (Large).jpg

Some other parts;
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And cleaning with LJ and just brake cleaner and a towel.
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[Mel Miller]

Brake cleaner has solvents in it you don't want to breathe or get on your skin. A better way is to wash the lemon juice off with water, then dry with compressed air.

[David M Anderson]

Brake cleaner has solvents in it you don't want to breathe or get on your skin. A better way is to wash the lemon juice off with water, then dry with compressed air.

Good tip, proper safety equipment and steps should apply using any cleaning solutions.

Here is a pic of the end results, of rust removing.

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[Paul Phillis]

lemon juice is citric acid. same as orange and lime juice. All have citric acid of varying concentration.

[Hilton Ralphs]

Brake cleaner has solvents in it you don't want to breathe or get on your skin.

This reminds that brake fluid must be the most foul tasting liquid on the planet earth. I have an old '65 Land Rover so taste testing the pools of liquid under the vehicle is necessary at times.

I'm going to give the lemon juice/citric acid solution a go.