I have some raw steel that I need to cut and paint. It has typical light surface rust from being stored at the supplier. What is the best method to remove and then paint? I hate to use a grinder, too rough. Light sandpaper in a sander might be OK. Or perhaps a spinning wheel of some sort? Even a bucket and brillo pads seems doable.
I'd probably use some type of metal prep. You know, acid.
If you've got a little time, try electrolysis:
4" angle grinder, wire wheel. Rustbegone.
Coca-Cola is as good as anything else for it
If it's very light, a burgundy Scotchbrite pad with Lacquer thinner or acetone if you're about to weld or paint, and WD40 if you're not going to paint for a while works fine. For slightly heavier encrustations a Scotchbrite stripper wheel (drill or angle grinder) or2"-3" surface conditioning discs in a die grinder work great.
And as stated above, a cup wire wheel (Plain, not knotted bristle) works great.
!!!ALWAYS WEAR A FULL FACE SHIELD WHEN USING A WIRE WHEEL IN AN ANGLE GRINDER!!!
A while back, after finishing wire wheeling a piece of steel I noticed a bit of wire sticking out of my thigh. "That's funny" I thought, "Must be just a little piece of a wire 'cause they're nearly 2" long" .
I tried to pull it out with my fingers and couldn't get a good enough grip. So I grabbed a pair of needle nose pliers and gave a tug...
And pulled a wire out that had penetrated well over an inch. Imagine if you will, that sticking out of your remaining eye, all "Andalusian Dog" style. Eww.
Vinegar works incredibly well, you'll need to submerge the part though which might be a problem on something large. 8 hours in vinegar will strip any rust and leave clean metal.
The cup type brushes work good, the Scotchbrites do too but man they wear out QUICK.
I was wirewheeling rust and bondo off once, it was cool outside so I was wearing a sweatshirt. After I was done, I was astounded at the number of wires sticking out of the shirt.
A few days ago, I pulled a piece of wire from a Dremel wire wheel out of my chest. It had gone through my jacket and shirt. I hadn't used the Dremel in at least a week.
Muriatic Acid
Shotgun? (Sorry, couldn't resist.)
Woody wrote: A few days ago, I pulled a piece of wire from a Dremel wire wheel out of my chest. It had gone through my jacket and shirt. I hadn't used the Dremel in at least a week.
It took you a week to find a steel wire stuck in your chest? Dang how often do you bathe?
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