I will second the WD40 suggestion.
Can't hurt and everyone has a can of that stuff in the garage.

Hose 'em down and let 'em sit for a while. And file some stuff!

evapo rust and be done with it,from experance.

Drop it in a mild solution of citric acid (sour salt) for 24 hours. Ya know the same stuff we use to clean brass cartridge cases.

Rust will turn black and brush off with a brass bristle brush.

I've personally used this on a bunch of rusty tools --- works great and it's cheap! Try it on something else rusty of Gramps (that you care little about) if you have doubts!

sounds like the perfect project to test the electrolysis method to me.

Quite a few options to look at.

Citric acid - I remember the last time a few pieces of steel made its way into the ultrasonic cleaner with the batch of brass. I'm far too lazy to restore that chamfer tool (don't ask, I've given up trying to figure it out). It's possible my ratios were off but between that black shit and the rust, I know where I stand with the rust.

Boiling is still the favorite of the old school methods. I've got a few C clamps I was planning on experimenting with anyway. Evaporust is probably what I'll end up doing, though, if I can find any in town without a fight.

ETA: Harbor Freight carries it. I'll stop by sometime this week to get some.

Your nearest O'reilly's carries Evapo-Rust.

I'd run it on a wire wheel, parallel to the cuts. It will clean up quickly and won't dull the rasp.

quote:

Originally posted by vulrath:
"In order to understand recursion, you must first learn the principle of recursion."

Completely off topic, and I might have mentioned this to you before. In the index for one of my computer books, under "Recursion", it says "See recursion".

Good luck with the file(s). For that heavy cut rasp, I would just use the snot out of it as is. If you take good long strokes, which are ideal, you might just find all the rust gone.