Penetrating oils and test.

[swampratt]

My uncle lived up north and in the sub 0 weather and his old 340 Barracuda decided not to play nice and he needed some starting fluid to get the car to fire up and get to his girlfriends house.
Well could not find any and had his Aqua Velva in the car. He thought must be alcohol in it because it burns shaved skin.

Poured some down the throat of the carb and she fired right up.
Me thinks Uncle Ralph needed a new accelerator pump. or maybe moisture dribbled onto the squirters making them not squirt..I have no idea.

So not so bad really.

 

[Neanderthal]

Thanks for the topic and video, Ratt! I bookmarked that channel.

 

[Chief Sapulpa]

I've had really good success with "nuts off"; https://www.phelpsgaskets.com/produ...etrating-spray-anti-corrosion--lubricant.html
I usually buy 2 and send one to a friend, wait a few days and then send him a note asking if he got his nuts off...

 

[TerryMiller]

My uncle lived up north and in the sub 0 weather and his old 340 Barracuda decided not to play nice and he needed some starting fluid to get the car to fire up and get to his girlfriends house.
Well could not find any and had his Aqua Velva in the car. He thought must be alcohol in it because it burns shaved skin.

Poured some down the throat of the carb and she fired right up.
Me thinks Uncle Ralph needed a new accelerator pump. or maybe moisture dribbled onto the squirters making them not squirt..I have no idea.

So not so bad really.

If something in the carb was literally frozen because of moisture, the alcohol would thaw it out. We used to live in the country and was fortunate enough to get our natural gas from the Panhandle Eastern pipeline because of having leases for the gas. If we had a situation where we couldn't get gas, I'd go up to the regulator, throw a couple of valve handles, remove a plug, pour in alcohol, and put everything back. By the time I got back to the house, we had gas again.

 

[dennishoddy]

Taken from the Practical Machinist Forum
(YMMV)

In a thread in the antique machinery forum, there was a discussion what to use to free up a part. Southbendmodel34 had mentioned a study in Machinist Workshop stating that Automatic transmission fluid and Acetone mixed was the best.
I just received a newsletter today from Tim Carter mentioning the same study. He had included the results of the test, which I thought interesting.

A study done by Machinist's Workshop magazine in their April 2007 issue looked at different penetrating oils to see which one did the best job of removing a rusted bolt by measuring the pounds of torque required to loosen the bolt once treated. If the study was scientifically accurate, it turns out a home brew works best!
Here's the summary of the test results:

Penetrating oil ..... Average load

None ...................... 516 pounds
WD-40 ................... 238 pounds
PB Blaster .............. 214 pounds
Liquid Wrench ...... 127 pounds
Kano Kroil ............. 106 pounds
ATF-Acetone mix....53 pounds

I did not want to dirty up the other thread speaking of penetrating oils.
I have relied on many methods of getting rusty bolts and plugs out of automotive engines and their other parts.
I have found Kroil does not work well at all for me and PB blaster is not great either.
Transmission fluid and Acetone worked ok.
Brake fluid works better than anything I have tried including heat i some situations.
Yes brake fluid.
Another top dog is Rust Buster with the zoom spout. You can get it at a supply house like Johnstone supply.

The hardest bolts or nuts to remove are on exhaust parts like the catalytic converter or exhaust manifolds.
I had one car with 250,000 miles on it and the Converter bolts would not budge even with heat.
Kroil was used Heat with candle wax was used PB blaster and Liquid wrench and again with the heat.
Nothing worked.. heat was last and then i let it cool and tried again and it was not budging.
I decided to try brake fluid..A buddy told me about it.

I applied it by dipping a paper towel piece into the brake fluid and applying it to the area wit the towel.
I let it set 20 minutes and came back and they both snapped loose with 1/2 the torque as was applying.

Yes I let the other penetrants set on there ..in fact I would try it after 10 minutes and then gave it 40 minutes of rest time and try again.

But that is rusty bolts on Iron or steel much different than a plumbing part that may have calcium making the parts bond together.
For that you need something that eats calcium like CLR or something.
When CLR first came out I tried it and it did not work for me.
Vinegar works for me. Or other acids.

Here is a rusted bolt test I found.

So, in one test, I'm seeing Kroil as the worst, and in another test, I'm seeing Kroil as the best off the shelf with acetone and ATF being first.
So, obviously, there is a difference in testing methods and results.
Is there an industry standard?

 

[dennishoddy]

WD-40 is neat stuff for some applications, but multiple sprayings (without cleaning) does result in a gooey buildup.

Been there.

Liquid Wrench is a true penetrating oil that doesn't do that.

WD40 will turn into gum when temps get around zero. When young and dumb about lubricants we tried it on our semi auto guns in winter. You could barely cycle the actions manually they were so stiff.

 

[MacFromOK]

WD40 will turn into gum when temps get around zero. When young and dumb about lubricants we tried it on our semi auto guns in winter. You could barely cycle the actions manually they were so stiff.

I can only imagine, but it doesn't have to be low temps. Multiple coatings at room temp over time will still result in a gooey coating.

I've used it on firearms as well, but no longer do so. :/

 

[NightShade]

Was just thinking and wonder how diesel would do in the same test. It is technically a fuel oil and would lubricate it at the very least.

Also heard stories about it being used to wash vehicles in Vietnam and they looked great until some dirt started blowing around and then they were a big grimy mess.

 

[dennishoddy]

WD-40 is neat stuff for some applications, but multiple sprayings (without cleaning) does result in a gooey buildup.

Been there.

Liquid Wrench is a true penetrating oil that doesn't do that.

WD40 will turn into gum when temps get around zero. When young and dumb about lubricants we tried it on our semi auto guns in winter. You could barely cycle the actions manually they were so stiff.

Was just thinking and wonder how diesel would do in the same test. It is technically a fuel oil and would lubricate it at the very least.

Also heard stories about it being used to wash vehicles in Vietnam and they looked great until some dirt started blowing around and then they were a big grimy mess.

Kerosene is a lighter oil and worked better. Probably old husbands tales, but heard the same story about using kerosene on limo's to get that instant shine.

 

[MacFromOK]

Had a friend back in the '70s that worked on clocks, and he used kerosene to lube them. He said regulars oils would dry/thicken over time and cause problems.