what is the best solution for degreasing metal that will get in all the hard to reach places as well as remove the grease and oils?

It may take a couple of treatments depending on if you're planning on brushing, agitation or hard spray and how intricate the part is. Can you reah all the nooks and cranies with pick and rag?

Engine degreaser works very well as does oven cleaner. Then a wash in Simple Green or Purple Power to remove the residue and finally a rinse in Methol Alc. to remove all traces of water.

On most parts I use a shot of NAPA 8700 carberator cleaner, a rag and compressed air. It will strip the oil out of your skin too so try to keep it off your hide or wear nitrile gloves

For rust bluing I boil the parts in a solution of water and Arm & Hammer Washing Soda. I'm not sure if it will take off thick deposits.

A mixture of a citrus cleaner or Borax and baking soda ( Arm&Hammer ) heated to near boiling works extremely well .

Rinse with Acetone or MEK ( Wear Gloves ) they de fat the fingers .

I don't care for alcohol as it draws moisture .

Shoot Straight Know Your Target . ...

thanks for the info

Your question is a bit "brief."
#1). If you are just re-activating a military in cosmoline, about any solvent and compressed air is great. Kerosene is workable (or diesel). Wipe or spray it on, blow it off. Spray can products work fine too but cost more usually. [With the current price of petros??? None cheap.] Notably this will leave a light oil film on the metal that will inhibit rust unless you leave it outside in the rain... Like some 3rd world jungle armorers... (Don't ask).
#2). If you want all traces of anything removed, like before you reblue, THEN you have to get real serious. Chemically you use "steps." #1). is an "o.k." starter. THEN #2). WD 40? GUNK? The strong soaps mentioned to "cut" the oily film. In HOT water. You want the metal warm enough to help evaporate the water. Boiling is not too hot. THEN #3). You could use alcohol, any pure --90% +, to remove the water, because alcohol will evaporate at room temps. BUT you must use a relatively pure alcohol. Alcohol pulls water (humidity) out of the air. This is why drugstore alcohol is usually around 70%. Any stronger, it dilutes itself attracting humidity as it evaporates away with the lid off. If the metal is plenty warm, boiling water say, it will evaporate the alcohol and water. In chem lab we would then use acetone to cut the alcohol... (Not cheap) NOW? If you do not have an air tight container with dissencant, you just wasted your time. Leaving the tool (any metal) sit overnight in room air, you will attract water (humidity) and possibly other products, oils, that are in the air. Be prepared if you need it this clean. The "bluer" would immediately place into the boiling bluing salts tank to cause the rust process that is bluing... And the "blue" would protect it... Right after removing it from a tank of strong alkali to soaponify and disslove the oils, you want to play with lye, go that way.

Real can of worms if you want "lab clean." luck

Napa Super Clean. It is best I have ever seen bar none.

Excuse me, it is Castrol Super Clean, sold by NAPA.

quote:

Originally posted by Customstox:
Napa Super Clean. It is best I have ever seen bar none.

Thanks for the advice. I'll get some of it.
Up untill a few years ago, I used RIG-3, which was the best I had found, mainly for degreasing knife blades. But, it evidentally flunked the Chloroflorocarbon test and is no longer available.

Don

Dear Robe763:

I use brake cleaner to degrease my gun parts before I rust blue them, and it really works. I try to find the old stuff with acetone instead of TCE, since it seems to work a bit faster.

Interestingly, I used the new brake cleaner with TCE to clean off an engine block deck and pistons, and it would not cut the carbon on the tops of the pistons or on the cylinders at the top of the cylinder. The old brake cleaner with acetone actually cut the carbon quite quickly on another block that I was cleaning up before changing the head gasket.

Also, I have used straight acetone, which always works. Just use it outside if at all possible, its pretty funky stuff.

To me the key is to use clean gloves when handling the parts after you are done. Keeping the body oil off the metal surface is the winning combination.

Sincerely,

Chris Bemis

Has anyone used the product Brownells sells called D'Solve? Is it worth the $42 a gallon? It states you can cut the mix depending strength needed and that the 1 gallon will make up to 5. Does not appear to have the harsh chemicals to deal with but will it work?

Robe763 : May I inquire as to what your doing ?.

It's obvious you want some metal cleaned but for what purposes ?. Carburetor cleaner works also Berryman brake cleaner .

http://www.amazon.com/Berryman-Brake-Cleaner-gallon/dp/B0002JM87W

http://www.corrosion.com/prep.asp

Normally boiling hot water an most of the house hold chemicals mentioned , will remove oil grease .A final rinse with a solvent such as acetone will ensure cleanliness .

To prevent rusting of said metal leave it in an air tight metal container of acetone submerged . Until your ready to do what ever your going to do to the clean metal .

Ti Sodium Phosphate is another cleaning product which has dual purposes .

It not only cleans but also has use in Parkerizing as does manganese phosphate .

Shoot Straight Know Your Target . ...

Most carburetor cleaners actually contain an oil in the mixture; the purpose is to be left behind after the solvents evaporate to lubricate the various linkages associated with the carburetor (choke, throttle plates etc.). Stick with brake cleaner, which obviously will NOT have any oil or other lubricants in the mixture.

Dr. K,
I have several old guns that were given to me and are in need of some serious cleaning as well as blueing touch up. No real value to the guns, more of something you might fix up and hang over the fire place. The corrosion. com is familar. I am presently contracted to a power plant to manage subcontractors building several coal units and the final paint contract is one that I am responsible for. The SP's are part of their spec requirements. I was just looking for something I could buy locally without ordering.

Dear Robe763:

I just purchased on e-bay an old, somewhat rusty Lyman 48 sight. It was such a mess that the slide would not go all the way down into the base.

A few shots of brake cleaner, and everything fit and was ready to take apart. Should work the same on your old guns.

As I mentioned before, try to find the old brake cleaner with Acetone as the active ingredient. Best bet is to go to an old gas station that had it sitting on the shelf for a decade. That's were I found my waning supply.

Sincerely,

Chris Bemis

Will begin searching
Thanks Yale

quote:

Originally posted by DMB:

quote:

Originally posted by Customstox:
Napa Super Clean. It is best I have ever seen bar none.

Thanks for the advice. I'll get some of it.
Up untill a few years ago, I used RIG-3, which was the best I had found, mainly for degreasing knife blades. But, it evidentally flunked the Chloroflorocarbon test and is no longer available.

Don

Went to the local NAPA store yesterday to buy some Super Clean and the store owner told me he can't get it any longer. In his words, "They quit sending it to me, had someting to do with the chemicals in it."
I can only guess that it had Chloroflourcarbons in it too, like RIG-3.

Don

TSP and oven cleaner. Either/Or or both.