rust on satin chrome rule

[James Baker SD]

Whats the best way to remove rust from a Starrett satin chrome rule in a double square? The rust is mainly along an edge of the rule but intrudes down into the engravings somewhat. I do not want to damage the engraved lines when I try to remove the rust. Thanks.

James

[Casey Gooding]

A quick dip in Evapo-Rust should take care of it. Them wipe it lightly with oil or wax it.

[David Christopher]

James, I use turtle wax chrome polish. it has enough abrasive to get the rust off but not enough to scratch the chrome.....and its only about 4 dollars at the auto parts store

[george wilson]

Are you storing any muriatic acid,even unopened and never used,in your shop? Any other acids?

I had chrome plated wrenches rust across the room from a never opened plastic container of muriatic.

[Jim McFarland]

Are you storing any muriatic acid,even unopened and never used,in your shop? Any other acids?

I had chrome plated wrenches rust across the room from a never opened plastic container of muriatic.

To add to Geoge's point -- be careful with pool chemicals, too. I had several tools develop rust that were near a closed tub of chlorine tablets. I store the chemicals outside in a closed container now.

[James Baker SD]

I have no muriatic acid that I know of nor any pool chemicals. The tool was hanging on the wall in the shop and ignored for too long. I live in the desert with typical humidity of 20-25% and I guess I mistakenly thought I was safe from moisture.

I had a small 6" rule get rusty also and tried the electrolysis method which usually works great for me, but it removed the chrome and made the rule's markings almost invisible. This is a big 24" rule and I don't want to make a similar mistake.

[Jim Koepke]

I have no muriatic acid that I know of nor any pool chemicals. The tool was hanging on the wall in the shop and ignored for too long. I live in the desert with typical humidity of 20-25% and I guess I mistakenly thought I was safe from moisture.

I had a small 6" rule get rusty also and tried the electrolysis method which usually works great for me, but it removed the chrome and made the rule's markings almost invisible. This is a big 24" rule and I don't want to make a similar mistake.

I live in a high humidity area and was very worried about rust. It seems as long as my tools are in a place with free air circulation there is not a problem. Wrapped in news print, they rust. Go figure.

If the markings on the ruler are engraved and there is not a lot of pitting, you might try using a stiff squeegee to run some black enamel or epoxy type paint into the engraved areas while keeping the paint off the surface.

jim

[Harlan Barnhart]

I have sanded off badly rusted satin rules (flea market finds) with good results. Just go slowly and lightly, lubricate and use a fine grit. My first effort for light rust is toothpaste and a stiff bristle toothbrush. It works better than you might think.
-Harlan

[Richard Niemiec]

Rub it out with fine Rottenstone or pumice; in a pinch, the kitchen has some Bon Ami, a very fine abrasive, much lower than Comet, which I use all the time.

[Jim McFarland]

Evapo-rust works great in my experience but it can stain some finishes (no clue if it would affect your rule but did stain a cheap handsaw blade). I also like these sanding blocks for removing minor rust spots from hand tools -- I start with Fine and use coarser if necessary:

http://www.theruststore.com/Sandflex-Rust-Erase-3-Pack-P11C7.aspx

[David Keller NC]

Whats the best way to remove rust from a Starrett satin chrome rule in a double square? The rust is mainly along an edge of the rule but intrudes down into the engravings somewhat. I do not want to damage the engraved lines when I try to remove the rust. Thanks.

James

James, from a metallurgical standpoint, you may be sunk on keeping the chrome and removing the rust. What is likely to have happened is that the corrosion has found microscopic flaws in the chrome plating, and what you're seeing is eruptions of corrosion cells through the chrome.

Just about any electrolysis or bath-type rust removal (including evapo-rust) is very likely to remove that nice chrome finish along with the rust, as will most abrasives. About the only thing you can try that's got a snowball's chance of removing most of the corrosion and leave most of the chrome is a an ultra-fine abrasive. These are sold cheaply in your local auto-parts store as "clear coat cleaner"; Meguir's is a good brand. The abrasives in these are considerably finer than toothpaste, rottenstone, pumice or any scouring powder. The rough equivalent is the purpose-made Minzerna ultra-polish buffing compounds made for laquer finishes.

[Jacob Reverb]

Wrapped in news print, they rust.

FYI, newsprint, like most papers, has quite a bit of residual acid in it (the acid helps drain the water from the pulp slurry in the papermaking machine), so it's not a good thing to leave in contact with a lot of things that can corrode, like tools.