Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion Paint removal by Electrolysis

On Nov of last year, under Showcase and Stories topic of this website, Pollyman with some help from his friends, did a segment on paint removal by Electrolysis, it was the most complete how to segment I have ever seen on this website, with step by step instructions complete with the before, during and after pictures, I was truly blown away, and I invite those of you who have not seen it to go back and take a look, having said that I am getting ready to do thier process, and thought I would bring this topic to the fore front to see if anyone had anything to add, advice of possible pitfalls. It seems they cover all questions very well. I thought thier presentation was so outstanding I wanted to make sure everyone had a chance to take a look for thierselves. comments, advice welcome.

Remember, any size container will work! I showed a friend at work and he has a five gallon set-up he uses alot. Just adds baking soda and some detergent. Think about this, a kiddie swimming pool would be large enough for fenders. Take care. Larry

They make large hard plastic horse waters now with drains in the bottom, they make clean out easy and larger items fit. Richard

Thanks for the comments on the electrolysis ROTM liam5in1. That is the reason I wanted to start Restoration of the Month (ROTM). I wanted to get in depth techniques on the "how to" aspect of restorations. It is hard to find people who are willing to share their techniques and take pictures. Jerry did a great job of taking the pictures and giving me a rough draft of the steps. Then I put it all together formally and the guys all chimed in and it worked out great. I would like to do more of these features, but I need help from you experts out there. If you want more features like this .... I need your participation.. I have got a polishing ROTM in the works and I'm hoping it turns out like the electrolysis topic. If you have any interest or can help, email me at jason@galtsmiles.com Thanks.

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~Jason
www.galtsmiles.com/Jason's%20Antiques.html

Is there any way to access the information that was posted last November? I tried the search way, but nothing came up.
Jack Sim

Jack

Electrolysis is in the Showcase and Stories
on 11-18-04....

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Regards ....
Jerry J .....

Check out the Showcase forum. I just bumped that topic to the top.

I am working on getting a couple 55 gal plastic drums so I can give it a try. It sounds great.I hate setting up my small blast pot and the mess an time. this sounds to good to be true. I restore a few cars too. I always have a couple parts that need cleaned and I will be able to clean them while I work on other things. hope it all works like it said in the post. Mike

Hi guys, started my electrolysis machine on Sat PM, am just starting to get to bare metal. I guess heat is a big factor, it's in the 40's here again today. I have it set up in an unheated building. Should the paint be removed from the back side of your part also? Mine doesn't seem to be doing anything on the back side of a pump door. Thanks for any tips.

I've been doing it for quite a while.

Here is where I learned it from: http://antique-engines.com/electrol.asp
enjoy!
-Keith

From what I've noticed, temps don't seem to make much of a difference, as I've seen decent results at near freezing. Amperage does though - I'm just using my 6 amp battery charger, but on the low setting it seems there's hardly anything happening. If the backside isn't going well, try flipping the panel around, as it seems to like the path of least resistance. It also seems that the original paint is a lot more stubborn, while fresh stuff is easy. HTH.

Will this process work on any other types of metal, such as alumnium, brass or copper?
Jack Sim

Jack: Not really sure if it work with anything other than steel or iron. I seem to recall reading someone mention that it didn't work with aluminum, but don't quote me on that.

I'll dump an aluminum intake in there later tonight and let you know.

After reading about this idea I tried it and it works really well. The thing is, using a 55 gallon tub means that doors and skins will have to be flipped. Flipping is not a problem but if you didn't have to flip you could cut the time in half.
I've got a 250 gallon plastic chemical tank that I no longer use, I'm going to cut it near the top, hinge the top and make a big one of these. I also have a nice DC power supply, 100 VDC max X 20 amp.
Regarding an earlier post talking about them amount of time it takes to strip an item, here are a few more varibles;

* the amount of alkaline (Arm & Hammer) in the solution
* the amount of current (amperage) flowing in the system - the amperage is controlled by the voltage
*the size of the part

Just a few little tips here that may help someone out.
Thanks for this topic, it's really neat!

Neal

The aluminum intake kinda turned out okay - IF you can ignore the fact that it is much darker now. I half expected it to deteriorate, so I thought I came out OK. Good thing it wasn't a nice piece to begin with.