28 replies to this topic

[brum,brum,mike]

Hi,

I have been told part of the rear radius arms are hollow, and over time where the pins have been greased the grease leaks into the hollow part of the arm.

My question is how do i remove it?

I would like to powder coat the arms so all grease has to be removed prior to this. I have thought about heating the arms up so the grease melts a little and will run out, will this work to get the majority out?

Any other methods?


Thanks alot,

Mike

[MRA]

I have an old drum with Parafin in that I drop them into for a week or so, depending on how bad they are.

I strip them down first though to allow the parafin to soften up the old grease and let the grease slide out, otherwise it will be difficult to get out through the few small holes.

[brum,brum,mike]

Would being soaked in jizer have the same effect of being soaked in parafin? Does it literally just 'slide out' after a good long soaking?

Anyone have any other ideas?

Thanks

[sonikk4]

Just wondering whether thinners will break it down. Acetone will.

[MRA]

There possibly is better cleaning agents, but using thinners is the way I do it, because I always have thinners, however you still need to knock it a bit to get it to move and don't forget its quite a large slug in there and has to come out via the bearing/bush apertures.

I then put them in my hot wash tank and then onto bead blasting to remove all scale and rust.

[Vipernoir]

Would heating it in the oven in a suitable drip tray melt the grease enough for it to run out ?

I can't remember the melting point of LM or similar.

[MRA]

It would certainly soften it, however ask _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ fill in blanks with wife, girlfriend, boyfriend, husband, etc, or they may be "EXES".

Dont forget to get your own oven gloves as well !

[brum,brum,mike]

Thanks for all the helpful advice.

We have one of them jizer tanks in the garage, which will be ideal for soaking the arms in. I'm not too sure whether we have any jizer though, which may be a limitation

I might try abit of heat first, then soak them.

The idea is to get all the grease out, bead blast the arms then powder coat them, we got all the kit but got stuck on the first hurdle! Don't worry, my mum wouldn't let me anywhere near the kitchen with mini bits... I'm almost an 'ex' son for forgetting the mothers day card yesterday! oops!

Thanks again,

Mike

[Dan]

It's high temperature grease, you'll be unlikely to get it to drain out fully in a domestic oven but you will certainly soften it. It doesn't liquify until it's over 190 degrees, you could give it a go but I wouldn't want a vat of red hot grease in my kitchen like that. There would be a considerable fire risk.

[MRA]

My cooker goes up to 220, not sure which F or C ? fire risk you say, a bit like my cooking then, but seriously I wou;d also be worried about spilling that very hot grease.

Is that 190 degrees Farenheit or Celcius ?

[Tamworthbay]

It's high temperature grease, you'll be unlikely to get it to drain out fully in a domestic oven but you will certainly soften it. It doesn't liquify until it's over 190 degrees, you could give it a go but I wouldn't want a vat of red hot grease in my kitchen like that. There would be a considerable fire risk.

Not a problem in practice. The old fashioned way to grease motorbike chains before o rings came in was put them in an old pan full of grease in the oven. Only to be done with the windows open and the other half out! That said, I use acetone when I want to get rid of grease, a cork or bung in each end and then shake. I have a vibratory cleaner, but putting on the washing machine should do.

[Dan]

It's 190 C for LM grease, don't know about others, and most 60cm domestic ovens max out around 210 / 220 (gas 9) but smaller ovens don't get that high. My own oven stops at gas 8 which wouldn't be enough. As you say though I suppose it's no more dangerous than cooking a roast really. I like the washing machine idea!

[MRA]

even gas mark 8 would make it a ittle runny though Dan.

Does it damage the top of the washing machine ?

And is acetone better than parafin ?

[Tamworthbay]

even gas mark 8 would make it a ittle runny though Dan.

Does it damage the top of the washing machine ?

And is acetone better than parafin ?

I have a large stainless steel tray I got from a mate who was a chef at a pub. Our washing machine is in the garage so no hassle putting it on top. It has never caused any damage but did vibrate off once and made a bloody mess!

Acetone cuts through grease much better than paraffin but is more flammable so care needs to be taken. I used to use panel wipe but can't seem to find it cheap anymore. I can get acetone cheap whereas I get paraffin from a local garden centre so the acetone works out cheaper for me. On a side note, paraffin and oil mixed 3:1 makes a really good cutting fluid for lathe work and is a fraction of the cost of proper stuff. Being a cheapskate I try all this stuff!

[MRA]

I use cutting oil and it costs me £85 per 25L drum :-(

Where would you get Acetone from though ?