I've had pretty good luck getting small stuff clean with liquid rust remover or even vinegar and usually wire wheel anything that can easily be done that way.
I had a bench top sand blasting cabinet ordered hoping to do a bit with that and the order got cancelled so now I'm back to my old ways again.
I've done a few thousand small parts and fasteners with just vinegar and hand wire brushing. The hand wire brushing is very effective if you make a few ultra simple work holding jigs from scrap wood and wear a leather glove. The jigs were mostly just a groove or similar in a board, and most of the holding was my gloved left hand. Yes, it is tedious, so I did a dozen or two at a time in about a half hour most days for a few months.
