Molasses as a rust remover question.

I have a block with the crank, rods, pistons, cam, lifters and distributor still in it that I am trying to get apart. I can't turn the camshaft or distributor. Will the molasses bath eat up anything in the distributor, or the aluminum housing. It is a point type GM unit. Also, can anyone advise on what ratio to mix powdered molasses to make the best rust remover.

Thanks
Dan.

The molasses didn't eat up anything I put in it but I will tell you this - it stinks to high heaven. Keep it covered TIGHTLY and use a fish tank heater to keep the stuff warm.

Sorry I can't help with the ratio as i used the liquid stuff.

Did I mention it stinks ?

Dan any possibility some solvent or WD40 would do the trick?

Buy a plastic or metal horse trough, also buy or fashion the tightest fitting lid you can because as mentioned, it reeks! Buy a 50lb sack of dry molasses powder (horse feed supply stores sell it, it's cheap) dump about half of it in the trough and fill the rest up with water (stop 8-10 inches from the top so adding parts doesn't over flow it). While at the feed store buy a water trough heater (keeps water from freezing so cattle can drink in winter) nothing fancy, most are cheap. hook up the heater, add the lid, and let it ferment for a couple weeks to a month (the warmer the faster). Once it's cooked up you can reuse it for a very long time. I've soaked 6 engine blocks in mine and the mixture has not degraded at all, a week or two and the nastiest rusty blocks are perfectly clean cast iron. I steam clean the grease off before soaking, not really required but grease can slow or stop the process where it's coating the metal.

FWIW Safest Rust Remover or Evaporust will do the same job but will cost a lot more.

.02

I use wood bleach to de rust stuff, few table spoons per gallon of warm water. A tub of it at ace is around $7

Good advice, I going to use a 55 gallon drum for my block(hope it fits)

Robert, I think I am way past the WD40 or solvent. To bad this engine was left sitting the way it was.





Thanks
Dan.

Wasn't that the engine found in that civil war sub?

Scott, I'm going to use a 55 gallon drum. If I add 25 pound of molasses, would about 30 gallon of water be about right? I'm not sure how big a trough is, not much of a farmer, lol. Can a complete carb be dipped in this, as all the linkage and other metal parts are rusty.

Thanks
Dan.

Yes Dan, not an exact science, you want a lot of molasses but you want to end up with a watery solution (not thick and gooey). The carb and all that will work fine. This mixture will de-rust a block as bad as Cudaman1969 posted

No, it was the Mayflower.

Dan.

Was it used as an anchor on the Mayflower?

Electrolytic rust removal! I built one and it works great. Cheaper than 25 gallons of molasses

http://www.instructables.com/id/Electrolytic-Rust-Removal-aka-Magic/

Been looking at this myself, got any pics?

I use a 10:1 water to (liquid) molasses mix, no heater - generally hot where i live, takes a while, helps if you give it a scrub and agitate it every few days

+1 on the steam clean first

Lol at the smell - my vat has been banished to the far end of our yard

I am in no way an engineer of any sort, but as far as i know electrolysis will eat the weakest metals first, so if its an ally dizzy, go the molasses

The one I built looks just like the picture. a 5 gallon bucket and some rebar. I welded bolts to the rebar then put them through the bucket and used wire nuts instead. I did a rusty cylinder head just like the block. It comes out with a black dust on it. Power washed it and it looked like new!