Fun with Evaporust

Noice! No wonder it's called the Cult of EvapoRust!

I couldn't t believe what a great job evaporust does on rusty legs and rusty leg levelers. Remember to use a sealer afterwards to protect rust from returning.

What sealer do you recommend? I usually just put wax on the legs.

I have been using a spray on clear coat. Never thought about using the wax.

Looks great!

Looked like it was too far gone to save to me but it looks like Evaporust and paint saved the day afterall. Great Job!

Ken

I just picked up my first gallon. Look forward to playing with it.

Wow very impressive outcome above.

So for the guys that use for legs do you use small tube one leg at a time? Or what. What do you use as filler material so you don't need as much volume??

3-4" PVC 3' long with either clean out caps or rubber/hose clamp style caps (my preference). 3" will use about a gallon, but can only do 2 legs at a time due to the angle near the tops. 4" will allow all 4 legs at once and other stuff can fit as well, but uses 2 gallons (also heavier to move around). Have heard it works better with warm temps. so avoid unheated garage/basement this time of year. I usually leave legs in up to 24 hours. Smaller parts may want to come out after 12 to avoid over doing it.

Excellent!

I built a couple of 4" diameter leg cleaning tubes with screw in clean out caps for my friend Welby Bergum. The 4" tube will hold four legs at once plus give you room to put your hand in there to pull the legs out when done. If you use a 3" diameter tube you can only do two legs at once plus you'll need a bent up coat hanger or stiff wire to snag the legs to pull them out.

Because my buddy Welby buys/sells/trades so many machines we're always using the leg cleaning tube. On those nice hot summer days where the temperature is 80 degrees or hotter, we were doing complete sets of legs in only two hours.

Here's a tip, if the machine was from an operator's route and there's floor wax all over the legs, put some floor wax stripper on the legs first. Getting that wax off is important so the Evapo-Rust can do it's job. Once that floor wax is gone then put the legs in the Evapo-Rust.

If the leg levelers are rusted stuck in the leg, put the whole leg in the Evapo-Rust anyway. It will leech into the leveler threads and loosen it so you can remove it.

In your experience, are there legs that are too rusted to be helped? The legs I got with my Atlantis project are completely covered in rust front and back. I bought new legs, but would love to salvage the ones I have. I'll need to make leg tubes like you said. What do you seal the bottom end with? A cleanout cap and some of the PVC pipe dope?

If they are still stuck, hit them with MAP gas torch and they squeak right off.

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Got legs soaking right now in a wallpaper water tray covered with cling wrap.

Do you have pictures after the evaporust but before the paint?

There were a few that were really pitted. So for those we took them to a local powder coater and we had them done up in black powdercoat for just $25 per set of 4 legs. Last summer we did a Data East "Hook" in which the legs were pretty bad. Data East uses black painted legs. The paint was real bad and was flaking off anyway. Once the rust was gone, we simply used some black Hammerite spray paint and they came out looking great. They looked like factory legs again!

For the bottom of the tube I used a PVC end cap and glued it on with the PVC cement. Also glued on the cleanout fitting so that when you screw on the cover, it can't leak. I figured that sometimes there might be a possibility of the tube falling over and I didn't want all that expensive Evapo-Rust being spilled. Also, every so often you want you shake/swish the Evapo-Rust to help it along.

Cool, thanks Ken! And sometime soon I want to come by and see Welby's shop and the games he's got for sale there.

Come on down! Welby's new business is Olympia Rare Coins & Antiques:

http://www.olympiararecoins.com/

You'll see me there working on pinball machines! I'm restoring a Haunted House and Blackwater 100 right now.

Looks awesome dasvis! Inspired me to work on my Bally today.

Thanks to Ken and others on here I've been using the heck out of it for my first EM. Two legs came out perfect and the others weren't bad. Put the nicer two on the front. I used 3" as I had some caps and clean outs from work I did in the house over the years. Glued on. Not a fan of Ferncos. Made two for two locals.

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Don't forget, if your old leg levelers are rusty, just buy new ones, they are cheap!

Wax or put no-seize on the threads to keep the mop from rusting them again.

I only fill up my tube half way and then flip legs over if needed. A lot of times the rust on legs is down toward the bottom and the tops are nice and rust free.

If you have an Ollie's nearby, I've picked up quarts for $3.99, then 15% off with the coupon.

I put some motor oil on the new leg leveler threads to prevent rusting.

I've been using Evaporust for years, I never have coated anything after using it, and the rust has never returned.

I really like using Evaporust to remove or convert the rust.

I have made the 4" pipe diameter dip container to handle 4 legs at once. I can also throw other nickel coated rusty parts in also as it is large enough unlike my first 3" pipe dip container as it was too small to add many odd shape parts into.

When emptying the 4" pipe you need to be careful not to spill the Evaporust as its a difficult shape to man handle. I now pour into a shallow container not onto the concrete floor. I am evolving.

However, I have not been so lucky with the rust always returning. How long do you leave it in the solution? I never leave more than a day maybe that's it, or possibly down here in south Texas its the humidity.

I usually add a coat of Minwax as minimum, poly clear coat or re-plate depending on my mood, what I can find handy or severity of the rust.

Generally a minimum of 24 hours.

My games are in my finished basement. It's not particularly humid down there, as I run a woodstove all winter (dries out the air) and a de-humidifier all summer. Maybe that accounts for it, but I've got parts that I did four years ago on games, and the rust has never come back.

Great thread. I am going to invest in some 4" pipe, cap and clean out plug.

How often do you gents replace the Evaporust?

You can use it hundreds of times. Replace it when it turns black and sludgy or if it's effectiveness is great diminished (gets weak in other words).

For my friend Welby, we've done a couple HUNDRED legs and have only had to "top off" our supply in the tube.

Depends on how many times I spill it.

Yeah, I accidentally knocked over my 4" x 36" tube this weekend before I put the cap back on, and watched $40 worth of Evaporust cover my entire workshop floor.

That was a fun cleanup. Remember people, leave the cap on!

My workshop floor got a similar $40 bath a few weeks ago, when I was winding up an extension cord without first unplugging the light on the other end, realizing it too late and turning just in time to see a Rube Goldberg-esque sequence of events culminating in a brand new bottle of Scotch tipping over, rolling off the table and hitting the concrete floor. Agony! It did smell good in there for a couple of days, at least!

Built mine, thank you to Ken, Stashyboy, Dasvis, etc for the idea.

This was the "bit" attached to the lock down bar after overnight soak - very impressive stuff.

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Mine currently with legs in (wire sticking out to help lift them in and out), sitting in large bin just in case - top screwed in once I finish and move it out the way

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I made my tube and it’s working great! I’m doing legs and side-rails this week for the Quick Draw project I’m working on. Going to put in legs for the King Pin I picked up last weekend soon too.

Here’s a pic of the tube and also one of two formerly rusty legs I took out of the tube this morning.

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I've never used Evaporust, but these results are very impressive. Nice work on that PVC tube.

I've worn out several wire wheels, and have saved many sets of pretty crusty legs with pure elbow grease. Does Lowes or Home Despot carry it?

This most recent batch i ordered online via Walmart. Free shipping and I think it was $19 for a two gallon jug maybe? I got two jugs.

My mistake: $19 per gallon. Plus free shipping.

I got a gallon jug at my local Advance Auto parts for $22.99 list price

Create an account, put the item in your cart on the website.. and then leave the website... they'll start sending you offers in mail. I used a 25% offer online and picked up in store.

Online on the website, they typically show 15, 20, or 25% coupons just for browsing to the website.

Best price I could find local for immediate pickup. HF also carries it, but a few bucks more.

O'Reilly's Auto Parts (stocks both the 1 quart and 1 gallon size in stores)

AutoZone

Advance Auto Parts

Harbor Freight

I personally have NOT seen it in Lowe's or Home Depot stores. O'Reilly's Auto Parts also sells it online in the 5 gallon buckets and in 55 gallon drum sizes.

I got a gallon for $14.99 at Pep Boys. https://www.pepboys.com/product/details/206426/00794

That beats Wal-Mart by $5 a gallon. I just ordered another gallon from my local Pep Boys online and did "in store pickup". Will swing by on the way home from work. Great stuff.

Joining the cult of Evaporust for about 18 bucks a gallon from Amazon in a 3.5 gallon pail.

That's great, perfect amount. I found out that I needed 3 gallons as I started with 1, then 2, now 3 on hand and takes care of most my needs, may up it to 4 in the future to make up for spillage, use, and evaporation.