Currently, I'm working on repairing my pop-up headlights. I will be sending the motors to Lonsal for repair, since he's the man.

I've completely disassembled the rest of the headlight assemblies and have a number of bolts, speed washers, and springs that are quite rusty. I soaked them in a rust remover, but all it seemed to do was turn some of the rust into a black compound that's difficult to scrape off. There's also still quite a bit of rust remaining on some of the parts. Soaking the parts also had the worse unintended consequence of spreading black paint or oxide residue onto my unpainted parts. Now, the bolts look worse than when I started. I took a wire wheel brush to some of the bolts, but it's a VERY time consuming process, and the wire wheel can't reach key spots on the speed washers and springs. The wire wheel brush also appears to be way too stiff for my springs and it's deeply gouging them. Is there a product or a process you can recommend to (1) strip the paint and/or oxide off my hardware, (2) strip the rust off my hardware, (3) treat my hardware to prevent future corrosion? My hardware is made of a variety of metals, so processes that are good for multiple materials are preferred.

I wish someone sold a set of stainless steel replacement hardware for the headlights. That would make my life so much easier right now. Heck, I'd even consider going to non-popup headlights to save myself from this headache. =p

Thanks!
Bill

 

I had the same issue some I soaked in Eastwood rust remover and painted them
found a place on Ebay that sells GM headlight screws and bolts worked out good.
My car has the right bolts in all the right places.

 

Apple cider vinegar, or, electrolysis. Both work. Neither is fast.

 

fill an empty paint gallon container with your parts, then top off with sand. take it to lowes, etc and have them run it on the paint shaker machine for a minute or two. should make for some fun conversation and clean everything up perfect.

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00GRSOJSS/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1461370558&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=rust+remover+for+metal&dpPl=1&dpID=41m51UwWkzL&ref=plSrch

Evap O Rust...check the reviews.

 

I redid most of my bumper cover and headlight assembly hardware with a wire wheel on a bench grinder. I then sprayed them with rust converter then paint. If I had remembered I would have soaked them in vinegar for a few days but at least they're better off than they were... and yes it was very time consuming.

 

I use regular vinegar and soak iron parts for 2 days (not 1 day or 3 days). Don't use vinegar on aluminum or magnesium. Just soak full strength vinegar 48 hours then rinse. U will to protect from rust with oil or paint right away.

If u think u can clean both iron and alloy parts the same way u are mistaken.

 

I have some evap-o-rust, but tried a different brand because it left black residue on my items where the rust was. Not a big deal, except, if I remember correctly, the residue rubs off on your fingers. It would probably come off with steel wool, but so would the rust. I guess any rust converter (except maybe acid) will leave residue from the chemical reaction. Does evap-o-rust not affect the paint?

P.S. I left some sockets in evap-o-rust for WAY too long, and it caused the chrome(?) coating to come off. Lesson learned.

 

Won't the paint make your threads fatter? Does it come off when you're installing the bolts? I guess it you used a wire wheel, that would remove some material in the first place, thus making the threats minutely thinner.

 

P.S. The first replacement part I've purchased after this snafu are the headlight adjustment springs. The insides of the coils are impossible to clean with a wire wheel. These are probably the most badly rusted parts of the lot. I wish someone made replacements for them in stainless steel. What do you recommend I use to rustproof the springs? I could open the coils up slightly (just a tiny bit, so I don't stretch out the spring) and paint them. But, I think they come painted anyway from the factory, and that doesn't do much good. I have some WD-40 PTFE dry lube for chainsaw blades. But I'm worried this will wash away over time. Any ideas?

 

I like this idea. Did you just rinse the parts off with water afterwards? Will this be enough to remove the paint and rust off the insides of tiny nuts?

 

These header bolts all looked exactly the same a couple days ago,.....





Sandblaster FTW !!!

 

I use regular vinegar . soak for a day or 2. rust scrubs off like Mud with a wire brush. I use a BBQ grill brush.. you can get 5 gals of regular vinegar for cheap!

this is a rusty spindle after soaking in vinegar and a scrub down.

you can see the pitting from the rust...and how clean it is...(zink was clear coated..takes the "POP" out of the zink )

after cleaning..i get parts Gold Zink plated. so they are rust proof for life..