The story:
So I'm digging around in my uncles old barn. He's been dead since 1983. His son has no interest in anything to do with machinery, old tools, farming or anything like that. As I'm digging around, lo and behold, I find my uncles old engine host, (a long chain with two pulley's). It's a solid chuck of rust and won't even turn anymore. I ask my cousin who says I can have it.
So, I carry it home and bascially hammer it into a five gallon bucket, (this was about two months ago). Now that I have an abundance of used transmission fluid, I pour some of that over the chain and pulleys. I checked it out yesterday and was amazed to see that not only is the chain loose, but the metal is staring to look shiney. I hung it up in my shop, (yes, with a turkey pan underneath and lots of cardboard all around to catch the dripping fluid), and was able easily to run it up and down. I noticed as well that as the old tranny fluid dripped into the pan, it was extremely dirty and very rusty - it looked almost like the brown gravy your grandmother used to make at thanksgiving that no one really liked but would eat anyway so as not to break grandma's heart.
Question: Is there something about transmission fluid that disolves/eats away rust? I'm guessing that chain hoist has hung in my uncles barn for anywhere from three to four decades and the barn was not weather tight. That hoist was rusted solid but can now be used with ease.
What do you guys think? Have I stumbled onto something the rest of the rust eating world already knew, or have I found something new.
So I'm digging around in my uncles old barn. He's been dead since 1983. His son has no interest in anything to do with machinery, old tools, farming or anything like that. As I'm digging around, lo and behold, I find my uncles old engine host, (a long chain with two pulley's). It's a solid chuck of rust and won't even turn anymore. I ask my cousin who says I can have it.
So, I carry it home and bascially hammer it into a five gallon bucket, (this was about two months ago). Now that I have an abundance of used transmission fluid, I pour some of that over the chain and pulleys. I checked it out yesterday and was amazed to see that not only is the chain loose, but the metal is staring to look shiney. I hung it up in my shop, (yes, with a turkey pan underneath and lots of cardboard all around to catch the dripping fluid), and was able easily to run it up and down. I noticed as well that as the old tranny fluid dripped into the pan, it was extremely dirty and very rusty - it looked almost like the brown gravy your grandmother used to make at thanksgiving that no one really liked but would eat anyway so as not to break grandma's heart.
Question: Is there something about transmission fluid that disolves/eats away rust? I'm guessing that chain hoist has hung in my uncles barn for anywhere from three to four decades and the barn was not weather tight. That hoist was rusted solid but can now be used with ease.
What do you guys think? Have I stumbled onto something the rest of the rust eating world already knew, or have I found something new.
