[Caps18]

Thanks for the tips, we will see how this goes. I never thought about scraping it off... So, that is the next thing I will try. and then use paper towels to get the rest. I think I overestimated the amount of sludge and gunk I actually have to remove. It isn't quite as bad on the remaining parts.

The big job will be brushing off the loose rust. I went to the store today and looked at an angle grinder with this twisted metal brush that might go through the frame. But it would defiantly remove the rust. It would cost $45 and make short work of it. So, if things don't go quick enough, I buy it to move the job forward. I went with the $4 cheap version that will attach to my drill. I just have to keep in mind that I don't have to strip it to bare metal like I do for the exterior panels...

I hope this will work. Steam sounds good, but I would rather get this done now until waiting until after it was all put together and drive over to a steam cleaning place. I bet they exist here though. And water blasting would make a mess, so I'm hoping to avoid it.

[DIYguy]

I used the KBS Rust Seal. It's better than Por15. They sell a 3 step process with cleaner, rust remover and coating. I was a bit hesitant to buy the whole kit, but I'm glad I did. The cleaner is amazing and I use it on all kinds of things. I'm on my second gallon jug.
There are some instructional videos which show some of it's amazing attributes. It takes high heat also. I once painted my brake calipers and had to use heat to break a bleeder screw loose after paint. . . and the paint didn't even come off with the heat.
Check it out. http://www.kbs-coatings.com/rustseal-directions.html

You can't buy it in a store. Oh, one other point.... if you want to buy a gallon... buy it in 4 x 1 quart cans. It is cured with moisture in the air and if you don't clean the lip of the can and use some plastic wrap to seal . . it will harden up on you. Use latex gloves and if you get some on your skin and it dries. . nothing will remove it, except time. . . it has to wear off. (ask me how I know)

[Jan]

To remove grease or oil, Petrol or Diessel will work fine. I never used Diessel, but they say it's better because Petrol cleans it so very well, that the metal starts to rust very quickly again. It will smell awful, but the petrol evaporates very quickly. Oh, and I use a simple steal brush in that proces. Not on the drill. The underground becomes a problem. Think of that ahead, and not like me, always afterwards.

[Brute Force]

Gasoline works great if you don't mind burn wards and skin grafts.

I prefer non-flammable methods myself.

Old rodder's trick for removing grease from framework: Easy-Off Oven Cleaner. Scrap the heave crap off with a putty knife. Hose it down with the oven cleaner and scrub good with a brush (use safety goggles and latex gloves). Clean up with Simple Green and water.

[Caps18]

The hard '5-in-1' scraper that I purchased in the paint section at the hardware store was the best thing I used to get the gunk off. It took about 2 hours.

Then I used my drill bit abrasive wheel to remove the loose rust and to scratch the surface of the smooth metal.

[Caps18]

The Olympics and business travel slowed my progress down the last few weeks, but I did get some help to remove the bed of the truck today.

Now to de-rust the bad sections, and finally get to painting.

[Caps18]

I am going slow at this, but yesterday I did grind down the back under bed part of the frame (I did have to remove the truck bed, which should have been done earlier looking back at it)

I am going to borrow an air compressor in order to blow off the rust dust that is still all over the frame. I'll go over it all again to see if I missed any spots, the use this metal ready stuff and start painting hopefully on Friday.

They have changed the name since I bought it I guess. That just shows you how ahead of myself I was.
http://www.por15.com/PREP-READY/productinfo/MRG/

[mizlplix]

Wet Blaster...

There is a sand feed attachment for a pressure washer. I cleaned 150 GM metric frames that way once. They come out sparkling clean.

We had a rotisserie for the frames to save time.

You have to keep it fairly dry afterwards or it will heavily rust really fast.

Miz

[onegreenev]

Soda blasting works great and you can get one for home use and it is not toxic to the ground and it leaves a small layer on the metal that remains and prevents flash rusting. If you can use high pressure, up to 100psi then it will work better at removing gunk. Real hard dry gunk will be tough for anything but you can do this to remove paint too and not ruin the metal. Any residue washes away with water. It will not remove DEEP RUST. Deep rust just needs to be removed and replaced with clean metal. Will be bustin out my soda blaster here real soon.


Pete

[mizlplix]

We use soda blasters for removing paint overspray from chrome and glass. It is really good for carbs and other delicate stuff too. There is a local guy that comes around mobile and does blasting jobs like paint removal from brick walls. You might get a price and compare...

Miz