Joe401 5 #1 Posted August 8 Hi , has anyone tried electrolysis on rusty frozen throttle /choke cables ? Thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 67,496 #2 Posted August 8 (edited) I have used electrolysis for removing the corrosion from an outside surface. I'm under the impression that for electrolysis to work right the sacrificial steel must be facing the piece being cleaned. Edited August 8 by ebinmaine 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joe401 5 #3 Posted August 8 Thanks, I was not aware that it only worked on the outside surface. Just trying to keep things as original as possible. I have had them soaking in Evapo-Rust since June 10th (2 months) , occasionally brushing off any residue on the outside. I wouldn't recommend that avenue of rust removal. Thank you again for your insight. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 67,496 #4 Posted August 8 I've never tried this but I understand a proper ratio mix of ATF and acetone is the cat's meeyow of rust penetrants. If you could get the inner wire and outer sleeve separated you'd be doing well. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joe401 5 #5 Posted August 8 Atf and acetone, I can give that a stab also , thanks. Yes, the sheath is frozen fairly good up by the brass and steel portions with the threaded end. I haven't been able to twist or move the internal wire at all yet..Thanks 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TractorEd 633 #6 Posted August 8 (edited) Agitation would maybe help speed the process up, too. I’ve seen some clever people put rusted parts in sealed containers with some other small items like hex nuts, and their solution of choice and strap it to a drive wheel jacked up and let it go for a while. Or use an ultrasonic parts cleaner? Paint shaker? Taped to a reciprocating saw? Edited August 8 by TractorEd 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 67,496 #7 Posted August 8 4 minutes ago, TractorEd said: ultrasonic parts cleaner Oooooooooo I like that one Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joe401 5 #8 Posted August 8 Yes, agitation or ultrasonic would be a great possibility. I'm just trying to protect the plastic knobs. Ultrasonic might be a possibility. Thanks 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handy Don 12,225 #9 Posted August 9 1 hour ago, Joe401 said: Atf and acetone, I can give that a stab also , thanks. Yes, the sheath is frozen fairly good up by the brass and steel portions with the threaded end. I haven't been able to twist or move the internal wire at all yet..Thanks I've not heard of a one-thing-always-works solution. All of the above are worth trying. One thing that has helped some for me was to coil the cable quite tightly, say to an 8” diameter and secure it with a four or five wire ties. This separates the coils of the sheath spring a tiny bit and lets the penetrant in. Uncoil and coil “backwards” (the cable will want to “lay” in one direction, you can can fight it and win!) to get to the other side. Obviously, this doesn’t help at the collar ends except that it opens a “back door” for the penetrant 😄 Lastly, you can carefully straighten out any kinks in the inner wire by bending gently on the outer sheath--slow but sure and it definitely reduces internal friction. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joe401 5 #10 Posted August 9 (edited) Yes I have them in a coil about 8" every 2 weeks , I bend the circle the opposite way . The submerged photos were from early June. I can get a current photo tomorrow. Edited August 9 by Joe401 Dating photos to show progression. 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
peter lena 8,627 #11 Posted August 9 @Joe401 like , 3/1 penetrating oil , also KNOCK R LOOSE aerosol penetrant , the angular cable end point , to movement swing point , usually has other small holes in it , experimented with small light extension springs , to assist pulling cable to CLOSE , that way any time you move the cable , you have a spring assist , once used , consistent smooth / easy , throttle / choke action , have this set up on my 3 kohler engines , also regularly lube my cables , used perforated metal pull point for spring to any close screw mount . hiding in plane sight , pete Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lee1977 6,659 #12 Posted August 9 The motor cycle method is used a plastic bag punch a hole in one corner insert cable tape bag tight . Fill bad with the best pentare you can come up with then hang the bag up. I have found the best way to fix them is to install new cables. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites