What have you done to your Wheel Horse today?

[Chris G 3,296]

Got my lights wired in on my custom 702. There super bright and I love the look it gives the machine! I will upload a couple more after I try them out tonight.

[PeacemakerJack 10,738]

Time to hook up a furrow plow and do some night plowing!!!! Looks great and functional...

[Chris G 3,296]

Here's some night photos!

[ohiofarmer 3,276]

 Wheels, Wheels, Wheels.----  I am working on taxes and when i start going a little nuts, I clean me some wheels. I have three sets of fronts and rears in the works. Some get hard sanded, some electrolysis...  I want them all clean and ready for when it gets warm enough to paint outside.

 

 I am just so done with tires that do not hold air and the wheels are part of the process.. I want four running tractors this year and get the C-141 engine bored out and re-done.

 

 Also some motorcycle projects, so the shop is busy...

[WHX?? 48,827]

Really cool pic here Chris.....

[953 nut 55,284]

Today the postman brought me a masterpiece, a @BOB ELLISON seat cover for the 1055. Fits like a glove and looks great.

[BOB ELLISON 2,981]

@953 nut Richard that looks great and I'm glade you like it . I hated to put you to work fixing up your 1055 but you did ask for it. Now that the weather is turning maybe it won't hurt so much to work on it. If you glue the cover to the foam it would fit tight.

Edited March 9, 2018 by BOB ELLISON

[953 nut 55,284]

29 minutes ago, BOB ELLISON said:

If you glue the cover to the foam it would fit tight.

I plan to do a paint job on the seat body once it warms up a bit and then glue it up.

I've had good luck with 3M High Performance 90 in the past, holds up well even out in the sun. The number 90 indicates the temperature in centigrade that it will withstand.

[ohiofarmer 3,276]

The wheel prep for paint continues.I have 3 front wheels cooking away in the electrolysis solution..The worst rusty one has the paint falling off in sheets.-- Just no effort at all. As long as the [reaction] bubbles keep forming, I am gonna keep it cooking away.

 

 One thing most of the instruction sites tell you is to use a coat hanger or rebar as the anode..No way. Use a 1.5 inch bare metal pipe at the minimum. The more surface area the anode has, the faster the reaction occurs. I never throw my solution away, but it does not hurt to dip the settled clean solution out and throw away all the sludge that settles to the bottom. scrape off the anode twice a day as well an the reaction goes faster.

[JPWH 6,038]

This is the tank I use. Line of site all around.

[Chris G 3,296]

I have never tried that process.  What does it take to set up a system like that?

[oldredrider 2,548]

Retired at 48 years old. Actually, re-tired. 

Had to change out the original front Wheel Horse tires on my GT-14. Too much dry cracking to repair any more. 

 

Not complaining. 48 years out of a set of tires is not bad. A lot of tractors don't last that long.

[19richie66 17,508]

All My gt14 tires were original when I got it. Back wheels were rusted around the valve stem holes and they were falling apart. Fronts are peeling open to where you can see the air. I bought new hubs &wheels for the front, made wheels for the back and all are being painted this weekend. Hopefully skittles will have all new socks and shoes next week. 

[953 nut 55,284]

4 hours ago, Chris G said:

I have never tried that process.  What does it take to set up a system like that?

Rust Removal using Electrolysis

Several years ago, and I can't recall how it happened, I came into an inexpensive and easy way to clean rust and grease, and, in some cases, paint, from your rusty cast iron and sheet metal parts. Taking advantage of common household cleaning products, items many of us have laying around the garage, kitchen or laundry room, and some science, you can clean parts from a single bolt up to an entire trailer frame through a process known as "electrolysis".

What you need:

A non-conducting container - a large plastic bucket works really well.

Battery charger - big is better, however even one able to produce 6 to 10 amps should do. A student recently used my site as the basis for a school project and used a computer power supply in place of battery charger.

Sacrificial electrodes. Concrete reinforcing rod works well (rebar) cut into lengths about 4" taller than your bucket or container. Do not use stainless steel! The results are a health hazard and illegal (more on that later)

Arm and Hammer LAUNDRY soda, also called washing soda. (see below for details)

Wire and/or cables for connecting electrodes together.

Water.

Small lengths of small chain (used to suspend the rusty parts in solution) or some other means to suspend the part to clean into the solution.

The Setup:

The science behind rust removal by electrolysis.

Want to make your own laundry soda? Click here.

Why you should not use stainless steel electrodes.

Electrolysis on a larger scale - cleaning a trailer frame.

Most of my Humdinger mudpump rig was cleaned using electrolysis.

Loosen that stuck piston with your soft drink?

Using a plastic, or non-conductive bucket (not metal), mix a solution of 5 gallons water to 1/3 to 1/2 cup laundry soda. Mix well so all soda is dissolved. Do not try to use other salts. You won't get better results and dangerous effects may occur. Caustic soda, for example, is far too corrosive. Solutions of ordinary table salt can generate chlorine gas (toxic) at the positive electrode (anode).

Clean the electrodes so they aren't too rusty - especially at the top ends - they need to make good electrical contact with your wire or cable AND with the water. I take mine to a wire wheel and give them just a real quick going over. Place electrodes in bucket around sides, so the clean, rust free ends stick up above the bucket. Use clamps or some means to hold them in place around the perimeter of the inside of the bucket or container so that they cannot move freely or fall into center of bucket. The electrodes must not touch the part(s) to be cleaned, which will be suspended in center of bucket. I use small C clamps. Whatever you use, it shouldn't be copper, and will get a bit messy if it gets into your cleaning solution.
Tie the electrodes together with wire or cables. I use copper wire twisted around the top ends, and have used old jumper cables. All electrodes need to be tied together "electrically". This will become the "anode" grid. Since the cleaning process is somewhat "line of sight" it's best to surround the part to be cleaned to some extent with the electrodes.

Suspend part to be cleaned into bucket so it hangs in the middle, not touching bottom, and not touching electrodes. I place a piece of rebar across top of bucket (see photo below) and bolt a small piece of chain to my part to be cleaned, and clamp the chain on the rod so that the chain hangs from the rod, and suspends the part into solution below. The part to clean then becomes the "cathode".

Attach battery charger - place NEGATIVE LEAD (this is critical!!) on the piece that is to be cleaned. Attach POSITIVE, or RED lead of charger, to electrode "grid" formed when you placed electrodes, or rods, into bucket and tied them all together.

Make sure electrodes and part to be cleaned are not touching each other, then turn on charger. Within seconds, you should see a lot of tiny bubbles rising from the part suspended in the mixture. Do not do this inside, or in a closed area - those bubbles are the component parts of water - H2O - hydrogen and oxygen. Remember the Hindenburg? Well, actually that was caused in part by the explosive coating they painted on the skin of the craft, but the hydrogen will burn explosively so DO be careful!

See how the rust and bubbles are attracted to the electrodes in the photo below? You will need to clean them from time to time - they will get covered with gunk; in fact, after many uses, they will have eroded down and need to be replaced. That is why I use rebar - it's easy to get, cheap, and most of all - SAFE FOR YOU and your environment! You can pour the waste solution on the lawn and it won't hurt it. Do watch out for ornamental shrubs, which may not like iron rich soil, however. No use making your spouse mad!

How large an item can you clean? Well, it's up to your imagination, your budget - because it takes water, your time and wife's patience. Terry Lingle demonstrated this process on a very large scale using a tank made of plywood and lined with plastic, a DC welder for power supply and hundreds of gallons of water. You will need to use more electrodes with larger parts and a larger "tank".
The resulting photos can be seen here - along with an explanation of his setup.

How small? A student recently used the description on my web site as the basis for her science project in school. She used a computer power supply for the power source to clean a small part in a plastic bucket on a table. (photos coming soon)
 

Safety Precautions:

- Make sure no spills can get to the battery charger. (electrocution potential as with any electric appliance)
- The leads from the charger are relatively safe, but you may still get a bit of a shock if you put your hands in the solution or touch the electrodes while the charger is running.
- Turn off the current before making adjustments to the setup. Just as a "spark" can cause a charging battery to explode in your face, this process produces similar gases because this process splits water into hydrogen gas (at the negative electrode) and oxygen at the positive electrode).
- Hydrogen will burn explosively if ignited.  All flames, cigarettes, torches, etc. must be removed from the area, and sparks caused by touching the leads together must be avoided. The work should be performed outside or in a well ventilated area to remove these gases safely.
- Washing soda solutions are alkaline and will irritate the skin and eyes. Use eye protection and gloves. Immediately wash off any solution spilled or splashed onto your body.

 

Washing soda

Washing soda should be in the laundry section of your grocery store. It comes in a yellow box, made by Arm & Hammer, but it's NOT baking soda. If you're interested, washing soda is Sodium Carbonate or "soda ash"(Na2CO3), baking soda is Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO3), and borax is Sodium Tetraborate Decahydrate (Na2B4O7*10H2O), all different chemical compounds.

If you can't find it locally, call Arm & Hammer at this number: 1-800-524-1328 - they should be able to tell you where the closest place is that you can find it.
Or try Soaps Gone Buy at:
http://www.soapsgonebuy.com/

You can purchase Laundry soda online from Amazon.com as well according to some sources.

Want to make your own "laundry soda"? Take baking soda, spread it out onto a cookie sheet and bake it in the oven at a little over 300 degrees for an hour or so it will drive away a water and CO2 molecule thus making washing soda.
At temperatures above 300o  Fahrenheit (149o Celsius), baking soda decomposes into sodium carbonate, water, and carbon dioxide.
2NaHCO3 -> Na2Co3 + H20 + CO2

[19richie66 17,508]

Have to take a break after that read. 

[pfrederi 17,741]

I cut a hole in the side of 55 gal plastic drum.  Have lying down on a moving dolly for mobility dolly.  Scrap disc brake rotors make good anodes, welded an old bolt on them and hang them..

[Red144runner 657]

Started installing my rear rock shaft. Still need the cable. Also need to relocate my fuel pump but that's no problem 

[19richie66 17,508]

Painted some engine tins and small panels for skittles. While I was at it, I got started on my mash pole sign. Painted the first color today. Hope Howard’s tractor don’t flip over.

[ohiofarmer 3,276]

 Just one more thing to say about electrolysis..It also works as a paint remover.  Front wheels are a pain to prep for painting on our Horses. Quite by accident, I discovered that paint really came off easily on damaged areas. What about nicely adhering paint on non-rusted areas of the wheel?. The answer is, it WILL come off if you take the TIME.  On a typical wheel, figure four days with a heavy duty charger set at 12 volts and a 2 amp charge rate. With a clean anode and cleaned wheel, eventually the paint will bubble and work loose. The way you know the process is working is that bubbles keep working their way to the surface indicating a continuing reaction.In other words, if plenty of foam is present on the surface, leave it alone.

 

 The steel under all that paint stays nice and smooth so long as current is turned on. It even worked on a really old wheel with very hard paint. Sure beats sanding and breathing dust from paint that was applied before the lead paint laws were enacted. Leave it hooked up long enough and 100% of it will scrape off with a fingernail.or a piece of wood.

[WHX?? 48,827]

On ‎3‎/‎10‎/‎2018 at 8:25 AM, Chris G said:

I have never tried that process.  What does it take to set up a system like that?

 

On ‎3‎/‎10‎/‎2018 at 1:37 PM, 19richie66 said:

Have to take a break after that read. 

I woulda just posted a link to other older threads and the intrenet and told him not to blow him self up.

 

Seriously Chris lots of good threads here on this and internet as well...thank you Richard.

[Red144runner 657]

I had to finish up the tractor today since we are getting another 12" tomorrow. I needed to mount my facet pump. I had made some brackets for another project and never used them. Just a piece of 3/16" with a 2" 1/4"x20 bolt wedded thru  it. I cut in half, and drilled a 5/16" hole in it to mount one of the cable tube bolts thru. Not pretty but it works. Now it will be out of the way of the rock shaft and dip stick. Now I just need the cable and chain.

[don 76 wheel horse 24]

New user  I have a barn find of a B-100 8 . Main problem is rear rims will not come off. I guess they have been on sience new 1776. Treyed PB blaster using rubber hammer, heat . making a home made puller . Only worry is will pressure damage rim? Don

[ebinmaine 67,562]

3 hours ago, don 76 wheel horse said:

New user  I have a barn find of a B-100 8 . Main problem is rear rims will not come off. I guess they have been on sience new 1776. Treyed PB blaster using rubber hammer, heat . making a home made puller . Only worry is will pressure damage rim? Don

Good morning Don and welcome to Redsquare! 

You will be amazed at the number of super helpful folks on this site.

 

Feel free to start your own thread for any questions you may have.

 

About those rear rims. Once you remove all 5 lug bolts you certainly should not need a puller... so likely rust is the concern here, yes.

 PB Blaster is decent but IMHO Kroil is better. 

Heat is good.

Patience is the key !!!

Keep the penetrating oil at it a couple times a day for a few and the rims will come off Without a puller.

 

Why do you need the rims off?

 

 

[953 nut 55,284]

6 hours ago, don 76 wheel horse said:

rear rims will not come off. I guess they have been on sience new 1776

              The best and safest way to free the rims up is to back off all five wheel lug bolts a quarter turn  (one wheel at a time) and drive it in a figure eight a few times.

Looks good for a 1776 model!        

[PeacemakerJack 10,738]

 this is once again a great reason to follow the forum—a great practical tip.  

 

Don 76 wheel horse—to the forum.  You’ve happened upon the best resource out there for these little red tractors and a great group of guys to boot!