Warbird Information Exchange

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed on this site are the responsibility of the poster and do not reflect the views of the management.
It is currently Sun Jul 06, 2025 5:34 pm

All times are UTC - 5 hours


Classic Wings Magazine WWII Naval Aviation Research Pacific Luftwaffe Resource Center
When Hollywood Ruled The Skies - Volumes 1 through 4 by Bruce Oriss


Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 12 posts ] 
Author Message
 Post subject: Removing old cosmoline
PostPosted: Tue Jun 23, 2015 9:50 pm 
Offline

Joined: Sun Aug 25, 2013 9:40 pm
Posts: 11
Does anyone have any tips for successfully removing 60+ year old cosmoline?


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Tue Jun 23, 2015 9:58 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Sat Jul 14, 2007 12:57 am
Posts: 30
Location: Dayton
Good Evening,
I have heard that brake fluid does a good job. I have not tried it. When I was cleaning up an old Lee Enfield I used engine degreaser from the local auto-parts store and just let it soak overnight. Worked a treat.
For the wood parts I used Easy-Off oven cleaner after reading an article. It did work very well, but I later read that it can seriously harm the wood.
Hope that is of some help.
Arty


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Tue Jun 23, 2015 10:56 pm 
Offline

Joined: Fri Aug 12, 2005 3:37 pm
Posts: 673
Arty163 wrote:
Good Evening,
I have heard that brake fluid does a good job. I have not tried it. When I was cleaning up an old Lee Enfield I used engine degreaser from the local auto-parts store and just let it soak overnight. Worked a treat.
For the wood parts I used Easy-Off oven cleaner after reading an article. It did work very well, but I later read that it can seriously harm the wood.
Hope that is of some help.
Arty


Brake fluid is also quite effective at removing paint, often unintentionally for automobiles. I'm not sure if I would use it if you wanted to save the original paint on the item.

_________________
"They done it, they done it, damned if they ain't flew." December 17, 1903


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 4:05 am 
Offline
1000+ Posts!
1000+ Posts!
User avatar

Joined: Sun Nov 15, 2009 12:57 pm
Posts: 1264
Location: Lacombe, Alberta, Canada
A few years ago I purchased a Lee Enfield .303 rifle that had been packed in molten cosmoline (under pressure it appeared) and then wrapped in brown paper. Apparently a bunch of them had been packed away in an armory right at the end of the war and had come like this from the factory, so it was a very old and quite solid "lump" wrapped in brown paper. Once I got the thing out of it's wrapper (which took about an hour) and began disassembling it I cleaned the cosmoline using 100LL aviation gasoline (euphemistically referred to here as "the blue solvent"). But, although it works quite well it is dangerous as it burns like... well... gasoline!

Pick your clothing carefully if you use it - I'd stay away from rayon or anything that might generate static electricity. But it does work.

Dan

_________________
Defending Stearmans on WIX since Jeff started badmouthing them back in 2005.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 4:42 am 
Offline

Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2005 2:58 am
Posts: 148
Try camp fuel. I use it for degreasing.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 5:57 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Sun Jul 29, 2012 6:14 pm
Posts: 373
Location: Waukesha, WI
Depends a bit on what the cosmoline is on, how big the item is and where you live. A very common and easy method is used in the firearm community. Start be wrapping it in paper towels (some use old bath towels), then in a black plastic garbage bag. Set it outside in the sun (some put it in a vehicle with the windows up for extra heat though I would question the long term off gas effects in a vehicle you would drive in) and let it bake all day. This heats up the cosmoline and it soaks into the towels. at the peak of heating, take it out and wipe off as much as you can, then repeat the process. This way, there's no extra chemicals to deal with, no soaking or splashing, just safely dispose of the cosmoline soaked towels.

_________________
Always looking for P-51D parts.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:18 am 
Offline

Joined: Sat Oct 08, 2011 8:05 am
Posts: 167
Flybipe wrote:
Does anyone have any tips for successfully removing 60+ year old cosmoline?


Use mineral spirits. Effective and minimal effect on the surface underneath.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 7:12 am 
Offline

Joined: Sat Sep 24, 2011 9:13 am
Posts: 553
To remove the bulk of the heavy stuff I gently heat the item with a "heat gun", and wipe it with dry rags. Then I use mineral spirits, to remove the rest of the residue.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 8:29 am 
Offline
1000+ Posts!
1000+ Posts!
User avatar

Joined: Wed Aug 18, 2010 12:51 pm
Posts: 1185
Location: Chandler, AZ
Back in the good old days of surplus guns I had a deal with a local shop where I would get six rifles in cosmoline, and bring back five clean ones (keeping the best one for me)

I found that the 'slower' the solvent, the better the results. My favorite was either naptha. or the cheapest charcoal lighter you could find. Fast solvents like 'blue solvent' or lacquer thinner would cut cosmoline, but evaporate too quickly to get it all off, just redistribute it in a thinner layer, but the slow solvents stay around long enough to wipe it off.
Sacrifice an old bath towel. The terrycloth worked better than regular shop rags for the bulk of clean-up

_________________
Lest Hero-worship raise it's head and cloud our vision, remember that World War II was fought and won by the same sort of twenty-something punks we wouldn't let our daughters date.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 11:53 am 
Offline

Joined: Fri Oct 07, 2005 9:41 am
Posts: 540
I've heard of using kerosene.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 12:07 pm 
Offline
Long Time Member
Long Time Member
User avatar

Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2011 12:27 am
Posts: 5623
Location: Eastern Washington
3M makes a spray (with the neat pin-point swing-up needle applicator) brake cleaner.
That removes just about anything without harming the finish.

_________________
Remember the vets, the wonderful planes they flew and their sacrifices for a future many of them did not live to see.
Note political free signature.
I figure if you wanted my opinion on items unrelated to this forum, you'd ask for it.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2015 3:56 am 
Offline

Joined: Sun Jul 01, 2007 1:13 pm
Posts: 67
I use gun cleaning solvent available at any gun shop. Worked on my Enfield that was "new in the canvas wrapper, packed in cosmoline" from 1950. I cleaned it in 1985 and gun-cleaning stuff worked very well. I think it was Outer's Solvent. Still have some and it still works, but don't do it around the favorite furniture.

The wife will put you in the doghouse until you relace it.

You can't get the smell out of cloth.

Ok with me, but the ladies smell it and rapidly disapear.

I'm now searhcing for negative Outer's Gun Cleaning Solvent. Chocolate comes close, but is nowhere NEAR the same response in reverse.

Money helps.

_________________
There are two kind of aircraft, fighters and targets


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 12 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 5 hours


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Google [Bot], Google Adsense [Bot] and 39 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group