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Ultra-Sonic

2K views 19 replies 7 participants last post by  GNfan 
#1 ·
Kids gave me a gift card for HD some time ago and I bought this nifty Ultrasonic cleaner which I have used to clean clock parts.

Box Gas


When I got the old Standard Gauge 10 body that someone screwed up with black paint I figured I would have to buy all new handrail stanchions.

Brass instrument Metal


But they cleaned up great with the ultrasonic cleaner. My home brew formula was: Hot water, baking soda, and a little dish detergent (dawn).

So the question is who also uses one of these ultrasonic devices and what solvent/mix have you used on what parts with success?
 
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#4 ·
It has a basket 5.5 x 3 x 2.5 so you can't put to big a part in there.

It may have worked well on the nickel handrail stanchions and brass handrails simply because the paint hadn't adhered well. But I didn't see any way to clean those parts by hand. Someone here said they used boiling water to remove paint but the water I used in my mix was never that hot.

Hardly a commercial unit but it did the job I needed.
 
#8 ·
Really nice job Bob, and a little cheaper than using a Rock Tumbler, to do a similar job.. Now I need to check which one to opt for, to mainly clean Prewar wheels, of which I have loads of. Using a Dremel with a wire brush, gets messy, & takes too much time.
 
#10 ·
Mike, The ultrasonic cleaner from HD is in the $30+ range, compared to a single drum tumbler from Harbor Freight at a cost of $45. That was the point I was making. It’s two different methods, to an end result of clean parts.
 
#12 ·
Bob, Simple
Green and Castrol Super Clean are comparable products as Degreasers. I shy away from Simple Green, after reading Lee Willis’ thread where he used it to clean track(think it was Fastrack), and it started to disintegrate the rails. He had to replace his track, after that fiasco. I swear by Castrol Super Clean, for paint stripping. I have done numerous die cast shells, along with plastic rolling stock, with no ill effects. The use of either one, does leave a thin film, which requires a thorough rinsing in warm soapy water. If the parts need repainting, I give them a complete wipe down with 91% Isopropyl Alcohol, Just before applying paint. Spray a primer, followed by the top coat, and it comes out great.
 
#14 ·
for just a cleaner, about 5-10 %
for a stripper, maybe 50%
other fluids tried were brake fluid [old dot4], super clean, origional lysol, oven cleaner [regular], alcohol,

none of the commercial strippers ....
but the standard ones thinned to 10% for cleaning, and 50% for stripping .. the brake fluid was recycled, none of the other ones at 10% were , all were at 50%..
all were mixed with regular hot tap water ... and the heater used
 
#16 ·
Rkenney, I got an answer from Lee Willis, with regard to using Simple Green. His problem was using it to clean Fastrack on his layout. His original thread on the subject was over on OGR forum, “I’ve stopped using Simple Green to Clean Fastrack”. It leaves a very thin film, that eventually eats away the stainless steel track, and he had to revert to using alcohol to temporarily remedy the problem. Bottom line was having to replace all of his Fastrack, which was a little costly. I would not use it for track cleaning, as there are better methods to clean track, and wheels on rolling stock.

As far as an ultrasonic cleaning solution, it will work, but it all comes down to what you intend to clean, and what type of cleaning medium to chose. Some items will need a solution that is high in pH, other items may need plain water, or alcohol. There are websites that discuss different scenarios of what you want cleaned, and what to use as a medium. Some interesting info available when you read about ultrasonic cleaning.

Just don’t use SGreen on track!!!
 
#17 ·
According to the US Department of Health and Human Services the product you mentioned Castrol Super Clean has been discontinued.

https://hpd.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/household/brands?tbl=brands&id=3011002

Its MSDS tells why. It is corrosive.

View attachment EN_SuperClean_Degreaser_MSDS_03-10-11-1.pdf

On the other hand I don't see that with Simple green:

View attachment SDS_EN-US_SimpleGreenAllPurposeCleaner.pdf

The one note that does come up in the Simple Green msds:

"Restrictions on Use:
Do not use on non-rinsable surfaces."

So the recommendation is to rinse thoroughly!

Proper disposal of all degreasers is still required.
 
#18 ·
Bummer, if you are correct about Super Clean. My main use, was stripping die cast loco bodies. Now I have to check if anyone has old stock. Thanks on the heads up.
 
#20 ·
Out where I used to work we used Simple Green as the "detergent" in an industrial dishwasher modified to wash and sanitize respirators. :)

The 4th item on that Super Clean MSDS is good, old fashioned lye - no wonder it's corrosive.
 
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