Engineering Tips: How to properly maintain and refurbish your used tools.
Tools get rusty as time goes by, but don’t fret. You can get them back to looking new in a jiffy! It just takes a bit of time and effort.
Engineering Tips: Tools Maintenance (Source: Farmer’s Almanac
Here’s a video by Jimmy Diresta on how to restore a set of quality hand tools to become good as new. This method can be useful for your old rusty tools kept in your garage for the past few years, or if you plan on buying used tools from the bargain bin. So wear your Personal Protective Equipment and let’s get started.
Engineering Tips: Tools Maintenance (Source: Jimmydiresta)
You start by bathing your tools in white vinegar. Vinegar is a non-toxic solution that’s not only cheap and easy to find, but it also works surprisingly well in removing surface rust. After a few hours of soaking, take a wire brush and remove all the excess debris.
Next, use a combination of a bench grinder and wire brush to intensely clean-up all of the metal surfaces of your hand tools. Remove all of the rust and dirt with the wire wheel, but at the same time be careful not to damage the tool. Use a belt sander to sharpen chisels and add a final shine to tools.
So, the next time your tools get rusty, instead of throwing them away, these tips may still be able to get them back into action.
