[KC [email protected]]

So it’s my first build. I have to strip down a few pieces so I can ship them out for milling. Does anyone have a recommendation on the fastest way to clean all these dirty greasy parts. I was thinking brake cleaner and a brush (slow) or soaking them in a carb cleaner bath (less effort) or maybe kerosene? Also some of the parts are rusty, would soaking in vinegar after degreasing be ok to remove the rust. Let me know what has worked best for your builds. Thanks

 

[toolmanm203]

Simple green and a brush will work, if there is a lot of cosmoline kerosene or gas (outside) will knock it down quicker. If it is only light surface rust that will go away when you send blast the parts so no worries there. I thoroughly degrease everything then blast the parts and do as much polishing before assembly to save time later.

 

[Abominog]

I soak my parts in paint thinner to soften/ remove cosmoline. It may take brushing to get all the old cosmoline off. I don't like the smell of gasoline after using that, I find that paint thinner doesn't leave the gas smell.

 

[ScottD]

I feel like Ive chimed in on this subject 3 times already this month. Please excuse my repetition but this is the best method Ive found so far:

1) spray everything with simple green
2) pour boiling water all over everything

Repeat steps 1 and 2 a few more times.

Cosmoline is wax based and the hot water just melts it away. Everything else depends on chemical actions to remove all the crud. Just let the hot water and simple green wash it away.

As for your rust....the best you can do is wipe it with an oily rag and hope to break it up. A liberal coat of oil and an old shop towel will break up a lot of the surface rust.

The above process will get your parts 99% ready for building or display.

Now if you are prepping all these parts for refinishing, thats when you need to get out the heavy solvents (acetone is my favorite) to really get into all the nooks and crannies and wash away the cosmogoo.

Once you have degreased the entire thing with acetone, let it dry and remove the acetone from the area. (you will understand in a second) Blast your parts real quick with a heat gun, just hot enough so you dont want to touch them......if theres any oil left int those parts, they will leach right out and you will know where you need more acetone bath.

 

[KC [email protected]]

Thanks everyone. I really did do a search for cleaning and or degreasing before asking. Thanks for taking the time to respond. Ended up using kerosene and a brush and everything is all cleaned up. I have the three main parts stripped to send in but confused a little. Tom at KMP told me to send in the stripped 1-bolt, 2-barrel, 3-accelerater and 4-lock frame. Easy enough but do I send him my trigger & sear?

He quoted me verbatim “Need bolt, barrel ext, accelarator and lock frame. All stripped. I can do exchange for 150.00
Do not have open machine for machining.
Trigger/Sear & return spring 125.00 ea.”

What does the (ea) mean. 125.00x3? Seems a little high.
Anyways, very anxious to send this stuff out and get my build on just don’t want to send out parts he doesn’t need. Anybody that’s dealt with kmp chime in plz.

 

[USMCDUDE]

Could be wrong here, but I'm thinking 125$ each means each kit of the three
parts....trigger, sear, and return spring. Not 125$ for each part.
Reach out to Tom and confirm.

Good luck with your build.
Im almost there also.

 

[fastmonkey87]

Thanks everyone. I really did do a search for cleaning and or degreasing before asking. Thanks for taking the time to respond. Ended up using kerosene and a brush and everything is all cleaned up. I have the three main parts stripped to send in but confused a little. Tom at KMP told me to send in the stripped 1-bolt, 2-barrel, 3-accelerater and 4-lock frame. Easy enough but do I send him my trigger & sear?

He quoted me verbatim “Need bolt, barrel ext, accelarator and lock frame. All stripped. I can do exchange for 150.00
Do not have open machine for machining.
Trigger/Sear & return spring 125.00 ea.”

What does the (ea) mean. 125.00x3? Seems a little high.
Anyways, very anxious to send this stuff out and get my build on just don’t want to send out parts he doesn’t need. Anybody that’s dealt with kmp chime in plz.

He is saying that it is $150 to machine the bolt, lock frame, accelerator, and barrel extension. It is $125 to purchase the semi trigger and sear. You can not modify the FA trigger or sear

 

[GUNNER 50]

For those who are looking to clean off the cosmo , But don't like the smell or danger of using petroleum based cleaners...I found a product called (Ozzy Juice SW8) ,,And have never looked back...It has no smell , non toxic , non flammable , and easy on the skin....Its a bit pricy @ $110 per 5gal...Worth every penny...soak the part for a few hours and the cosmo wipes off with a rag...Google it for more detail...I get it from Napa.

 

[Waorani]

If stuff is really loaded up with cosmo, heat will melt a lot off fast. I have an old oven in the shop just for projects you wouldn't want to do in the house. A heat gun also works but loading parts up in a tray/pan/etc, turning the oven on low, and walking away for a while sure is easy. I've also rigged round duct tube standing over a stove eye to melt cosmo out .50 barrels.