How To Remove Aluminum Transfer Without Acid
- Thread starter Mastermind
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SteveSr
Addicted to ArboristSite
I had one of these (80 grit) in my Dremel box and I tried it with my recent cylinder salvage project. I had kind of mixed results. The edges of the individual sheets of abrasive do all of the work and tend to wear out rather quickly. Adding more pressure will expose more of the sheet. However, this is kind of a loosing game for a regular high-speed low-torque Dremel as it will quickly overload and slow down the tool. It may work much better in a Foredom or similar tool. The other issue is the short shaft which makes it hard to get all of the way up into most cylinders unless you have a flexible shaft tool.
I finally had success with a home-made 1/4" split mandrel in the drill press and hand holding the cylinder. The main thing is to get some light in there so that you can see what you are doing!
racerjohnbf
ArboristSite Member
This is my first attemp at cleaning up jug, it's off a project ms460. Does it look usable? Looks like I took off a bit of plating below the exaust port and it looks like a chip missing obove it. The chip was already there and the lines appear to be scoring. I can only really feel one of them with my fingernail. 
Another option might be to try a pneumatic die grinder, if you have an air compressor. These can be bought fairly cheaply, and have a lot more torque than a Dremel. Although, they do not offer the speed control or dexterity of a Foredom tool, they might be OK for this application.
Philbert
Dan Forsh
Addicted to ArboristSite
That's exactly what I ended up buying, you're right on regarding control and handling, but it does the job.
Yessir, Philbert.
Coincidentally..., I used one today at the saw shop where I'm doing some part-time duty lately. Worked great with just several wraps of emery paper on about a 3/8" diameter split mandrel around 6" long. More controllable than I expected with plenty of torque. The transfer wasn't bad and the cylinder cleaned up nicely in just a few minutes of heavy massaging with emery cloth, though a real nasty cylinder and some heavier grit abrasive would also be a fairly quick and easy process using a die grinder.
The guy swears by it, and I'm a believer now, myself. Also said he "thinks I may have one o' them Foredom things around here somewhere. Never liked it".
The hunt for that rascal begins tomorrow.
Coincidentally..., I used one today at the saw shop where I'm doing some part-time duty lately. Worked great with just several wraps of emery paper on about a 3/8" diameter split mandrel around 6" long. More controllable than I expected with plenty of torque. The transfer wasn't bad and the cylinder cleaned up nicely in just a few minutes of heavy massaging with emery cloth, though a real nasty cylinder and some heavier grit abrasive would also be a fairly quick and easy process using a die grinder.
The guy swears by it, and I'm a believer now, myself. Also said he "thinks I may have one o' them Foredom things around here somewhere. Never liked it".
The hunt for that rascal begins tomorrow.
I've been using them for years. This cylinder was really bad before. I think the 503 is 120 grit paddle wheel. If the nikasil is getting close to wearing through it might do so unless you are careful in the areas like below intake and above the exhaust port. When brand new, they are pretty aggressive, but they quickly tame down. You dang sure don't want to touch any minor bare aluminum defective spots, or they won't be minor for long.If the aluminum transfer is really bad, and the cylinder design alows it, I'll hit it with a longer three stone hone and spray laquer thinner in a somewhat deep pool inside the cylinder and leave a spark plug in to keep it from draining out. The fluid facilitates the aluminum removal. It doesn't take much to get the worst knocked off, and makes it easier to finish with a Dremel paddle wheel. An example of one you can't do that on Is an 1127 series Stihl because of the open section of the lower transfer ports.
Adirondackstihl
Flyz, Fuel & Fotos
Id be nervous about snagging that plating above the exhaust
racerjohnbf
ArboristSite Member
Yeah that was one of my worries also... I've been wanting to try my hand at a little porting, could the port be raised high enough to get above the nick?
Thanks
Adirondackstihl
Flyz, Fuel & Fotos
Maybe.
That's quite a distance.
Probably gain some RPM but sacrifice power.
I'm not a builder though
racerjohnbf
ArboristSite Member
Thanks, I guess it will be a good jug to practice on.
sunfish
Fish Head
I give!
Not goin to try cleaning up any more cylinders, or better yet, not buy any more saws with bad cylinders. Just went at a 346 cylinder with a bunch of transfer in it, worst I've seen, had aluminum flowing out the port. Got through the plating above the exhaust port. Oh yeah, don't use high end ceramic abrasives in these things!
I don't feel too bad about losing this cylinder though as it was pretty rough and likely beyond hope. Price paid for the saw hurts a bit though. As it also needs a tank, clutch, top cover and a few small parts.
Not goin to try cleaning up any more cylinders, or better yet, not buy any more saws with bad cylinders. Just went at a 346 cylinder with a bunch of transfer in it, worst I've seen, had aluminum flowing out the port. Got through the plating above the exhaust port. Oh yeah, don't use high end ceramic abrasives in these things!
I don't feel too bad about losing this cylinder though as it was pretty rough and likely beyond hope. Price paid for the saw hurts a bit though. As it also needs a tank, clutch, top cover and a few small parts.
Mastermind
Work Saw Specialist
Don't give up Don. I lose a few too.
sunfish
Fish Head
OK Randy, I wont give up, but I will try my best to avoid any more scored jugs.
I just salvaged a pair of 357xp cylinders that looked really bad at the outset but cleaned right up. Then I discovered a gouge/chip in the plating just above the exhaust port under what appeared to be minimal x-fer on a 395xp cylinder I was sure would clean up nicely to live another day. It's a ring snag just waiting to happen. Could possibly still be saved by some very careful/skillful grinding, but that's beyond my current skill set/experience and would probably cost as much to outsource as a new OEM jug anyway.
Ya win some, ya lose some...., but neither happens if ya jes quit!
Ya win some, ya lose some...., but neither happens if ya jes quit!
For those of you with a die grinder (or just a cordless drill) who may want to give this non-acid method a try and are seeking an easy solution for making a split mandrel to securely hold your abrasive of choice, I pissed up a rope for quite a while trying wood dowel, a barn nail, a fubar'd screwdriver..., just about anything I had laying around that I could sacrifice toward the cause and could still cut a slit through for starting a wrap of suitable abrasive paper that wouldn't either break the mandrel itself (the wood dowel), or be a real pain in the ass to cut..., just to have the abrasive of choice either tear or shred if it didn't just spin out of the slit in the first place. Was gettin' fed up with that, tho it did get the job done eventually. Anyway, I stopped by a local NAPA shop that does a lot of machining to see if I could snag some 1/4"~3/16" diameter aluminum scrap stock which would obviously be easier to slit/notch than what I'd already tried..., when I saw the light...., a piece of aluminum brake line/hydraulic line just sitting in a scrap box with my name on it. $2 for the three foot piece. Sold.
This stuff is 5/16" O.D., obviously very easy to cut, and is hollow...., which when slit to the desired length on one side only allows a roll (or ectra fold) of material to be inserted inside the tube which greatly improves the stability and longevity of the flap section of material wrapped around the outside of the tube. Wall thickness is plenty strong to chuck up into your drill or grinder and still lean on heavily for the torque factor. You can cut a wide slit all the way through it for Scotch-Brite stuff, shape it, flare it, thread it for whatever else you may want to creatively attach, etc. A six inch length provides nice reach into the cylinder while still giving a chuck plenty of grip.
If someone else already chimed in with the same suggestion 20 pages ago and I missed it, sorry for the repetition.
Otherwise, go get some brake line and give it a shot. Best approach I've tried so far (short of buying a Foredom).
This stuff is 5/16" O.D., obviously very easy to cut, and is hollow...., which when slit to the desired length on one side only allows a roll (or ectra fold) of material to be inserted inside the tube which greatly improves the stability and longevity of the flap section of material wrapped around the outside of the tube. Wall thickness is plenty strong to chuck up into your drill or grinder and still lean on heavily for the torque factor. You can cut a wide slit all the way through it for Scotch-Brite stuff, shape it, flare it, thread it for whatever else you may want to creatively attach, etc. A six inch length provides nice reach into the cylinder while still giving a chuck plenty of grip.
If someone else already chimed in with the same suggestion 20 pages ago and I missed it, sorry for the repetition.
Otherwise, go get some brake line and give it a shot. Best approach I've tried so far (short of buying a Foredom).
Would it help to stuff a dowel rod, or some epoxy filler, up the other end, to resist crimping the tube in the chuck, or is it stiff enough?
Philbert
SteveSr
Addicted to ArboristSite
It would depend on the material and wall thickness but couldn't hurt. I would vote for some glass or steel filled (JB Weld) epoxy.
The radial compression of the chuck barely shows up as scuff marks in my particular situation, though there is a distinct, (but very shallow), indent in the stock at the top and bottom of each chuck grip location. It's a DeWalt key-less chuck setup and works just fine for the duty described, but I could certainly see an overly enthusiastic ham-fister with a larger drill or die grinder and a keyed chuck applying additional (and unnecessary) stress on the material to the extent that it may collapse...which wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing if it collapsed uniformly at each chuck grip point.
The other way to deal with such a concern would be to simply notch the tube at each chuck grip point to force a structural failure which would inadvertently facilitate a custom fit to the chuck of your particular drill or die grinder!
....or not.
But I digress...
The other way to deal with such a concern would be to simply notch the tube at each chuck grip point to force a structural failure which would inadvertently facilitate a custom fit to the chuck of your particular drill or die grinder!
....or not.
But I digress...
