Need help, tools are rusting!

I'm young but have a pretty good collection of tools, most of them snap-on from when I went to school for autobody. Looked at a few of them yesterday and was shocked to see that some of them have a little surface rust on them (mostly the air tools cause I don't have a compressor to use them). Is there a certain type of oil I can use on them to keep them from rusting? I don't have a heated garage so they are always exposed to temperature changes. Thanks.

 

Spray em' with WD-40

 

Either oil them or use them more

 

I've used wd-40 before but doesn't really seem to last that long. And I can't really use them more as I'm broke and can't afford a compressor to use them lol. Was thinking maybe there's a thicker oil then wd-40 or something that provides a better coat on them?

 

I use spray cosmoline on my dollys etc. I live in a very humid area and stuff like that will rust while you look at it, the spray cosmoline will last a long time and i just give all my tools & equipment a spray from time to time.
Some tools just don't get used as often as we'd like, like if you are building a ch***is all the sheetmetal stuff just sits there for ages and thats just the way it is.

 

Maybe I'll give that stuff a try. Where can you buy it from?

 

Buy a dehumidifier for your garage. A good one will be around $200.00 and they really work. No more moisture in the air to rust your tools or your car. I thought my shop was ok until I bought one and over night the dehumidifier pulled 5 gallons of water into the bucket. No more need to keep your tools all greasy and oil soaked. You can also wall mount the unit and run the drain line outside so you dont have to empty it all the time also.

 

I have some woodworking equiptment that have cast iron and machined surfaces. The best things that I have found are a coat of paste wax or Wurth HH2000. I have also used Evapo-rust from Auto Zone to remove surface rust.

 

I live less than a mile from the beach, and the salt air is hell on bare metal surfaces. I apply PB Blaster with a fine scotchbrite pad about every 3-4 months, and it seems to work okay.

 

For tools that see little or no use you can put them in a zip-lock bag and store them in an unused drawer, same as you would do with parts for a long term project.

.

 

You're not storing pool chlorine or muriatic acid in there, are you?

 

I would put some dryer sheets in the drawers......

 

I'm with 50 Chevy Suburban both of those chemicals will initiate rust if they are not well sealed and left anywhere near your tools, another old time trick for seldom used tools is an oily rag in the bottom of the tool drawer wit another oily rag laid on top of the tools covering them. We are not talking soaking wet oily just a well used shop rag that is oily.

 

If a bath in WD40 isn't keeping them from rusting something is wrong. I live in one of the most rust promoting States there is, Florida, and none of my tools rust like you are describing. Just last night I uncovered a 460 Ford block that I had machined probably 7 years ago and I sprayed the bare metal with WD40 at that time, and there is no rust whatsoever on it.

I now buy WD40 in the gallon can, about $ 12 at Home Depot and spray it on with a refillable plastic spray bottle. Much cheaper than buying those little aerosol cans and you can really lay it on heavy.

Don

 

or a bath of motor oil. that would work too right? do you have tool box or are you leaving them out on the bench? if you leave them on the bench out an oily rag on top. that will protect it from condensation.

 

They're in my tool box. No there's no chemicals or anything anywhere close to my tool box. Now that I think of it I guess it's been like a year since I put wd-40 on them. Just a few of them have surface rust on them, not really bad just want to prevent it from getting worse/coming back. I live in Minnesota and have a 4 car garage with no insulation or heat like I said so don't think a dehumidifier will really help. Hopefully I'll find a job soon so I can get a good compressor and use them more often and actually get to work on my cars! Also will insulate and heat the garage!

 

If they are body tools and sanders and such, give them a wipe down with reducer or something BEFORE you use them, you get some of that **** into bare metal and its nothing but issues. Then soak em with whatever when you put them away.

 

Boeshield. http://boeshield.com/

 

Silica gel. Throw a couple of those little packets of the stuff in the drawers of your tool chest. It's a desiccant (basically a de-humidifier) in a sealed package. You can usually find them in the box when you buy electronics or optical equipment. Ask your friends to save any they find. I suppose you can also buy them, perhaps in hunting/fishing shops, but I always save 'em if I find them in packaging. Free is good. I'm not discounting using a light oil on your tools. I would do that also. Just a reminder though, the oil from your hands will go a long way toward keeping the rust at bay.....Don.

 

Take a tip from gunsmiths and use Marvel Mystery Oil. A good coat will last a long time and prevent rusting. Besides, I think it smells good.

 

A shame , but interesting.
"KEEPER OF THE RUST"

 

Anything I have hung in the attic has never rusted. The nearer the floor or wall the more they rust.

 

start using them, greaser project the better!

 

buy a ford.... they wont have time to rust..

 

......That's some funny stuff right there.

 

My dad had a magnetic strip in his tool box and had all his snap on and mac screw drivers on it and everysingle one of them ended up nearly rotted in half where they touched the magnet. No idea why because they had been laying on that magnet for years. Only difference was he bought a new stainless tool box.

 

use marvel mystery oil use it in all my air tools good stuff...also a light wipe on the outside will do the trick
GREAZY HUBCAPZ CC EAST TENN

 

put them in a ziplock bag or if your not gonna use them for a good while put them under your bed.

 

Spray with Fluid Film, it is a natural oil taken from sheeps wool. It is the best all around spray I have ever found for undercoating and as a penetrating oil.It is distributed in the USA by a company named Eureka and in Canada by Northland Sales. Great product!

 

This. They pack big ones in equipment crates. Don't forget to check them regularly though, they will start to ooze eventually when they get "full".