Tool for small letters/designs

[Splinters&Sparx]

I'm looking for recommendations on which tool and head you are using to clean/smooth the inside of small designs and or letters in a project. Thank you

[DieselFumes]

I use the muriatic acid/water bath technique for most things anymore and always on smaller stuff. Just throw them in for a few hours and they come out looking perfect, slag free, no grind marks, and ready to finish.

[Splinters&Sparx]

I also use the muriatic acid bath but once in a while I have to grind down or smooth the smaller designs in a project due to the cut just not coming out right or if I want to leave the piece raw it looks discolored on the inside designs, so I was wondering which tool and tips are best used for that. I have a small angle grinder but I have yet to find a tip that works. I have a couple burr bits but sometimes they are too aggressive. Sorry I should have been more clear. Thanks for the reply.

[adbuch]

I use the muriatic acid/water bath technique for most things anymore and always on smaller stuff. Just throw them in for a few hours and they come out looking perfect, slag free, no grind marks, and ready to finish.

DieselFumes - I'm curious - how does your muriatic acid/water bath work compared to soaking in vinegar? Is the muriatic acid you are using the one sold for swimming pools? How much do you dilute it with water? And what do you wash it with after rising off the acid to keep from rusting. Splinters&Sparx - sorry to "hijack" the thread.

Thanks,
David

[acourtjester]

I use a 50/50 water and muriatic acid (pool stuff from Home Depot or Lowe's) I soak overnight for a really clean job. Scrub with stiff brush and washing soda and water blow dry with compressed air. some before and after.

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[adbuch]

I use a 50/50 water and muriatic acid (pool stuff from Home Depot or Lowe's) I soak overnight for a really clean job. Scrub with stiff brush and washing soda and water blow dry with compressed air. some before and after.
DSCN3178.JPG
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DSCN3180.JPG

Tom - those came out really clean! What kind of washing soda do you use? Maybe show a picture if you can.
Thanks,
David

[djreiswig]

I would think any brand would work to neutralize the acid.

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[acourtjester]

That it, maybe 2 tablespoons to a gal of water

[adbuch]

I would think any brand would work to neutralize the acid.
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Thanks djreiswig! I will order some to try it out.

David

[adbuch]

That it, maybe 2 tablespoons to a gal of water

Thanks Tom! I will try it out along with the acid bath if I decide to cut that 12" circle gauge I posted.

David

[djreiswig]

I would think any brand would work to neutralize the acid.
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Thanks djreiswig! I will order some to try it out.

David

You should be able to find it at most grocery stores in the laundry detergent aisle.

[tinspark]

All good info
thanks fellas!
I assume that the acid bath mix can be re bottled and reused several times? or is it a one time use only?
I seem to remember an old post here where a member set up a tank out back away from metal buildings and he left a wooden cover over it when not in use, and reused it several times..
I might give this a shot on my next small parts run, maybe in a 5 gallon bucket to start with..

I have been using a cheap magnetic gate lock, mounted to my workbench to remove dross from my small parts.
I rigged up an old 24 volt DC laptop charger that I had on hand to power it up. This works good for the grinder method. but this looks super-nice since there are no visible grind marks on the parts

[acourtjester]

I reuse the acid, store it in a 5 gal plastic gas container, It will eat the little round stopper that come with the gas container. I use made a new one from other plastic and that is still working to seal the container. For larger parts I have a horse water tank (tractor supply) that is about 100 Gal. I just put enough acid to cover the parts (signs). After the soak I put it back in the container. The brass drain bung needs to be replaced too with a plastic one.

[adbuch]

Doug - up until now I have been using the "grinding" method with flap discs. They come out clean, but with sharp edges that need to be sanded down plus all the marks. It's a lot of work, and I never look forward to it. I had thought about using either the acid or vinegar method, but I will try the acid method with a 50/50 solution as Tom has suggested. I just got my box of washing soda from Amazon today.

I think I will use the circle gauge file I posted a few days ago for my trial run. It's 12" in diameter and will fit into one of those plastic parts cleaning pans. I have about 1/2 gallon of muriatic acid left in the original plastic jug, so I think I will mix it all and pour it back into the jug for reuse. I really don't do all that much plasma cutting, so it should last me awhile.

David

[adbuch]

Tom - that horse water tank is a good tip for very large parts. For medium parts I was thinking about one of these concrete mixing tubs.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Plasgad-20- ... /205451585

David

[adbuch]

Doug & Tom - I cut two of these this evening. I need to buy some acid to clean one of them. The other one I went ahead and hit it with the wire cup and d/a sander. There are not too many scratches with this method. I cut these from 12 ga. cr steel using FineCuts at 40 amps. They cut pretty smoothly with a minimum of back side dross. I'm planning to use Rustoleum satin clear since I like to see the exposed metal finish.

David

circle template front side.jpg

circle template front side 4.jpg

[tinspark]

Doug & Tom - I cut two of these this evening.

Nice Cut! your machine is cutting good.
Post up the one that you soak in acid overnight if you get a chance, as well of your impression of both methods.
And which cleanup method you prefer overall/pros/cons

[adbuch]

Doug & Tom - I cut two of these this evening.

Nice Cut! your machine is cutting good.
Post up the one that you soak in acid overnight if you get a chance, as well of your impression of both methods.
And which cleanup method you prefer overall/pros/cons

Doug - will do!
David

[acourtjester]

I have the 2 sizes of the Home Depot tubes, the larger one fits over the smaller on for a good seal to keep the axis fumes trapped.
Nice cuts for a proof of concept, I sure many will be cut by members, thanks for posting.

[adbuch]

Tom - that is a great tip about the two sizes! I was trying to figure out how I would seal the top. I was thinking maybe put a sheet of plywood or metal over the top of the tub/pan. Your ideas is better. Thanks!

David

[DieselFumes]

I use the muriatic acid/water bath technique for most things anymore and always on smaller stuff. Just throw them in for a few hours and they come out looking perfect, slag free, no grind marks, and ready to finish.

DieselFumes - I'm curious - how does your muriatic acid/water bath work compared to soaking in vinegar? Is the muriatic acid you are using the one sold for swimming pools? How much do you dilute it with water? And what do you wash it with after rising off the acid to keep from rusting. Splinters&Sparx - sorry to "hijack" the thread.

Thanks,
David

Like these other guys I do a 50/50 acid/water solution, have never tried vinegar but I expect it would not be as aggressive and effective. The stuff I have is from Home Depot for cleaning concrete but I suspect any of them will work. Rinse with baking soda mix to neutralize but I have heard if you are painting right away this is not required. My stuff usually sits for a while before being painted to I rinse them. It works awesome for me, provides a very clean and professional edge and surface for paint with no effort.

[Splinters&Sparx]

Still waiting for tool recommendations j/k

To put my 2 cents in regarding acid baths, I have been using this method for about 6 mos now. What I have learned is it does not have to be a 50:50 ratio and matter of fact it is kind of a waste of acid and money to mix it that strong. I use approx a 1:3, 1:4 ratio using a large plastic tote (for now) I have had the same water in the tub the whole time and when I notice the parts are taking longer to clean I just dump some more acid. I also read it isn't necessary to neutralize the part after an acid bath because once rinsed there is no longer acid, Bill from Steel FX has a great post about this. I am kind of questioning this after reading this thread because after rinsing the steel I have to immediately dry it to keep it from getting a surface rust and a patina look.

Here is the thread with Bill's input
viewtopic.php?f=85&t=29703l

Also I have tried the vinegar bath, it took about 24 hrs to clean a piece that the acid does in 20-30 minutes.

Have a great week
Krystal

[adbuch]

Still waiting for tool recommendations j/k

To put my 2 cents in regarding acid baths, I have been using this method for about 6 mos now. What I have learned is it does not have to be a 50:50 ratio and matter of fact it is kind of a waste of acid and money to mix it that strong. I use approx a 1:3, 1:4 ratio using a large plastic tote (for now) I have had the same water in the tub the whole time and when I notice the parts are taking longer to clean I just dump some more acid. I also read it isn't necessary to neutralize the part after an acid bath because once rinsed there is no longer acid, Bill from Steel FX has a great post about this. I am kind of questioning this after reading this thread because after rinsing the steel I have to immediately dry it to keep it from getting a surface rust and a patina look.

Here is the thread with Bill's input
viewtopic.php?f=85&t=29703l

Also I have tried the vinegar bath, it took about 24 hrs to clean a piece that the acid does in 20-30 minutes.

Have a great week
Krystal

Post a few photos of the pieces you wish to clean/smooth and I will be happy to make some recommendations.
David

[acourtjester]

One thing to watch out for with the acid bath is the fumes will cause rust on anything close to it. I do it out in the open for ventilation reasons, never in the shop.

[adbuch]

I use the muriatic acid/water bath technique for most things anymore and always on smaller stuff. Just throw them in for a few hours and they come out looking perfect, slag free, no grind marks, and ready to finish.

DieselFumes - I'm curious - how does your muriatic acid/water bath work compared to soaking in vinegar? Is the muriatic acid you are using the one sold for swimming pools? How much do you dilute it with water? And what do you wash it with after rising off the acid to keep from rusting. Splinters&Sparx - sorry to "hijack" the thread.

Thanks,
David

Like these other guys I do a 50/50 acid/water solution, have never tried vinegar but I expect it would not be as aggressive and effective. The stuff I have is from Home Depot for cleaning concrete but I suspect any of them will work. Rinse with baking soda mix to neutralize but I have heard if you are painting right away this is not required. My stuff usually sits for a while before being painted to I rinse them. It works awesome for me, provides a very clean and professional edge and surface for paint with no effort.

With your 50/50 acid/water mix, how many hours do you typically soak your parts in the acid bath?
Thanks,
David