Free up rusted rings/engine.

Some guys were telling me to free up a rusted engine by pouring vinegar in the cylinders. Say it softens the rust and frees up the pistons and rings and cleans off the cylinder walls.
I had this handfull of rusty hardware from my current project/chore so I tossed them in that jar and covered them with white vinegar. 20-, 30-hrs later the hardware was like new!
Some of it still had rusty spots but a couple licks with a stiff brush took the rust off. Cotter keys, flat washers, nuts, bolts, all that rusty stuff cleaned right up.
I bet vinegar would do wonders on stuck rings and even a rust seized engine. Amazing.

It must have softened up your rust!

I tried some larger nuts and bolts and a four or five hour soak does a pretty fair job. Now I can see the maker"s name, grade marks, and other info on the hardware I would have swore was long gone to rust.

I"m going to make that part of my routine when I"m tearing into some old iron; toss the hardware into a can of vinegar as I pull it off. Sure beats a wire brush and all the rest used to recondition hardware.

I saw a vinegar wegsite one time. It had a jillion uses listed for the stuff.

I"m now a believer in vinegar so I"m going to look see where else I can use it. I guess I can use it for first aid also. I like it! It"s cheap and isn"t likely to hurt anything no matter what.

I then rinse with water and baking soda, then with clean water, and then dry(oven).