Hey guys,
I usually lurq around here, but I finally have something valuable to contribute! I had the same problem with getting the old rubber off my old running boards from my '34 Plymouth. I tried all kinds of ways to scrape it off. But the thing that finally worked - an electrolysis tank. I don't know if there's been any discussion on this topic here or not, so I'll just explain what I did.
I used a big shop trash can, about 45 gallons I think.
Get a box of Arm & Hammer WASHING SODA. This stuff is not the same as baking soda, which goes in your refrigerator. Washing Soda looks very similar, but it's used in the clothes washing machine. I got mine from Kroger, but you may have to search around for it.
Fill your big plastic tank with water. Warm water will disolve the soda faster, but the garden hose will be fine.
The amount of soda isn't too critical. Some sources say one tablespoon per gallon. Some say more, some less. I just sprinkled about half the box in real slow, and stirred well.
Get a battery charger, hook the black clamp to a clean, shiny steel part of the running board (or any other rusty part you want to clean) and hook the red clamp to a sacrificial piece of steel. Bigger is better. I had a 4 inch wide, 4 foot tall strip of 16 gauge steel. Turn the battery charger on as high as it goes. Mine was a 100 amp fast charger.
Leave your running board in the water for a couple days. Then take them out, rinse with a garden hose, and you'll see the rubber literally falling off in whole chunks. If some sections are still stuck (and by stuck, I mean they aren't falling off effortlessly), then back in the tank they go for another couple days. My boards took about a week to clean each one.
I learned how to do this by searching the net for electrolysis info, but one of the best links I found is here:
http://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/rust/electrolytic_derusting.htm
This page will answer most all your questions.
Try it, and you'll learn to love electrolysis!
Here's a couple more links I found while surfing -
http://www.runningboardmats.com
http://www.smoothiefabrication.com
Good luck!
-Shane Smith
www.RustToRod.com
I usually lurq around here, but I finally have something valuable to contribute! I had the same problem with getting the old rubber off my old running boards from my '34 Plymouth. I tried all kinds of ways to scrape it off. But the thing that finally worked - an electrolysis tank. I don't know if there's been any discussion on this topic here or not, so I'll just explain what I did.
I used a big shop trash can, about 45 gallons I think.
Get a box of Arm & Hammer WASHING SODA. This stuff is not the same as baking soda, which goes in your refrigerator. Washing Soda looks very similar, but it's used in the clothes washing machine. I got mine from Kroger, but you may have to search around for it.
Fill your big plastic tank with water. Warm water will disolve the soda faster, but the garden hose will be fine.
The amount of soda isn't too critical. Some sources say one tablespoon per gallon. Some say more, some less. I just sprinkled about half the box in real slow, and stirred well.
Get a battery charger, hook the black clamp to a clean, shiny steel part of the running board (or any other rusty part you want to clean) and hook the red clamp to a sacrificial piece of steel. Bigger is better. I had a 4 inch wide, 4 foot tall strip of 16 gauge steel. Turn the battery charger on as high as it goes. Mine was a 100 amp fast charger.
Leave your running board in the water for a couple days. Then take them out, rinse with a garden hose, and you'll see the rubber literally falling off in whole chunks. If some sections are still stuck (and by stuck, I mean they aren't falling off effortlessly), then back in the tank they go for another couple days. My boards took about a week to clean each one.
I learned how to do this by searching the net for electrolysis info, but one of the best links I found is here:
http://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/rust/electrolytic_derusting.htm
This page will answer most all your questions.
Try it, and you'll learn to love electrolysis!
Here's a couple more links I found while surfing -
http://www.runningboardmats.com
http://www.smoothiefabrication.com
Good luck!
-Shane Smith
www.RustToRod.com