1967 Sears Fleetwood

[dragsterIII]

ok guys and gals, I've had this bike for a year now with nothing in mind for it, I tried to clean the frame put the chrome is really bad. put the chain guard in oxalic acid but it did not do very much :| any suggestions on what i should do with this?

so on to the pics and my messy bike shop

 

[Markm]

wd-40 . steel wool..

 

[dragsterIII]

okay I'll try that, what grade do you suggest because it is really scratched as is :?

so any ideas on what I should make it into, do think a klunker :?:

 

[Boardtrack fan]

WD-40 and brass wool or brass brush. Does not scratch like steel. I learned that from Hooch! Ambman told me about a acid you can buy in Chrystal from and mix with water. He placed a frame into the solution over night and the next day just wiped the rust away. Maybe he will see this and tell us what the name is (I can't remember :roll: ).

 

[dragsterIII]

Is it called oxalic acid? I tried it on the chain guard but maybe i should try a stronger mix

 

[ambman]

I used oxalic acid and it worked really well unless the chrome is gone, then it leaves either a black mark that scrubs off with some fine scotchbrite or bare metal. Not much you can do if the chrome is bad but I would think that chainguard would have cleaned up better, maybe you should have soaked it longer or mixed the solution stronger. I bought a Takara frame last Saturday that looked awful, I soaked it for a day and a half and I can't believe how good it came out.

 

[ifitsfreeitsforme]

send it to Steve. he could get it shiney.

 

[Uncle Stretch]

Chrome bikes are nice,but when they are rusty they leave only a few options. Try to clean the chrome or sand it and paint. You can use 80 grit sandpaper and then some self etching primer for a paintable base ,or for a little more have the frame sandblasted and then powdercoated. They usually turn out nice,and you will be surprised the color choices you will have. Something in a nice candy apple red would be nice. :wink:

 

[Unchained]

It's a shame the chrome is as bad as it looks, the bike would be pretty cool in cleaned chrome. If you were really crazy about it, you could probably clean the bike to look presentable and have it replated. I would be willing to guess it would be pretty expensive, but if you really like it, it could be considered?

I've found that as long as you're not cleaning perfectly new or restored chrome, grade 0000 ultra fine steel wool will clean the chrome without leaving scratches. I have had a sturdy brass brush scratch replated chrome. :shock: ...it seems to be ultra sensitive.

 

[thom]

I have one too.Mine appears to have some kind of clear coat over the chrome.The clear is scratched and discolored .I plan to remove the clear and reclear it . I have never been able to find bronze wool in my area. I have wanted to try it on some other bikes but have been using OOOO steel wool with pretty good results.

 

[dragsterIII]

thanks for you tips and tricks guys , but I dont think I will re-plate it Probably going to make a stronger solution and soak it and go over it with something really fine. and uncle I did think about painting but somehow it seem like blasphemy to paint such an old chrome bike :mrgreen: but I do have a newer chrome Bmx I could paint a candy apple red we shall see!

I have one too.Mine appears to have some kind of clear coat over the chrome.The clear is scratched and discolored .I plan to remove the clear and reclear it .

this sounds similar to a problem I have :shock: the fork on my Peugeot Rally du monde grand sport is like that! now all I need to do is strip the old clear thanks man!

I used oxalic acid and it worked really well unless the chrome is gone, then it leaves either a black mark that scrubs off with some fine scotchbrite or bare metal. Not much you can do if the chrome is bad but I would think that chainguard would have cleaned up better, maybe you should have soaked it longer or mixed the solution stronger. I bought a Takara frame last Saturday that looked awful, I soaked it for a day and a half and I can't believe how good it came out.

what did you use for the container?

 

[ambman]

I used one of those under bed storage boxes, it was about $17 at Home Depot, it's plastic with a lid, it holds 67 quarts(that's what it says on the sticker). I filled it with water and dumped the whole container of oxalic acid powder in it (12 oz) which cost $7 at my local Ace hardware, they sell it as wood bleach for decks. I've been cleaning a ton of parts with it and I am very happy with how little work is involved in cleaning up chrome, I basically let it sit overnight and if that's not good enough I let it sit longer, then when you pull out the parts it looks kind of foggy and the heavy rust will have a yellow crust but it wipes right of with the scotchbrite (the fine stuff that is white) I clean it up with some water(to neutralize the acid)and then chrome polish and spray inside the tubes with some WD40. Looking at your frame I would bet it would clean up excellent with this method, I "discovered" it on a vintage BMX forum.

 

[P-LoDiablo]

I've found that rubbing crome surfaces with foil and water gets the rust right off.

 

[LowAndStretched]

Hi I just happen to be working on same bike model - a rusty chrome sears fleetwood - was wondering how you obtained the exact model year? I tried looking up serial number but no luck online...

BTW I've found that aluminum foil works as well as most methods for rust removal... crinkle it up and rub the rust spots.... not sure if the dissimilar metals causes like electrolysis or why it works for sure, but it does work...

 

[Araya51]

I've had very good luck with CLR mixed with warm water in a bucket. Just wear some dishwashing gloves and scrub with 000 or 0000 steel wool.
I restored this 83 Ross Pirahna 20" BMX with this method with CLR and came out great..


Can't hurt to try and plus it takes verry little in cost to buy CLR and not much to add in water to do the job.. Good luck with your project..