Removing cosmolene

GK1918

GK1918

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Anyone into rebuilding engines knows that 1948 & back rod bearings Ford are big bucks (floating bearings) Made short we received
the bearings and looking at the box and printed ink I know exactly where they came from "military" as expected they are entombed in cosmolene. Gas and kero diesel has worked for me in the past, but these are NOS 70+ yrs old. Gas Lacquer thinner does nothing.
Any ideas >> hot water - hair dryer ? thought I would ask can't screw up $250 worth. sam
 
I always use brake cleaner or acetone.... that’s all I got...
 
Mabee try a heat gun to soften the petrified cosmolene.
I've been cleaning a new machine and its still work to get it off, but minimal spirits is all I used when paint finishes are involved followed by WD-40.
Might try to soak a rag over the stuff after preheat.
 
A parts washer with a pump might work to circulate the solvent over it continuously. Might take some time though.
 
Try putting very hot water on a towel, and let it sit on a portion of a bearing to see if it softens the cosmolene.
 
Perhaps carburetor/parts cleaner in a bucket. I saw a boring mill column years ago that had been stored outdoors for likely 20 years, the cosmoline was baked hard, like roofing asphalt, it had to be removed by a carbide hand scraper, same thing for the bed ways, figure 60 feet of flat ways, two tracks about 12" or more wide!
 
Had a Soviet-block rifle like that: tough, thick, old cosmoline that laughed at any type of solvent I threw at it. The trick was to hold the action in one hand with an old welding glove and rinse the goop off with boiling water right out of the tea kettle. It worked perfectly as it just melted right off.

Kinda messy, though.
 
DoogieB said:
Had a Soviet-block rifle like that: tough, thick, old cosmoline that laughed at any type of solvent I threw at it. The trick was to hold the action in one hand with an old welding glove and rinse the goop off with boiling water right out of the tea kettle. It worked perfectly as it just melted right off.

Kinda messy, though.
Click to expand...
Likely steam cleaning would work also, but it did not work on the boring mill parts.
 
Thanks all heat gun did the trick. These bearings have or looks like layers of wax paper duncked in cosomolene.
Even the boxes had thick cosmolene. Tons of parts were air dropped in remote areas WWII
 
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