Removing Rust In Place (Prior to Unscrewing)

[Gramham]

Hello Everyone,

In an attempt to accumulate some practical Watchmaking skills (and not just constantly talk theory) I want to go about refurbishing three major components in the Winding Work of a Pocket Watch Movement I recently purchased here in Hong Kong, as a practice piece:

https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/search/result/elgin/23687805

 

The three components in question are:

- Click (or Ratchet Wheel Pawl)
- Ratchet Wheel
- Crown Wheel (or Main Wind Wheel)

Here's a photo of the movement in question, with the components identified:



Here's my question:  How do I get the corrosion off the screws prior to unscrewing them?

In a really interesting Verge Movement Restoration video I recently watched, the Watchmaker used "Turpentine Spirits" to loosen rust before taking components apart.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwmzYC0zOF0&t=2m45s

Can my UK brothers help me out?  Is "Turpentine Spirits" the same stuff that we Canadians simply call "Turpentine"...or is it a distillate of our "Turpentine" and something else?

Also, is "Turpentine Spirits" the only solution available, or are there other or better solutions (pardon the pun) that I can use to loosen potentially rust-welded components?



If this was a different machine (car, boat, lawnmower) I'd have a bevy of other options...but I'm new to this so I want to be careful and draw on collective experience.

Lastly, this is a very mature site.  If there is already an existing discussion about this, I'd be happy to get just a pointer to it so I can review and not force a re-run of a well-discussed topic.  I'd prefer to draw my own conclusions on my own time in those circumstances, and not waste everyone else's.

Thanks in advance!

g.
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Edited August 25, 2022 by Gramham
Premature Submission

[Kalanag]

The highly respected Dutch watchmaker Kalle Slaap puts a drop of WD40 on the screw and let it soak a while. But seeing the screw heads in your pic I wouldn‘t do anything other than just unscrew.

Edited August 25, 2022 by Kalanag

[gbyleveldt]

If it's a belts and braces kinda scenario, I like using Evapo-Rust. To me it works better than WD40. Only thing is that it sometimes stains the metal to black(ish). So a last resort kinda thing if cosmetics will be an issue (although I guess black is better than red/brown  )

[watchweasol]

There is of course the age old method of using vinegar and as Nucejoe advocates, coke they all work in varying degrees, to clean up the contaminated parts after dis assembly do as joe does and soak in coke and clean well and dry.

[Gramham]

Hello Everyone,

Thanks for all the tips!  I got the wheels off and I have decided to started with the click.

I'm not done yet.  (A) There's still pitting  at 10 O'clock; and (B) I want to dress the screw notch a little bit.

But I thought I'd put a preliminary image up here to just get some fast feedback and I am also trying to remove as little material as possible.  I'm using a dry stone, a pair of utility tweezers and (sometimes) my fingertip to "drag" the parts across the fine side of a Carborundum stone, which I got a long time ago to sharpen my kitchen knives.

 

Here's the stone...

Does anyone have feedback for me?

g.
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[watchweasol]

Looking better all ready.

[Gramham]

2022-08-26 Update:

I dare not remove more material from the click, for fear of leaving the screw too proud.

Sadly, I do not have a dressing tool small enough to chamfer the screw notch.

Here's the latest results.  Apologies for the bad focus, I am using my mobile phone to (badly) take 2X photos.

Next steps are:

- A 12-hour bath in some white vinegar to clean corrosion from the back and rim
- A dip in baking soda & water to nullify the acetic acid in the vinegar
- A quick bath in IPA to get rid of any water
- A little blow dry to get rid of any traces

Does anyone with more experience disagree with the above protocol?

 

g.

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Edited August 26, 2022 by Gramham

[watchweasol]

Hi  It will never be perfect, its a case of making it presentable and workable. problem is not removing too much metal during polishing.