Help- best method to clean black pipe

admin

I have a project that includes many, many rings cut from black pipe. I need to clean the coating off the pipe. I don't want to take the time to sand each one. The inside is difficult to sand evenly. What chemical will take off the coating quickly? Or any other method you might suggest? Attached Images
Reply:What coating are you referring to, paint? mill scale? other?The Lord has declared, "This is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man"  Moses 1:39Link: My name is John, and I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.-- ColdCreekWorks.com --
Reply:The coating seems to be a clear paint. Mill scale and rust I can handle
Reply:Throw em in a concrete mixer for a few shovels of sand for a nice ride.  They'll come out all shined up and deburred.
Reply:A little-known fact, standard pipe can be ordered uncoated, from any decent steel service center.   Costs a little more, since it needs to be protected, otherwise it rusts up in no time.   I normally specify uncoated pipe, for any handrails I need to build, or anything I build that needs to be galvanized.Next time you order, ask about this.
Reply:yep i agree with the cement mixer or any vibratory container with a cleaning material..LOL you could use your clothes dryer...
Reply:Cement mixer is a good way to go and you get another tool too!I tossed a pipe nipple in my little tumbler with some black beauty (coal slag) for about an hour or so and there was still some scale left. I'll try again later with some larger junk thrown in to see if it works better.Matt Attached Images
Reply:White wash?
Reply:i would say a tumbler.Vantage 500's LN-25's, VI-400's, cobramatics, Miller migs, synch 350 LX, Powcon inverters, XMT's, 250 Ton Acurrpress 12' brake, 1/4" 10' Atlantic shear,Koikie plasma table W/ esab plasmas. marvel & hyd-mech saws, pirrana & metal muncher punches.
Reply:Another vote for the mixer / tumbler. That or get them sand blasted. The only other thought would be to take them to a place that dips items for paint stripping. I've had shutters and other difficult items dipped in the past rather than spend the time F'ing with them..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Bead blast, or actually, light torch work. That will crack that finish, and then you can clean them up easily.And then, after so much work...... you have it in your hand, and you look over to your side...... and the runner has run off. Leaving you holding the prize, wondering when the runner will return.
Reply:See if you can find a local fab shop that has a small tumblast machine. It is a process similar to sandblasting using steel abrasive instead of sand. The parts tumble inside as they are blasted so the entire surface inside and out will be clean. Shouldn't cost much for the small batch you have, the parts would be done in just a few minutes in the machine.Another option is sandblasting, it will just take a little longer.ScottFab MangerWelders360New guy.
Reply:I am hoping to keep the mill finish on the pipe for aesthetic reasons (they're gonna be clear coated in their final configuration). If it weren't for the fact that i like the colors, I'd have tried the tumble in the cement mixer. So i have chosen to soak them in lacquer thinner. It takes about ten minutes to dislodge the paint and then a quick swipe with a rag gets em clean. None of my other solvents seemed to do much to the coating. At least lacquer thinner smells good. Thanks for all the ideas. BTW the picture I included on the first post shows one box of five i need to clean. So if anyone wants to check to one me, and make sure I haven't succumb to the fumes, I'd be obliged.
Reply:Originally Posted by fortyonethirtyI At least lacquer thinner smells good.
Reply:Well, i guess it doesn't smell "good". But it sure beats mineral spirits.
Reply:Used brake fluid is good at removing many paints and varnishes, although you might need to have a friend with an auto shop to get enough for your job; then too, he may have to account for where all his went to satisfy Environmental regulations.  BTW, it can be rinsed off with water, and actually is "biodegradable".
Reply:Muriatic (sp?) Acid maybe. Just a thought.......next time, clean BEFORE cutting them into small pieces!!! 200amp Air Liquide MIG, Hypertherm Plasma, Harris torches, Optrel helmet, Makita angle grinders, Pre-China Delta chop saw and belt sander, Miller leathers, shop made jigs etc, North- welders backpack.
Reply:I used to make biodiesel, and one of the requirements is that you don't use galvanized pipe, the reaction between bio and the galvanization is not good for injector pumps.   Muriatic acid is used to get rid of the galvanized coating, which leaves, at least in my case, black pipe.  It definitly works in getting rid of galvanization, and in theory it should remove whatever coating is on the OPs black pipe. Originally Posted by bert the welderMuriatic (sp?) Acid maybe. Just a thought.......next time, clean BEFORE cutting them into small pieces!!!