Drill attachment options...

[Fraggle Moon]

Hi there, quick question...

 

What style of drill attachment would you recommend for removal of light surface rust??

 

I say drill, as although I own angle grinders and am a competent DIY'er, I have never felt confident using them!!

 

Thank you

[matty40s]

https://www.toolstation.com/wire-brush-set-with-arbor/p24723

[dmr]

A wire cup brush in an angle grinder is the way to go.

I agree that angle grinders are scary tools but they are just so useful.

A wire brush is probably the least scary angle grinder tool as there is no huge shower of sparks and not much chance of serious snatching, so will be a good introduction to the angle grinder. However there are still sharp things rotating and the potential to jump if you catch an edge so still take care.  You can put a wire brush in a drill but its just not as good and probably just as dangerous.

A good battery angle grinder (and a few spare batteries) is a very good tool to have on a boat, and not having a trailing lead is one less thing to worry about.

[Fraggle Moon]

Appreciate you both 👍

 

Will give both a try... I'll pull on my big-boy pants and crack out the angle grinder!!

[Chewbacka]

I would use the angle grinder.

I would use either a wire brush or an abrasive pad which is more ‘gentle’ than a flap disc and less likely to damage the steel surface.

https://www.toolstation.com/abracs-poly-abrasive-disc/p22693

 

[blackrose]

55 minutes ago, dmr said:

A wire cup brush in an angle grinder is the way to go.

I agree that angle grinders are scary tools but they are just so useful.

A wire brush is probably the least scary angle grinder tool as there is no huge shower of sparks and not much chance of serious snatching, so will be a good introduction to the angle grinder. However there are still sharp things rotating and the potential to jump if you catch an edge so still take care.  You can put a wire brush in a drill but its just not as good and probably just as dangerous.

A good battery angle grinder (and a few spare batteries) is a very good tool to have on a boat, and not having a trailing lead is one less thing to worry about.

 

Yes catching the lead in the wire wheel or cup is most unpleasant and not difficult to do in confined spaces. 

 

Make sure you're wearing eye protection too. You have to consider that wire wheels and cups wear by bits of wire breaking of the wheel. They also fling bits of rust around. You'll get plenty in your face which can be painful but is relatively harmless unless it hits you in the eye. Ear defenders too.

 

Also make sure you're using the side handle on the angle grinder. Much more control and less likely for the angle grinder to get pulled out of your hands when you do hit a corner with the wheel running in the wrong direction.

 

Always unplug the grinder when attaching or removing wire wheels or other attachments.

Edited February 13, 2023 by blackrose

[BEngo]

Do not use any angle grinder bigger than about 125 mm, unless you are confident you can handle the start up kick, the gyroscopic effects when you lift or twist it and have a proper set of safety gear.  Gloves, visor, ear defenders, boots, stout clothing.

 

Even the professionals have been known to get bitten by a 9 inch angle grinder and grinding disc.

 

N

[Bee]

I second Bengo's warning about angle grinders and I would just like to add that i don't recomend the black and decker home dentistry attachments.

[dmr]

15 minutes ago, BEngo said:

Do not use any angle grinder bigger than about 125 mm, unless you are confident you can handle the start up kick, the gyroscopic effects when you lift or twist it and have a proper set of safety gear.  Gloves, visor, ear defenders, boots, stout clothing.

 

Even the professionals have been known to get bitten by a 9 inch angle grinder and grinding disc.

 

N

The little ones are fine for just about all boat jobs, and certainly for the derusting that the op wants to do. They will even cut quite thick steel if the need ever arises. As you say, the big ones are beasts, I've used angle grinders all my adult life but still steer well clear of the big ones.

Even the little ones have a very noticable gyroscopic effect..

[ditchcrawler]

1 hour ago, Fraggle Moon said:

Appreciate you both 👍

 

Will give both a try... I'll pull on my big-boy pants and crack out the angle grinder!!

Make sure you have first class eye protection, they tell me its a bugger extracting a wire from the eye.

[David Mack]

If you are removing paint and rust down to bare metal a flap disc in an angle grinder is more effective. It cuts into the steel and leaves a texture which helps with paint adhesion, whereas a wire brush can sometimes polish the rust without removing it.

https://www.toolstation.com/flap-disc/p51383

Edited February 13, 2023 by David Mack

[john.k]

Much better to spall the rust with an oxy tip ,then its easy to remove with a wire brush..........flame spalling is 100 times quicker than any other method of removing rust bar shot blasting...........and in some cases of fiddly stuff like railings is much quicker and cheaper that shotblasting.

[BEngo]

2 hours ago, john.k said:

Much better to spall the rust with an oxy tip ,then its easy to remove with a wire brush..........flame spalling is 100 times quicker than any other method of removing rust bar shot blasting...........and in some cases of fiddly stuff like railings is much quicker and cheaper that shotblasting.

True, but not many UK marinas would be at all happy with someone flame-cleaning  the rust off their roof.  Not to mention how difficult and costly it can be to get hold of the bottles.

 

A flap disc or a wire brush,  used gently so the wires have chance to do their job,  followed up with Fertan  or Vactan or similar will do the trick.

N

[dmr]

The OP is not too confident about the angle grinder, I don't think suggesting oxy-acetylene is a good idea..

 

For a bit of surface rust and with my battery angle grinder which is on the boat now, I could have the whole job done in an hour. Oganising gas bottles at a safe canal side location would take days.

 

[rusty69]

I really wanted a battery angle grinder as a valentines present but everything I have read suggests the batteries last for about 10 minutes each. So whilst they might be good for small cutting and grinding jobs, unless you have a huge supply of the larger capacity battery, they don't seem to be as useful as a mains operated one.

 

Please someone talk Mrs R out of buying me one.

[dmr]

23 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

I really wanted a battery angle grinder as a valentines present but everything I have read suggests the batteries last for about 10 minutes each. So whilst they might be good for small cutting and grinding jobs, unless you have a huge supply of the larger capacity battery, they don't seem to be as useful as a mains operated one.

 

Please someone talk Mrs R out of buying me one.

 

It depends what you are doing with them. Full on grinding off of of stainless steel MIG welds will really hammer the batteries. Wire brush derusting, or cutting steel with a 1mm disc is much more viable, especially if you dont press too hard.  Something like the Makita angle grinder and four 5Ah batteries will get a lot of work done, but its a significant investment.

 

A battery angle grinder would be a prefect valentines day present. 😀

[john.k]

believe it or not,angle grinder sparks are ten times worse for starting fires than oxy cutting sparks.

[Quattrodave]

It depends how light the rust is but these polishing wheels are amazing!!

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/264688483728

[rusty69]

10 minutes ago, Quattrodave said:

It depends how light the rust is but these polishing wheels are amazing!!

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/264688483728

They look like the smaller version of these things:

 

 

[Quattrodave]

6 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

They look like the smaller version of these things:

 

 

 

The 3M Scotch Brite Polishing wheels are suprisingly soft, you can run it on your finger for a short period with no harm...  I can't really explain it, have a look here :

 

 

EDIT:

They also do different colour wheels with different abrasive-ness (not sure thats actually a word) but the yellow one is the best all rounder IMHO.

Edited February 14, 2023 by Quattrodave

[dmr]

45 minutes ago, john.k said:

believe it or not,angle grinder sparks are ten times worse for starting fires than oxy cutting sparks.

 

I confirm trhat from personal experience 😀

[Quattrodave]

Just now, dmr said:

 

I confirm trhat from personal experience 😀

 

I quite believe it, many years ago I wrecked a windscreen with angle grinder sparks, they quite literally melted into the surface of the glass....

[bizzard]

Most ordinary drills are not meant to take side loads like with grinding discs, wire wheels ect and can knacker the chuck end bearing.

[TandC]

I have the full range of angle grinders and drill attachments.  Also the range of scars that go with them.   I would stress good leather gloves, ear protection, and I now double-up where I can with eye protection:  Buy good goggles that fit well and don't fog up, fall down, etc because otherwise you can be tempted to just take them off...   a face shield over the top can help stop with stuff hitting your face.   And a dust mask cos you inevitably end up in the firing line of it. 

 

Just my experience - the drill wire brushes are pretty useless aside for some light polishing - they can be handy to get into really tight spaces as you can "poke them in..." but they're pretty ineffective on rust. 

 

Twisted wire cup-brushes in the angle grinder will be best for light rust - and flap-discs as mentioned - I often use both to get to the final finish. 

 

Twisted cup brushes are good but need careful use.   The prep is important - position yourself comfortably, use the side handle where you can, make sure the cable is properly laid so it won't be in the way and will flow as you move,  make sure you've long sleeves etc but also nothing to get snagged.   Look at what you're about to grind - are there any brackets, screws, bits of weld - anything that you may snag the brush on as you move.   Most of the time as long as you can anticipate what you're going to run the brush over you can manage the "jerk" of the tool.

 

But, when one of those snags and wrenches it out of your hand, and bounces around the engine bay, it can be really really dangerous as the switch will often stay on.   Be ready to back off and have the power socket to hand - ideally with a switch. 

 

Battery angle grinders have benefit in that they're light, don't have as much torque and are easier to manage.  But, not as powerful and yes, limited run time.    My DeWalt battery one also has a switch that you have to hold on to stay on, so if it escapes it turns off.  My DeWalt 240v corded doesnt - the switch stays on...    As such, the battery one is a fair bit safer. 

 

Having done the engine bay on the old cruiser stern this summer, I wish you luck!   This also used a Hilti needle-gun, which i defo wouldn't wish on anyone. 

 

 

[cuthound]

1 hour ago, john.k said:

believe it or not,angle grinder sparks are ten times worse for starting fires than oxy cutting sparks.

 

Many years ago I left my Citroen BX at Teddesley's yard whilst I hired a boat from there. The Citroen used sheet moulding compound for the bonnet, rood and tailgate, to save weight.

 

A couple of days after returning from holiday I noticed rust spots appearing on the plastic bonnet of my car. It was tiny particles of metal from angle grinding, embedded in the paint!

 

Fortunately they rusted away to notiong and left no visible trace, but at the time it had me confused for a while!