Kinda Ed's Red

[J-Bar]

The cylinders on a couple of my 50+-years old Smith and Wessons were very dirty, so I wanted to completely disassemble the yokes and ejector rods to get them completely clean. A couple of those old screws were frozen. Kroil alone couldn't loosen them. I made up a combination of transmission fluid, acetone, and Kroil- similar to Ed's Red but without kerosene and a few other things- and an overnight soak got the stuck screws loose. Looks like the key ingredients may be ATF fluid and acetone. Just saying you might try approximating the original formula even if you can't assemble all the classic ingredients.

 

[lincen]

Were your ratios all one to one ?

 

[doubleh]

Acetone evaporates quickly but ATF is a high detergent oil. The combination probably allows the oil to quickly get where it needs to be to do it's work. Just a guess on my part.

 

[MrBorland]

A couple of those old screws were frozen. Kroil alone couldn't loosen them. I made up a combination of transmission fluid, acetone, and Kroil- similar to Ed's Red but without kerosene and a few other things- and an overnight soak got the stuck screws loose

Was the Kroil-only treatment also overnight?

 

[J-Bar]

Were your ratios all one to one ?

Good question. I used about 2 parts of ATF fluid to 1 part acetone, and a generous squirt of Kroil. It's what I had on hand. I put it in a plastic container with a nozzle so I could apply a dab to the trouble spots, rather than soaking the whole gun. The ingredients did not mix completely but I shook it up before application. Seemed to work ok.

 

[J-Bar]

Was the Kroil-only treatment also overnight?

From 10 AM to 6 PM, then the mix was applied and sat overnight. So, no way to prove that it wasn't the Kroil alone that did the job. Maybe it was. At least we can say the mix didn't hurt anything!!

 

[doubleh]

Good question. I used about 2 parts of ATF fluid to 1 part acetone, and a generous squirt of Kroil. It's what I had on hand. I put it in a plastic container with a nozzle so I could apply a dab to the trouble spots, rather than soaking the whole gun. The ingredients did not mix completely but I shook it up before application. Seemed to work ok.

View attachment 1175073

You are far braver than that I am to set that on a nice oak table. Without a doubt It would leak for some reason and I can only imagine the fallout that would bring down on me. I am capable of fixing it but wouldn't enjoy it at all.

 

[MrShooter]

Interesting article.

 

[J-Bar]

Interesting article.

Thank you! Looks like I got lucky!!

 

[JDeere]

You are far braver than that I am to set that on a nice oak table. Without a doubt It would leak for some reason and I can only imagine the fallout that would bring down on me. I am capable of fixing it but wouldn't enjoy it at all.

The Acetone will smoke that plastic bottle. I have use ED's for my bore cleaner etc for years. I keep mine in glass bottles with tight seals and never had an issue with acetone evaporating...

 

[doubleh]

The Acetone will smoke that plastic bottle. I have use ED's for my bore cleaner etc for years. I keep mine in glass bottles with tight seals and never had an issue with acetone evaporating...

It depends entirely on the plastic the bottle is made from. My wife keeps a bottle of finger nail polish remover in a plastic bottle. Written on each bottle Is the brand of remover and 100% acetone under that. Not one has ever leaked. Our grand daughter is a beautician and did nails too until carpal tunnel syndrome became so bad she quit the nail part this summer. Her acetone polish remover was always in a plastic bottle.

 

[Col. Harrumph]

Equal parts ATF and acetone is a popular rusty nut treatment among the old car crowd.

 

[JDeere]

It depends entirely on the plastic the bottle is made from.

True. I used to know the markings on the bottles to go by if it was safe to store stuff like acetone and the likes.

 

[cfullgraf]

Periodically I’ve read that an acetone and ATF mix makes a good penetrating oil.

 

[cfullgraf]

I have used plastic bottles from Sinclair International for my Ed’s Red gun cleaner.

I may lose some acetone from evaporation in these bottles but the acetone does not dissolve the plastic.

I store my bulk Ed’s Red in an empty one quart metal denatured alcohol can. When I mix a batch of Ed’s Red, it is approaching a quart in finished product.

My last batch has lasted about 10 years but I have not been shooting as much recently as before the pandemic.

 

[J-Bar]

Now I'm good either way.

 

[Pat Riot]

If you put that in a glass with a little umbrella you’d have one cute mean drink.

 

[J-Bar]

If you put that in a glass with a little umbrella you’d have one cute mean drink.

I'm sure it would clean my barrel!

 

[Anchorite]

A couple of years ago an old retired pilot turned me on to mouse milk. Stuff works. You can find it on Amazon and a little goes a long way.

 

[J-Bar]

A couple of years ago an old retired pilot turned me on to mouse milk. Stuff works. You can find it on Amazon and a little goes a long way.

I found it and looked up the Safety Data Sheet; active ingredients are D-Limonene and Ethyl Lactate. Should work well as an alternative. Blackpowder shooters mix up their own "moose milk", a mixture of Ballistol, water and whatever else tickles their fancy. Works dandy on blackpowder fouling, and cheap.