Rust Prevention Test v2

[Sean Powell]

And the BEST reason, hands down to use WD-40 instead of Balistoil:

Because after cleaning my gear with ballistoil outside and scrubbing hands with green lava soap and then an extensive shower with both manly soap and even my wifes flowery scented soap my wife can STILL smell the dead-fish and liccorice smell of ballistoil and won't let me close enough to kiss her. I'll take anything that's cheaper, better, more available and far far less stinky.

Sean

[Jestyr]

The final four! I dipped each sample into a salt water bath today. Before the bath, I touched each sample to get an idea of how they felt.

I think we can call WD40 the 4th place finisher.

For photos, visit the blog.
http://www.customchainmail.com/2014/05/ ... n-test-v2/

Break-Free CLP
Still looks great. It looks like rust might start forming. It feels a little oily.

Eezox Gun Care
Looks perfect. Feels mostly dry.

Fluid Film
Still really clean, but some places have show signs of rust. Still very oily/wet.

WD40
Some mild to moderate rust in spots. Somewhat oily... like WD40 feels after it has evaporated a bit.

[Vermillion]

Sean, strange but I like the smell of Ballistol.

I ordered some Fluid Film to try out since every one is raving about it, but I'm worried about the "sheepy" smell.

[Jestyr]

Sean, strange but I like the smell of Ballistol.

I ordered some Fluid Film to try out since every one is raving about it, but I'm worried about the "sheepy" smell.

I don't find the smell of Fluid Film to be particularly significant.

Eezox, which is probably "winning" has the worst odor by far, but it isn't oily once it dries.

[Sean Powell]

Sean, strange but I like the smell of Ballistol.

I ordered some Fluid Film to try out since every one is raving about it, but I'm worried about the "sheepy" smell.

Oh, YOU may, but I'm not married to you and trying to kiss you. If my wife thought balistoil was sexy I'd wear it as cologne. As it is balistoil should come with a warning label "Warning: may cause gagging, retching and loss of sex-drive of partner."

Sean

[Thorgar Wulfson]

Sean, strange but I like the smell of Ballistol.

I ordered some Fluid Film to try out since every one is raving about it, but I'm worried about the "sheepy" smell.

Oh, YOU may, but I'm not married to you and trying to kiss you. If my wife thought balistoil was sexy I'd wear it as cologne. As it is balistoil should come with a warning label "Warning: may cause gagging, retching and loss of sex-drive of partner."

Sean

Good man! keep her happy! Id do the same for my wife.

[Harry Marinakis]

Some guy thought he smelled alcohol on my breath when we were fighting, but when I let him smell the Fluid Film on my maille aventail he said, "That's what I was smelling!" I don't think it smells like alcohol. But it certainly has its own peculiar odor.

[Vermillion]

As it is balistoil should come with a warning label "Warning: may cause gagging, retching and loss of sex-drive of partner."

Ok Sean, you just made me shoot Diet Pepsi out my nose !! Not nice heheheheh

[Tostig]

Does the Eezox still have an odor did that disapate when it dried?

Thanks again for doing this; who knew watching rust form would be entertaining!

[Ernst]

Sean, strange but I like the smell of Ballistol.

I ordered some Fluid Film to try out since every one is raving about it, but I'm worried about the "sheepy" smell.

http://www.fluid-film.com/faq.html

What effect does FLUID FILM have on the environment ?
FLUID FILM is classified as non-toxic and non-hazardous and contains less than one percent VOC content, helping to eliminate the use of ozone-depleting chemicals in the atmosphere. FLUID FILM contains no solvents, phenols, heavy metals, arsenic, pcb's, pc's, tcdd's or other dioxin related substances. It is manufactured using an all natural lanolin base.

Perhaps if everyone wearing mail also wore wool which hadn't been chemically stripped, rust wouldn't be such an issue?

[Ernst]

Does the Eezox still have an odor did that disapate when it dried?

Thanks again for doing this; who knew watching rust form would be entertaining!

1911 Forum has some interesting comments on that subject, considering some of it's from guys using Hoppes #9 as cologne. Solvent evaporates in a couple of days, supposedly leaving the added "fresh mown hay" scent.
http://forums.1911forum.com/showthread.php?t=61522

http://www.eezox.com/faqs.html

Q. I hunt whitetails and varmints. Will the smell of Eezox® have much of an affect on them?
A. Once the cleaning agent in Eezox® has evaporated, the very slight lingering smell is akin to that of a fresh mowed wheat field. It is a very subtle smell and will not be offensive to game animals.

[Tostig]

Thanks Ernst, what a read hoppes#9, "fresh mower hay" and all.

[Jestyr]

Does the Eezox still have an odor did that disapate when it dried?

Thanks again for doing this; who knew watching rust form would be entertaining!

Ernst already answered, but I just smelled them before I left the house and none of the products remaining had any odor of note. Now, in fairness, it is being stored on my patio, so it might be more substantial or noticeable indoors, but that doesn't seem particularly relevant.

[Ckanite]

Does the Eezox still have an odor did that disapate when it dried?

Thanks again for doing this; who knew watching rust form would be entertaining!

1911 Forum has some interesting comments on that subject, considering some of it's from guys using Hoppes #9 as cologne. Solvent evaporates in a couple of days, supposedly leaving the added "fresh mown hay" scent.
http://forums.1911forum.com/showthread.php?t=61522

http://www.eezox.com/faqs.html

Q. I hunt whitetails and varmints. Will the smell of Eezox® have much of an affect on them?
A. Once the cleaning agent in Eezox® has evaporated, the very slight lingering smell is akin to that of a fresh mowed wheat field. It is a very subtle smell and will not be offensive to game animals.

You weren't supposed to reveal my secrets...

[Jestyr]

Day 17 Update

So this was an exciting day!

Last night, at around 9pm, I put all 4 remaining samples in a bucket of water and left them there overnight! This was normal water, and not salt water.

This morning, at around 6am, I took them out to see what had happened. Taking photos was a little more difficult, but the results were very interesting.

As always, for photos see the blog.
http://www.customchainmail.com/2014/05/ ... n-test-v2/

Break-Free CLP
Still looks good. Seriously. No significant rust had formed.

Eezox Gun Care
Still no rust, but the entire maille turned an odd color of grey.

Fluid Film
Still looks great. No significant rust.

WD40
More rust had formed. I had originally thought I was done taking photos of WD40, and now I am sure. It took fourth.

I am shocked at how well the three front runners are doing! Seriously. They were all left in a bucket of water overnight and none show any substantial rust. Remember, none of these samples have had any product applied for 17 days, and have withstood salt water spray, the humidity of South Florida (and salt content in the air), and now the bucket of water... and no rust.

I'm going to continue to leave them in the bucket for as long as it takes, and I might add some salt to the water to simulate sweat, but any of these products seem to be able to keep your maille looking rust free for a while (or any other armour, I would suppose).

The only real oddity is the color of the Eezox sample, having turned a white grey (slate grey?). I would like to run a separate test to see if the color comes back (or if the rings are more brittle), as that may be a problem in the future.

[Keegan Ingrassia]

The white grey color almost looks like zinc oxidation that you see on galvanized steel. Interesting...and seriously impressive how the other two are holding up. Thanks for taking the time to do this!

[Oddvarr]

You have my gratitude as well. I appreciate your time and attention to detail in reporting your findings to us.

~O

[Harry Marinakis]

I sprayed my maille aventail with Fluid Film back in September 2013, and there is still no rust. Fought in the rain at Agincourt in November 2013.

Still no rust on my maille.

[Jestyr]

Day 23 Update - Rust Prevention Test v2

The 3 remaining samples have been in a salt water bucket for the last several days and they are still going strong!

There is some slight orange spots, but they are not heavy rust.

I will remove them from the bucket later today and see how they oxidize.

View photos here:
http://www.customchainmail.com/2014/05/ ... n-test-v2/

[Sean Powell]

If I had to speculate on the gray color of the Eezox: vegtable based oils can become saturates with water and the water forms little droplets like bubbles captured in the oil/wax. It looks like a soapy residue and can be a source of discoloration. I don't know if this will then dry out later or wipe off.

I think I'm going to get a bottle of Fluid-film and a bottle of Eezox to see which one my wife likes the smell of better. I'm pretty much congested 9 days out of ten so if I smell something everyone else is dying but she is very sensitive and I like to keep her happy.

Sean

[Jestyr]

Latest update is that the items are still not rusted! I took them out of the salt water for a few days to expose them to air, and still nothing!

They are back in the salt water...

You can pick and of the three and be safe.

I'll do a write up about their handling characteristics in the near future.

[Ckanite]

Wow, that's really impressive!

[Jestyr]

I agree! Especially so since all of the other products rusted within a few days or a week.

[Harry Marinakis]

Looking at the latest set of photos, looks like Fluid Film is edging out the other products.

[Ironic]

Oh yea go Fluid Film! most natural and non toxic, and I even kinda like the smell of it. Fluid Film FTW!

I love this thread

[Vermillion]

I bought some fluid film about two weeks ago to try out (because of this thread) and so far, I'm quite happy with it. Still like the ballistol too.

[Belemrys]

I bought some Breakfree CLP as I was in virginia and their walmarts have it!

[Jestyr]

I bought some Breakfree CLP as I was in virginia and their walmarts have it!

It works great and doesn't have as oily a feel as Fluid Film, or as bad a smell as Eezox.

Funny timing, as I was going to post an update that Breakfree CLP took third, as it finally started to rust from the salt water bath.

[Ckanite]

I'm probably going to stick to wd-40 for my mainstay, but if I ever put things into long term storage, I'm defiantly going to be hunting for some fluid film.

[Jestyr]

I think we can call a winner!

I will be working on an entire write up, that also include spec sheets, handling properties, etc. for a more complete review of all products. In the meantime, here are the final results...

Break Free CLP
The Break Free has finally succumbed to weeks submerged in a salt water bucket, and it finally has some significant rust. We have our third place finisher.

Eezox
As you can see, there is some light rusting happening. Not much, and the photo isn't great, but it is there.

Fluid Film
We have a winner! After 37 days of testing, it still is showing minimal to no rust. The little bit of orange you see seems to be from the rust that was in the water, as opposed to coming from the maille.

For photos, visit the blog.
http://www.customchainmail.com/2014/05/ ... n-test-v2/

[Kephri]

I bought some fluid film the other day. It was pretty easy to find for me. AutoZone had some. It was $10 for a big aerosol can that will probably last me for my whole SCA career. It does have an odor but it is not unpleasant and disipates after a few days so you can barely smell it. The only thing I don't like about it (and it could just be how it is with mild steel and rust prevention, I am VERY new to this) is that it makes my helm and aventail very oily and unpleasant to touch. It doesn't seem to dry out at all and stays very slimy and oily which is the point, according to the can. Maybe I applied too much though.

One last thing that was pretty awesome. I had a couple spots of light rust on a piece of metal on my helm that I couldn't reach to scrub. I sprayed some fluid film into the nook and a few days later the rust was gone. Pretty awesome.

Thanks for this information! I am pleased that I will be able to take good care of my investment.

[Jestyr]

The only thing I don't like about it (and it could just be how it is with mild steel and rust prevention, I am VERY new to this) is that it makes my helm and aventail very oily and unpleasant to touch. It doesn't seem to dry out at all and stays very slimy and oily which is the point, according to the can. Maybe I applied too much though.

Ironic that you've posted this, as it part of my final write up.

That is the one biggest downside of fluid film, in my opinion. You haven't done anything wrong, or applied too much. It just is oily. Eezox leaves it less oily (although not dry as listed), but the smell is pretty bad and it is somewhat toxic from the spec sheet (not horrible, but I wouldn't want my 2 year old putting it in his mouth).

For the helm itself, a lot of people have had luck with car wax (which doesn't have the oily feel), but for obvious reasons that won't work with maille.

Wait for the final write up (should be today), and you can decide.

[Keegan Ingrassia]

I think, depending on your final write-up, that I'll be using the Break Free. It sounds like a solid product, and if it's dry to the touch I'd happily reapply it a week sooner than these other items.

+1 to your suggestion of wax for solid plates, too. I've had excellent results with it for both long-term storage (going on three years now rust-free) as well as active use (a few months).

[Jestyr]

Overall Results

To see the entire write up (and MSDS), visit the blog:
http://www.customchainmail.com/2014/05/ ... n-test-v2/

Fluid Film
The winner, but with some drawbacks.

Fluid Film won the overall rust challenge, and had some other pluses going for it. It smells the best, and (as I understand it) it is the most natural and safe. It has also been suggested that it is most consistent with what could have been used in the middle ages, which may be important to some. It is also a little cheaper than the other two, and a little easier to get locally for me (I live in Fort Lauderdale).

The downside is that it leaves a very oily feel, which some may not like.

Overall, it is a very good choice and will likely be what I use for my personal maille.

Eezox
Second place, but for some it might be better.

Eezox took second in the overall rust challenge, but has one enormous advantage over Fluid Film, in that it is less oily to the touch and should not transfer as much dirt to clothing. In fact, because of that fact it might have been the winner, but it does have a major downside.

The downside is that it smells really bad, even to me who is not sensitive to bad smells. More importantly, if you look at the spec data, it appears that it is also the most toxic (I am not educated in this stuff, so if I am incorrect, please feel free to correct me).

Overall, if the smell and posible toxicity is okay with you, and the oil is not, Eezox is probably the winner.

Break Free CLP
Third Place.

Break Free CLP, for as good as it did, does not seem to offer enough advantages over the other two finalists. It protects great, but not as well as the other two. It smells better than Eezox, but not as good as Fluid Film. It doesn’t appear to be toxic, but isn’t as safe as Fluid Film. It doesn’t leave as oily a feel as Fluid Film, but not as dry as Eezox.

Overall, if you can’t find the other two easily, Break Free CLP is a fine choice, but I’d recommend Fluid Film or Eezox over it if you can get them. heck, I’ve just heard that someone found Break Free CLP at Walmart, so that certainly makes it easier to acquire than either of the other two.

WD-40
Honorable Mention.

WD-40 did not protect nearly as well as the other three, but it did better than the other 9 products tested. Because of its very low price and availability, it will do in a pinch if you run out of everything else.

------------------------------------

Handling Test

I applied each product to samples and waited a week to allow them to dry. I then used my fingers to get a general idea of how they felt. Then, I rubbed a white linen cloth to each to see how dirty they got, or how much residue they left.

While none of the products got “dirty”, they all left an oil residue of some kind. We know from experience that WD-40 and Fluid Film leave undergarments dirty, so it seems likely that it is the oil that attracts dirt, and then transfers that dirt to the garments. Therefore, less oil should get cloths less dirty.

Break Free CLP
Somewhat oily. Oddly, even though it is less oily than Fluid Film, it seemed to leave more oil on cloth (albeit by a very small margin).

Eezox
Not very oily, but not dry like the can says. Leaves the least amount of oil residue on cloth (by a reasonable margin). Certainly, from a handling standpoint, the best.

Fluid Film
Very oily. The second most amount of oil residue on cloth, and from personal experience, it makes undergarments very dirty (but the dirt washes off for the most part).

------------------------------------

Smell Test

My wife is VERY sensitive to bad odors. So I sprayed each sample with product and had her smell each.

Break Free CLP
“It’s not that bad.. maybe 6 or 7”

Eezox
Oh my god that horrible… 10… 10… get it away.

Fluid Film
“This really isn’t bad. Maybe 4 or 5.”

------------------------------------

Conclusions

Certainly each of the final three will provide excellent protection against rust. You really cannot go wrong with any of them. It comes down to what is most important to you.

What is most important is that this test proves that with a little care, mild steel can resist rust very well, and is a reasonable alternative to stainless steel for chainmail.

Overall, I would usually recommend Fluid Film, but if the oily feel and dirt is a problem for you, Eezox may be a better choice. Break Free CLP would definitely be my third recommendation, but depending upon your exact situation it might be a good choice. If you run out of your primary product, WD-40 will do in a pinch.

I would not recommend any other product tested.

[Jestyr]

I think, depending on your final write-up, that I'll be using the Break Free. It sounds like a solid product, and if it's dry to the touch I'd happily reapply it a week sooner than these other items.

+1 to your suggestion of wax for solid plates, too. I've had excellent results with it for both long-term storage (going on three years now rust-free) as well as active use (a few months).

Break Free is not dry to the touch. Eezox is the best for that, but still not completely dry. The only part that concerns me about Eezox is the smell/possible toxicity.