Link to hi-res image.
In order to disassemble the 10ER, I had to give the tubes a quick sanding with an emory cloth, then coat them in 3-in-1 Oil so I could get the headstock off. The tailstock, base arm plate, and carriage required some Kroil to break them free. This process took several days of working in the evenings after work. I also sprayed them down with break cleaner to remove the oil/Kroil in case that kept the potatoes from doing their thing.
Link to hi-res image.
Then, I repeated Nick's setup.
I bought a 3" x 10' section of PVC pipe and cut it in half to have two 5' sections. I put a cap on one end of each tube and a clean-out plug on the other end. I shoved a rack into the pipes, put the way tubes in, added 3 medium/large potatos per tube cut up in various size chunks, filled the tubes with water, screwed on the clean-out plug and let it sit in a corner of the garage for 15 days.
I knew the smell was going to be bad, and it was bad. Realy bad. I dumped the water out on the edge of a swampy wooded area far away from the house, but the smell lingered around the tubes as I worked on them. A day later, the tubes still stink.
Immediately after taking the tubes out, a fine surface rust started forming over the them. I rubbed them down with a rag and took them to a bench. This is what they looked like at this point before I did anything else to them. (I added the table rods in the potato water with the way tubes and they are pictured here as well.)
Link to hi-res image.
I followed Nick's guide and started with a wire brush. But this didn't seem to do anything. I took a picture, but although you could see a slight difference in person, the photo doesn't show the difference between the tube that was brushed and the tube that wasn't.
I switched to emory cloth and, at first, the tube I was working on started to look slick and shiny with just a minimal amount of rubbing. "This is going to be awesome!" I told myself.
Link to hi-res image.
But, I just happened to be working on the part of the tube that was under the base plate arm and tailstock and once I got to the exposed section of pipe, the work became harder and harder. The surface rust was easy to get off, but that was it. Deeper rust still took a lot of elbow grease. I even had to use some 60 grit sandpaper on the really bad sections. I followed that up with the emory cloth and that tube is starting to get smooth, but it is far from shiny. It's still pretty black. I thought I had a picture of the really bad section after all the sandpaper and emory cloth, but I can't find one. I'll try to take one tomorrow and post it.
Unfortunately, I didn't have the success that Nick had. Maybe I didn't get one or more of the variables right. I wasn't sure how many potatoes to use, what kind, whether they should be peeled, or whether any of that mattered. Maybe my garage wasn't warm enough or the 3-in-1 Oil, Kroil, or brake cleaner caused a problem. Or maybe there was just something in the water.
I would consider my experiment with potato water a failure.
