New (to-me) Casters Help

[Fortress68]

I just scored a bunch of industrial 5" casters from a guy scrapping some giant freezers. I gave $40 and some aluminum scrap I just happened to have in my trunk for them. There was supposed to be 50 of them, but I haven't counted yet. I am planning to eventually begin adding them to EVERYTHING, but they are in need of a cleaning... any recommendations? I would normally throw them on the grinder with a wire wheel, but it will trash the rubber tires. I hit one with degreaser which seems to work ok, but I don't want it to eat the rubber either. I they have two grease zerks, so re-lubing the bearings will not be a big deal, but I have to do something, because I am not putting them to use as is. What do you guys think?

 

[zeke67]

Pressure wash them at the local coin operated car wash. Maybe hit the greasiest parts with castrol super clean or some sort of wheel and tire cleaner first, then pressure wash.

 

[Beaumont67]

Make a cardboard template to cover the ball bearings from grit...and just sandblast the rubber wheels.
- they will come up, almost new again

 

[Vinko]

Out of curiosity, what's the make? I've "restored" several sets of casters when I've restored old tool boxes, and I take the wheel of the rig and put the rig in a parts washer. Use some sort of abrasive (steel wool or a scotch brite pad) on the rig.

I usually change the wheels to urethane if the rubber aren't in good condition (in my experience, the rubber picks up a lot of metal shavings and solder and whatever else).

 

[ilovevocs]

A steam cleaner would be my tool of choice. Even the small ones sold for home cleaning would do the trick.

You could also wait until your wife leaves and put them In the dishwasher.

I don't believe that any of the degreasers sold for auto use will attack the rubber. I use degreaser on painted rims all the time and clean the rubber with it as well. Simple green, engine bright, what ever that purple one is....most degreasers will be ok. Spray, agitate with brush, and rinse. Repeat as required.

 

[6t7gto]

Take the rubber tires of first. Then clean the frames however you see fit.

 

[Steevo]

Another vote for disassembling and cleaning.

 

[kbs2244]

I agree on removing the wheels first.
Then, if hot pressure washing doesn’t do the trick, think about the electric rust removal process.

 

[Fortress68]

All right, I should have some time over the weekend. Sounds Like I'll be disassembling them and taking the hard parts to the local car wash. In response to Vinko, I can't seem to find a make on them anywhere, but they are pretty covered. I think don't even know if they are marked, but I'll let you know. Also, I would use the dish washer, but that would be hell if I got caught (despite successfully using a harbor freight glue gun dent puller to pull several dents from our stainless fridge this week).

 

[HotrodHR]

All right, I should have some time over the weekend. Sounds Like I'll be disassembling them and taking the hard parts to the local car wash. In response to Vinko, I can't seem to find a make on them anywhere, but they are pretty covered. I think don't even know if they are marked, but I'll let you know. Also, I would use the dish washer, but that would be hell if I got caught (despite successfully using a harbor freight glue gun dent puller to pull several dents from our stainless fridge this week).

Any before and after pics of the dent puller action on the frig?

 

[zkling]

Dang great score on a buch of high quality ($$$$) casters. Do you plan to mobilize you entire shop?

I have cleaned quite a few casters from grimy old tool boxes. My favorite method is hot pressure washer and dawn dish soap. Remove the wheel and axle. Nothing cuts the grease like dawn dish soap. I have always said "If it's good enough to save the baby ducks, it is good enough for me"

Disassemble, wash, dry thoroughly, grease properly, and use for another 10-50 years.



Does anyone have a dishwasher set up in their shop for cleaning? If so how well does it work? I have been thinking about picking one up out of the trash and trying to hook it up for greasy parts. Any first hand experience? I bet the drain water would be pretty nasty.

 

[MFolks]

I've read about using an old operational dishwasher to clean motorcycle engine parts(avoiding the wrath of the wife, when she see's the dirt/debris in the bottom of her dishwasher).

 

[tornadocaster]

Don't be afraid to take them apart. I used to be in that business and we built them from parts as to what the customer needed. You have a grease ****** right on the axle which is just a bolt with a hole in the middle. Just watch the bearings in the wheel. If you end up washing everything invest in a grease gun with a needle or syringe on it to grease the ball bearings in the swivel
Cheers
Gio

 

[Fortress68]

Alright, I finally got a few of them cleaned up. The most effective way seems to be letting them soak in degreaser for a day, then manually scraping off as much as possible. By that point, I probably could get away with just rubbing them down, but I am going to take them fully apart to make sure everything is there, then reassemble and away we go. It is slightly more time consuming than I had hoped, but as I am only using 4 at a time most times, it only slightly adds to the individual project duration. Thanks to everyone for there replies... I have found this site to be both delightfully entertaining and extremely helpful.