Applying waxoyl to a bike frame

[Slow But Determined]

Or you could do what Alfa Romeo did with the Alfasud. They filled all the chassis box sections with expanding foam, which of course traps moisture and causes rust!!!

When I rebuilt my Sud I had hours of "fun" removing it.

 

[Blue Hills]

How much of a serious problem is rust in steel frames?

I have had bikes in damp/slightly awash garages for 20 years and nothing has yet collapsed under me.

 

[fossyant]

How much of a serious problem is rust in steel frames?

I have had bikes in damp/slightly awash garages for 20 years and nothing has yet collapsed under me.

Its not, but belt and braces...

 

[silva]

It's not damp that causes rust on its own, it's condensation on cold(er) surfaces / no ventilation / too slow dry up.
I've seen many steel stuff, decades in kitchen, bathroom, garages but no rust spots on the chrome.
But put one in a garden house or anything with no insulation / no heating / no air movement and the chrome gets covered with brown spots.

 

[Globalti]

Waxoyle is wax in light oil or paraffin or kerosene. If you have some left over you can use it on your leather walking boots as it's the same stuff as Nikwax.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

I injected old blackened engine oil into my recent new steel framed bike. It has seeped out in a few places but seems to have crept around most of the points of concern (bottom bracket, chainstays, chainstay bridge and seatstay bridge).
I plan to repeat this annually.

This is exactly how a lot of old-school motorists deployed DIY rustproofing at low cost, and is very effective if done thoroughly. Depending how thick the oil is to begin with, it may go in better if cut with some diesel or paraffin to thin it down. Dirty oil seems to cling to the metal better and it's also easier to tell if you've got good coverage due to it being more visible than clean oil/wax..

 

[Smudge]

ACF50 is the dogs danglies for an anti corrosion layer.

 

[Globalti]

I used to spray Waxoyle on the chassis of my Land Rover but it was a complete pain because it kept solidifying in the can and the nozzle so the only way to do it was to dilute it a lot with paraffin, meaning it went on too thin. Diesel would have been better but I didn't fancy the car and driveway saturated in the stuff and smelling.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

I used to spray Waxoyle on the chassis of my Land Rover.

Those chassis usually rot from the inside out, and spraying the box sections internally with old engine oil is far more effective than just applying Waxoyl on the outside. Mine has lasted almost 60 years so far without external Waxoyl.

 

[Smudge]

My first job when i left school in 76 was an apprentice motor mechanic. I remember it used to be standard practice in the garage i worked at to spray the underneath of cars with old engine oil after a service. The spray gun was connected to the air compressor and would blast a powerful spray of oil all over the underneath of the car.

 

[Ian H]

I seem to recall a frame-builder suggesting thinning Waxoyl with white spirit so that it sloshed about, injecting into the frame then leaving it so the excess drained out and a minimalist coating remained as it dried.