Rust protection

Does anyone have a homemade solution to keep steel shot from rusting?
Thanks so much, Jackie Catron

I store mine in a plastic jar (peanut butter!)in a strong solution of
tumbling soap (Raytech, I think - but any pure soap should do. It is
so soapy it is almost a gel - and my shot hasn’t rusted since I
started doing this.) Karen

Hi Jackie. I rinse off my shot when I am thru using it. I then dump
it on athick towel and spread it out so it will dry. Works for me.
Louise

Store it in antifreeze Make sure you rinse and wash between uses.
Other than that, I would suggest getting stainless steel shot, it’s
well worth the extra dollars.

Just keep your shot in burnishing soap.  Mix the soap with water
and leave the shot in it when you are through. If you need to take it
out of the tumbler, pour the soap and shot into a plastic bowl with a
lid. It will keep forever.

Don Rogers

    Does anyone have a homemade solution to keep steel shot from
rusting? 

Yes; no real problem; when you have finished the polishing job tip
the whole lot - liquid an’ all into a kitchen strainer held over a
plastic bowl (in case of misfires!) and wash well under the tap. Pour
the shot into a kitchen strainer, wipe the bottom with a dry towel and
tip the shot carefully into a small flat tray - the plastic ones from
the supermarket are excellent, and rub them all over with pieces of
fresh absorbent paper tissue. When properly dry, put into an airtight
jar and screw the lid on tightly. I use an Agee jar. They’ll be OK
till next time you want them. I have stored mine that way (the same
ones) for over a year with no signs of rust, though I often reuse
them. Don’t bother making up any special so called anti rust
solutions - not worth the trouble. Cheers, – John Burgess;
@John_Burgess2 of Mapua Nelson NZ

Hi Jackie, About 10 years ago, when I first bought my tumbler, I was
told by the supplier that when I was not using my steel shot, I should
always keep it completely covered in a soap and water solution to
prevent rusting. I feel completely confident to relay this
to you because I have recently returned from travelling
overseas for over 2 years and I left my shot submerged in this soapy
solution in a sealed “tupperware-type plastic container” for all that
time and returned to NO rust - not a single speckle - and yes I was
amazed. I recall I used a triple strength soap solution compared to
normal tumbler solution - but I recycle this for shot storage so it
isn’t expensive. I just rinse the shot well using a colander and lots
of running water after use in the tumbler and before reimmersing in the
solution. Hope this helps.

I would also like to thank all those people who emailed concerning
artist’s block and The Artists Way by Julia Cameron - sorry I’ve
forgotten the original contact for the thread … anyway, after what
amounted to virtually a 3 year absence from the bench for me, all that
positive input was fantastic. Thank you all, I’m up to week 4 and
working enthusiastically again,

Jan Barker
@janbarker
03- 6278 7141

when I do silver I use the old spic an span soap leave a little on
the shot and heat it in an old fry pan stere till dry not hot will
blue the shot. with gold just rinse and heat Don in Idaho USA

As others have said before, if you have stainless steel shot you will
not have the rust problem. Stainless is a much better product (and
much more expensive) yet requires little to no storage or clean up
after or before use. If the shot does get “dirty”, a quick burnish on
itself with clean water and burnishing compound should do the trick.
If you use carbon steel shot, you will need to have some sort of
storage solution as well as a shot cleaning solution. The way I see
it, the maintenance on this material is so much higher than that of
stainless, it makes it more expensive in the long run.
Joe Lovato