Weird thing with vinegar and tool

[dmjlambert]

OK here's the deal. I dropped my cordless screwdriver in the grass while installing a sprinkler system rain sensor on my house. My neighbor brought it over to me a couple weeks later because he found it while mowing the grass. It was a little dirty but I wiped it off and it survived. The bit was OK but a little rusty, so I put the bit in a jar of vinegar to dissolve the rust. I forgot it for about 2 weeks. This is what it looked like, the clear vinegar had changed to very murky brown and was working it's way into rough blob form so it could eventually climb out of the container and come after me just like in the movie. I took the bit out, and wiped it off. It had kept all it's dimensions and even kept the CHINA engraving, but had changed color and shrunk in size significantly. The Phillips end is a little eaten away, but everything else is there, but smaller. Here it is shown next to an unaltered bit of the same type and original size. I'm finding it hard to believe. I'm gonna miss that bit.