Any “cheap” fix for rusty gauge faces?

[sellersrodshop]

Removed the cluster today to work on the led lighting swap & noticed my gauge faces look horrible. 50+ yrs has been hard on them, not to mention living in a damp environment. I’ve seen some of the white face decals but are there any such kits available in black that look stock? All the gauges work fine so really don’t want to start purchasing used gauges with better faces only to find that they don’t work.

Good thing is, got all of the leds working!

[Fbks_Cruiser]

Good deal on theLEDs. What did you wind up doing to get them to work?

As for your gages, I would be tempted to try cleaning with CLR. But be careful, I don’t think it would be good for the internals of the gages. Others more knowledgeable than me may have a better idea,

[sellersrodshop]

Originally Posted by Fbks_Cruiser

Good deal on theLEDs. What did you wind up doing to get them to work?

As for your gages, I would be tempted to try cleaning with CLR. But be careful, I don’t think it would be good for the internals of the gages. Others more knowledgeable than me may have a better idea,

Kinda started at square one. Ended up pulling all the bulb holders & cleaning the contact areas. Did the same with the contact points on the printed circuit using 0000 steel wool. Tested each bulb, then inserted bulb into holder & tested that, then installed in panel & checked again.

[toolboxchev]

Look into the use of Oxallic Acid just for your purpose. In most cases it will eat the rust and leave the paint alone. This acid will leave brass and copper alone and not attack it. You may be able to soak them in a container. Adding some heat to the mix activates it.

You could also look into the following product:

https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/best-rust-remover/

Evaporust I have used and am quite surprised with the results. It does like some heat also, above 100 degrees farenheit. It was not corrosive to stainless and copper and also left plastic alone on some wiper components I redid. It also removed some paint unlike the Oxallic Acid. You can find it in many ways, I got mine from Ace Hardware in the form of a product called Wood Bleach.

Be care with these products around aluminum though, esp. acids. I am sure you will see adverse effects.

[DaHos]

Nothing will "clean" them without stripping the painted portion.

Vinyl overlay or trash can...

[Warrens69GMC]

Here's a good alternative (replacements)
https://www.ebay.com/itm/12501933590...wAAOSwM9Bhnx5Q

Contact the white face gauge company. They have the black available, just no one really orders them.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/38168441038...EAAOSwNuxXcWaO

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Warrens69GMC

Here's a good alternative (replacements)

Contact the white face gauge company. They have the black available, just no one really orders them.

I'm guessing the reason no one orders the black face ones is because they are double the price. I can see having a little markup on them since the white ones are their specialty but not double.... I guess "If you want to play you have to pay" fits here.

LockDoc

[Warrens69GMC]

Originally Posted by LockDoc

I'm guessing the reason no one orders the black face ones is because they are double the price. I can see having a little markup on them since the white ones are their specialty but not double.... I guess "If you want to play you have to pay" fits here.

LockDoc

Some of the white face places don't charge for the different color, I was showing that they do, in fact, have them.

[sellersrodshop]

Originally Posted by Warrens69GMC

Here's a good alternative (replacements)
https://www.ebay.com/itm/12501933590...wAAOSwM9Bhnx5Q

Contact the white face gauge company. They have the black available, just no one really orders them.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/38168441038...EAAOSwNuxXcWaO

Thanks for the links! Ended up purchasing those gauges in the first one. Ended up being about the same money as the black faced decal set & can play around with these rusty ones later on down the road or at least have some spare parts on the shelf.

[sellersrodshop]

Looking much better now IMO. Spent most of the day fiddling with the fuel guage, pulled the needles to strip & repaint & ended up getting the fuel guage needle off by about 1/4 tank.

Now, crazy thing is, while bench testing to get the needle in the proper spot, I noticed that the guage measures low by 1/8 tank at the 1/2 mark & 1/4 off at the full, meaasured by the sender. Checked the old guage & it did the same. Is the sending unit going out or possibly not the greatest connections on the bench via alligator clips etc? Not stressing over it as I rarely fill it up.

Bottom pic is what the guage measures when the sending unit is at the half full point.

[jumpsoffrock]

You have done a wonderful job, it looks fantastic. Did you repaint the inside of the gauge that funny greenish color or was that just cleaned?

[sellersrodshop]

Originally Posted by jumpsoffrock

You have done a wonderful job, it looks fantastic. Did you repaint the inside of the gauge that funny greenish color or was that just cleaned?

I actually lucked up & found some Krylon spray paint that was satin finish & a pretty close match to the original aqua/ sea foam color. 1955 Harley Davidson “ Hollywood Green” is also a dead nuts match. I have some in the paint cabinet but opted for the spray can on this.

[kev2809]

this did turn out great that cluster looks brand new. nice work

[jumpsoffrock]

Originally Posted by sellersrodshop

I actually lucked up & found some Krylon spray paint that was satin finish & a pretty close match to the original aqua/ sea foam color. 1955 Harley Davidson “ Hollywood Green” is also a dead nuts match. I have some in the paint cabinet but opted for the spray can on this.

D you have the krylon paint number or color name?

[TKCR]

Since you ended up getting new ones, but still have the old ones. Get some EvapoRust. Pour some in a saucer or lid, just enough to where your putting the face down in the fluid. Although EvapoRust is safe for anything, I wouldn’t think getting the internals wet would be good. But let them soak over night and rinse. Do a trial run on a test part. I think you’ll be amazed at how well this stuff works.
I literally use it for lots of stuff. Seatbelt mounts, seatbelt buckles, bolts, seat tracks. I have gotten seized belts retracting again. The rust was so bad on the mechanism wheel, I literally soaked them until the rust was completely gone.

[Warrens69GMC]

Looks great!!

[sellersrodshop]

Originally Posted by jumpsoffrock

D you have the krylon paint number or color name?

Here’s all the info:

[sellersrodshop]

Originally Posted by TKCR

Since you ended up getting new ones, but still have the old ones. Get some EvapoRust. Pour some in a saucer or lid, just enough to where your putting the face down in the fluid. Although EvapoRust is safe for anything, I wouldn’t think getting the internals wet would be good. But let them soak over night and rinse. Do a trial run on a test part. I think you’ll be amazed at how well this stuff works.
I literally use it for lots of stuff. Seatbelt mounts, seatbelt buckles, bolts, seat tracks. I have gotten seized belts retracting again. The rust was so bad on the mechanism wheel, I literally soaked them until the rust was completely gone.

I’ve used a few gallons of that stuff, mainly after a shop fire in 2010. Had Jekyl & Hyde results. Some things it worked great on, some things the rust came back with a vengeance, even after neutralizing & painting. Seems the parts with some sort of plating comes out best vs raw metal.

[CarlsLQ9SS]

Have you tried using an ohm meter to set the needle on the fuel gauge? I think it should read 90 ohms at full, and 30 ohms at a half a tank.

[sellersrodshop]

Originally Posted by CarlsLQ9SS

Have you tried using an ohm meter to set the needle on the fuel gauge? I think it should read 90 ohms at full, and 30 ohms at a half a tank.

Not yet, as my luck runs, my multimeter took a dump about 3 weeks ago, right before I started messing with the electrical stuff. Story of my life...

[Dieselwrencher]

Nice work on the gauges. Anytime I've tried to clean the rust off, I've just smeared the white paint off the tin.