ultrasonic parts cleaning

I just use water and that is it. put a pretty rusted up 32 defender in it and was able to free up several parts that I had trouble removing (even tried wd40 and penetrating oil).
 
In my former life as a chemist, we would use a 1:1 mix of water and methanol on stainless steel parts. Worked well. I have also used the Lyman solution on blued gun parts with good results. Make sure you completely dry after cleaning. There will be no oil protecting the surface and rust will happen very quickly.
 
I have used the Lyman solution, and found that there was no advantage between it and water. The solution isn't doing the cleaning, it just makes you feel you've done something. Like adding an egg to the cake mix, it makes you think you're really baking a cake.
 
Water works fine provided there isn't any grease or heavy oils on the part, even at 70 deg water is pretty ineffective at loosening anything under grease but it sure works great on powder fouling.
 
I use hot tap water with citrus-cleaner from home depot.

Edit: some people use alcohol or petroleum based solvents. If you do this, a fume hood, or a well-ventilated work area and NO smoking, flames, sparks, etc..
 
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I fill mine with water, then get some glass jars put the parts in the jars and fill with mineral spirits. Put the jars in the water and crank her on. Works amazingly well for bad grease and caked on oil.
 
Definitely don't recommend Hornady. Mine's a cheap piece of junk. It works, but not very well made. The plastic basket is beginning to melt at the bottom, and has discoloured with use. Also, the plastic lid starting cracking not long after I bought it, probably from the heat.
 
Rotaxpower said:
I fill mine with water, then get some glass jars put the parts in the jars and fill with mineral spirits. Put the jars in the water and crank her on. Works amazingly well for bad grease and caked on oil.
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This what I do except I toss the parts in a baggie of diesel. If you use the heater, make sure you run it somewhere where it won't burn your house down if it goes up.
 
I cheap out... I have a yogurt container with a bunch of holes drilled in it so the water inside and the water in the tank are contiguous. (yes, it's a word, it means all connected). I hang the yogurt container in the tank, not touching the bottom, by punching a chopstick through the sides of the yogurt container and bridging the chopstick across the top of the tank. Not elegant, not fancy, but it works. Works really well with a bolt carrier group, trigger sets from a GSP, brass, parts from the browning trombone bolt... basically anything greasy or caked with carbon...
 
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