Good solvent for ancient lithium grease?

[skeetgunner]

Team,

What's a good solvent for removing very sticky, paste-like white lithium grease? It was probably applied circa '86 and now has the consistency of almost tried liquid paper. It doesn't wipe off, or scrape off, just smears around more.

 

[sunray]

Any degreaser will take it off. There's a guy on a motorcycle forum who says WD-40 will clean it off too. Carb cleaner or brake cleaner will as well.

 

[Winz]

Any degreaser will take it off. There's a guy on a motorcycle forum who says WD-40 will clean it off too. Carb cleaner or brake cleaner will as well.

+1

Your old bottle of acetone(common solvent of brake cleaner and carb cleaner) will do the trick.

As will various other degreasers including citrus degreasers.

 

[ls1]

Soak in Ed's Red in a covered container overnight.

(never seen acetone as an ingredient of brake/carb cleaner, but we were always taught in organic chem lab to use acetone as a final rinse for lab equipment right after final water rinse to remove all trace of grease/oil)

 

[skeetgunner]

Brake cleaner did the trick. Can't stand the fumes, but it just melted the stuff right off.