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Posted: 8/11/2021 4:43:20 PM EDT
A recent thread discussed CLR as a cleaner for silencers and there was some question about suitability for titanium and efficacy. I decided to do some experiments and here are the results: I evaluated both the Zep CLR and the Jelmar (silver bottle) CLR. In both cases the solution was used at full concentration straight out of the bottle. No dilution. The tests were done at room temp without agitation or other mechanical cleaning. The test parts were dirty Nyx baffles made from 6Al4V (Gr. 5) titanium which is the most common alloy of titanium used in the silencer industry. I put 2 dirty baffles in each bottle of cleaner and let them sit for 72 hours. Protip: A small piece of 1/2" CPVC pipe fits perfectly in the Nyx tube to help push dirty baffles out and is nice and soft so it won't damage them.  Reasonably dirty baffles  The Jelmar CLR definitely showed a much more vigorous reaction with bubbling and the solution turning black quickly. Baffles after 72 hour soak:  Zep closeup:  Jelmar closeup:  The Jelmar soaked parts were really clean; the Zep still had a fair bit of buildup on the baffles. To confirm that the Jelmar had worked better I then took the baffles previously cleaned with Zep and re-soaked them with Jelmar: Conclusions: 1. The Jelmar preformed significantly better cleaning the baffles vs. Zep 2. Neither solution damaged the baffles. I inspected them under the microscope to look for any pitting or other damage and no damage was apparent. Friendly safety reminder: Any used cleaning solution will contain lead which is toxic, especially in an aqueous form. Use all proper safety equipment including gloves and eye protection when handling the solution. Dispose of the solution properly per local regulations. Karl Edminster Chief Science Nerd Energetic Armament, LLC |
| Not to derail the thread, but another Jelmar "review". If any of you are into classic/vintage cars and like the "patina" look and your car/motorcycle, etc. has any surface rust, use a green scotchbrite pad and Jelmar CLR on the surface rust, it will leave you a smooth patina instead of crusty surface rust. |
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I'm the OP of the other thread. I did the same test this weekend with the same results. The CLR in the grey bottle does a much better job than the Zep brand. Of course it's the one that says right on the bottle that it is not for use with Titanium. Their CS told me the same thing when I emailed them. I'm glad to hear you didn't find any evidence of damage, as I've been using the stuff for a year now. Thanks for the test. |
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Nice work Karl! This also confirms the test I did with titanium. It's good to note that on heat treated 17-4 stainless (with the gold scale), that it will remove that gold "finish". It's really just oxidation from the heat treat process. We've had customers do this and freak out thinking they took off some special coating, but that's definitely not the case. Todd Magee Dead Air Engineering |
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Quoted: Excellent. Thanks for documenting your experiment and sharing the results. Your pro tip is going to be very useful when my Nyx gets out of jail (not to mention the whole cleaning titanium baffles part). Hope your Nyx stamp comes thru quickly! Nice thing is you can just dunk the entire Nyx silencer to clean it if you go a little long between cleanings and the baffles are hard to remove. All components in the Nyx (and Mod2 version) are titanium. |
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Quoted: Nice work Karl! This also confirms the test I did with titanium. It's good to note that on heat treated 17-4 stainless (with the gold scale), that it will remove that gold "finish". It's really just oxidation from the heat treat process. We've had customers do this and freak out thinking they took off some special coating, but that's definitely not the case. Todd Magee Dead Air Engineering Thanks Todd! |
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