Cleaning solvent

I got some parts I need to clean. I have gas and acetone, and a quart or so of mineral spirits.
What's a good solvent for cleaning the exterior of carburetors, engine parts, etc, in a sink or tub with a parts brush that won't eat your brain out or blow you up? I have heard kerosene. Let me ask the dumb question, where do you buy kerosene? I would think Ace or Home Depot, as they sell the kerosene heaters. Is that right? And is kerosene a good cleaner?
Wish I had one of those parts washing sinks (SD?), but I'd use it about twice a year. Sure are handy, though.
Steve

SteveB writes:
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At paint stores and the paint aisle at big-boxes at an insane retail markup. Or WD-40 if you like it perfumed.
Diesel fuel is close enough for degreasing applications.
Filling stations sell it from pumps in rural, cold climates for heaters.

Some gas stations sell kerosene, we have a Speedway nearby that does it. I normally keep a 5 gallon container with Kero for starting fires in my firepit, and cleaning parts.
i
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On Tue, 18 Mar 2008 21:54:05 -0500, Richard J Kinch
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K1 is right at $6 a gallon here. From the bulk plant.
Ive had to change my shop heat over to propane because of the cost and live with the increased humitidy
Gunner
"Pax Americana is a philosophy. Hardly an empire. Making sure other people play nice and dont kill each other (and us) off in job lots is hardly empire building, particularly when you give them self determination under "play nice" rules.
Think of it as having your older brother knock the shit out of you for torturing the cat." Gunner

On Tue, 18 Mar 2008 23:46:32 -0700, Gunner Asch
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Yikes. I bought a year's contract @ $2.59/gal last summer; the last delivery would have been $3.15 without the contract, but that was back in the fall. The delivered cash price here in ME is $4.23 today. I better make sure the tank is full when the contract runs out in May.

wrote:
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No, with that large a price differential you'd better save up cash for a second tank to store what you've got now, and order at least one more fill-up before the contract runs out in May - go right up to the gallonage limits in the contract, if there are any... Tell them you're running your oil fired forge and kiln a lot if they ask.
--<< Bruce >>--

Can you quietly put in a second tank?

Gunner Asch writes:
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Ouch. One wonders what the hydrogen fill-up would cost.

Doug Miller writes:
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Inquire at Home Depot or Lowes before commenting further.
See http://www.kleanstrip.com/ etc.
Show a little manly probity, and discontinue your jackal-jabber. Nobody takes it seriously other than to perhaps log you as a fool.

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Kinch, you still haven't figured out that "petroleum distillates" encompasses a very large variety of compounds, only a very few of which can legitimately be called "kerosene". WD-40 is not in that category. Neither is paint thinner. The sooner you figure this out, the sooner you stop looking like an ass.

On Thu, 20 Mar 2008 03:32:38 GMT, snipped-for-privacy@milmac.com (Doug Miller) wrote:
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From the MSDS for WD-40 @ http://www.wd40.com/Download/?/Brands/pdfs/msds-wd40_bulk.us.pdf ***************************************** Composition/Information on Ingredients Ingredient     CAS#     Weight Percent Aliphatic Hydrocarbon     64742-47-8     45-50     64742-48-9     64742-88-7
Petroleum Base Oil     64742-65-0     30-35
LVP Aliphatic Hydrocarbon 64742-47-8     12-18
Non-Hazardous Ingredients Mixture     <10 *****************************************
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ipcsneng/neng1379.html says CAS 64742-47-8 is "Low odor paraffinic solvent, Dearomatized kerosine, Deodorized kerosene."
http://store.galladechem.com / calls CAS 64742-48-9 "kerosene."

wrote:
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Point, set and match.
Gunner

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Guess you didn't read it any more carefully than Ned did... *Some* of the components in WD-40 are kerosene, to be sure. But WD-40 and kerosene are not the same thing, Richard Kinch's delusions to the contrary.

Good find, Ned. Thanks.

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And you didn't read it any more carefully than Ned and Gunner did...

wrote:
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Correct. About 60% kerosene in one form or other. about 15% oil.

ontario dot canada wrote:
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You might want to check your math on that... Only two of the three compounds that, collectively, make up 45-50% of the product are actually kerosene; therefore, it's certainly less than half kerosene.
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Ummm... "Petroleum Base Oil 30-35%" is a bit more than 15%.

snipped-for-privacy@milmac.com (Doug Miller) writes:
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It isn't necessary to argue percentages to conclude that it's not "kerosene with perfume".

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Quite so. Richard Kinch claims that WD-40 "is" kerosene. Even if it were *mostly* kerosene, that wouldn't make it the *same* as kerosene; milk, coffee, tea, wine, and beer are mostly water -- and in every case, the water content is higher than the kerosene content of WD-40 -- but I don't think that even Kinch would argue that they are the same as water.

Doug Miller writes:
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Who cares what I claim? Much less your obsessive distortions.
Ah, the romance of petroleum nomenclature. There will be flames.