Getting down and dirty

When I think back to my Army days, I think of an old friend (?) called Cosmoline. I remember how I had a nice clean rifle and pistol that were always kept nice and clean.

When I shipped out of Camp Carson, Colo., to go into combat in Korea, these were pieces of equipment that went to the port of debarkation with me. However, before boarding the ship, they took these away from me with the explanation that we would be issued new weapons upon arrival overseas.

No matter how much I begged, the reason given was that weapons (and some other equipment) could not go on the ship without being packed in Cosmoline to protect them from the salt air.

When we arrived in Pusan, Korea, we were issued new weapons that had been dipped in hot Cosmoline, cooled, coated with heavy waxed cloth and then dipped in the stickiest wax ever known to man. It took about an hour to get off the outer covering on each weapon.

They were then dismantled and parts wiped of big globs of excess Cosmoline. We then went to a big trough filled with a mixture of gasoline and diesel fuel, where we washed each piece to get rid of that sticky mess. We then reassembled them in the back of a moving truck headed toward the front. At best, the whole process was very messy and slightly intoxicating with those fumes.

The best thing about my tour being over except for coming out of the experience alive was that it meant no more Cosmoline. Just about everything mechanical we got over there was packed in the darn stuff. Even our food rations were sealed in waxed paper and dipped in wax for preservation. Never again was I ever going to do battle with Cosmoline. (Ha! Was I ever wrong.)

As most of you know, Cadillac built tanks and repair parts for them during World War II and Korea, and, of course, the engines for these were our good old cast iron flathead V-8s typical of the ’37 to ’48 cars we love so much.

There were many surpluses of these parts made for overseas shipment that are now available as NOS. Guess what—they are packaged in Cosmoline, waxed cloth and dipped in wax. Such things as bearings, valve lifters, valves and many other engine parts. So here I am again fighting the Cosmoline war. I know many of you old veterans are shedding a tear or two for me and going over some of your own Cosmoline memories.

Using a lot of these parts and preparing them for installation, I thought maybe you would like a few tips on how to get to these little NOS jewels ready for use. This stuff was originally formulated to be cleaned off with gasoline and diesel oil because this was a commodity available during the war. You all know (or should know) that using gasoline to clean any kind of parts is dangerous in many ways, including the fire danger and the toxic properties of inhaling these vapors. Working in a closed garage makes it even worse.

The first thing you need to do is take off the outer wrapping. Using a heat gun helps soften it up enough to cut the package open. Be careful with the knife so as not to scratch or damage any of the surfaces. Have lots of rags and/or paper towels on hand—you will need them. Once you get the part out of the wrapping, wipe off the surplus goo called Cosmoline.

The best chemical I have found that is reasonably safe to use is odorless mineral spirits. This is what I use in my parts cleaning tank. Also, there is a little trick in making the solvent even more efficient. That is to heat it. This is too dangerous if done by conventional methods, so I will share another trick with you. Go to an LPG (propane) supply facility and for a very reasonable cost, you can buy a magnetic heater that is designed to keep large propane bottles from freezing and put this on the bottom of your cleaning tank.

The way mine is installed is with a switch that flashes a red light when it is on. It takes about an hour and a half to warm it up to 75–85 degrees, which makes the solvent work much better. The flashing red light keeps me from forgetting that it is on.

Leaving the parts in a couple of hours will make them much easier to clean. Incidentally, regular soap and water does not work too well cleaning this stuff from your hands. A good mechanic’s hand cleaner works better.

Use a lot of compressed air and warm mineral spirits and rags to make sure all of the Cosmoline comes off. You may need to check for any rust spots caused from moisture that was sealed in at the time of packing. Also check for spots left by fingerprints on surfaces at the time of manufacture and you are ready to use these NOS parts on your project.

During this process, you may get down and dirty, but remember, you are experiencing history.

See ya next month.

—Walt