Mystery Objects

[Tom Morgan]

Pals may remember the mystery object I found on the Somme just before the first Pals' Dinner at Varlet Farm. No-one could identify it, although there was one unkind suggestion that it was a 1914 toilet-roll holder.

Well - the day before yesterday I was walking in the same field and I found another one! Basically it's exactly the same as the first one, but about 1 cm longer. This could mean that they are growing. Or perhaps it's a 1915 version and the toilet rolls were being made slightly wider by then.

Here they are - the latest find is the one above.

Tom

[Max Poilu]

Tom,

Cannot tell the scale from the picture but is it tubular? Is it not just a common flash tube from a shrapnel shell?

[Guest Pete Wood]

Tom, you might be interested in a product to clean up these items; something that removes only rust and is gentle.

A few years ago I did a major test of all rust converters for a classic car magazine, when I was the technical editor. There was one product which was easily the winner. It is called 'Corro Dip.'

You mix one part Corro Dip with four parts water, and then immerse your rusty product into it. Leave it for 24 hours, or less, and remove. You are back to clean, non rusty metal. The great thing about this product, and which impressed me no end, is that it is so gentle, it doesn't remove paint. So all the patina, which is so important to collectors, remains.

This Corro Dip was so good that I called in the distributor to pour a couple of pints of the stuff into the magazine's (then) latest project, a very early Mini van with a siezed engine. The engine hadn't turned in over 10 years and was rusted solid. It took longer than 24 hours - I seem to recall it took a week - but that engine turned again. In fact we didn't even bother stripping down the engine. We flushed out the sump, filled the engine with fresh oil, and she ran.

It is harmless to your skin, too, which is a big bonus when you have kids and pets roaming around your garage/shed.

The company that makes it is called Liquid Engineering, and supplies mail order. There is a UK distributor who can be contacted on 01794 884963, in Salisbury. The actual manufacturer is based in Australia, and has a page on Corro Dip http://www.liquideng.com.au/corrodip.html

The best bit about this stuff is that it does not affect leather and rubber. So you could dip an old gas mask in it and it will only de-rust the metal, without rotting the other parts.

Time doesn't stand still, and by now there may be other products which do the same thing. If so, I hope other members will pass on the information.

I promise I have no connection with this product or the company (and its people) that makes it, apart from the fact that I awarded it 5 stars in the magazine test.

[Tom Morgan]

RT - thanks for the details on the Corro Dip stuff. These items are brass but Corro Dip is goint to be useful for other things so thanks for telling me/us about it.

Giles - definitely not flash-tubes as they are brass and too short - the longer one is 14 cm and the shorter one 12.5 cm.

Tom

[Guest Ian Bowbrick]

It could be a bush? - I take it they ar eboth hollow?

Ian

[Tom Morgan]

Yes Ian, both hollow, but with one end blocked off but with a smaller hole. I'll try to find my earlier posts sent after I found the first one as they had some pictures.

Tom

[Tom Morgan]

Here is the link to the earlier discussion which has some close-up photos of the first found item.

Tom

[Michael]

I remember that the material is very thin. When you knurl on a lathe you have to apply a fair amount of pressure to the tool. This is why there is a ferrule in the end that has been knurled to prevent the tube from crushing. The alternative would be to put a dolly in the tube and remove it after you've knurled.

The end result is a cheaply produced tube because you've used a lot less material than a solid bar.

However, its use ...... ?

Mick

[Terry Carter]

I see that Corro Dip is an Australian product, can you get over here in the UK, looks pretty usefull.

Terry

[Somme1916]

Now it's all the more intriguing but I'm still totally stumped. Tom if you find anymore I'm going to call the Myth Busters!

Jon