What To Do When Your Nuts Get Rusty

-Enjoy!

Thank you so much for the support!
--Eric & Vanessa O.

Feel like sending some swag to SMA because you love the videos but don't know where to send it?

Just ship it here:

South Main Auto Repair
47 S. Main St
PO Box 471
Avoca, NY 14809

Disclaimer:
Due to factors beyond the control of South Main Auto Repair, it cannot guarantee against unauthorized modifications of this information, or improper use of this information. South Main Auto Repair assumes no liability for property damage or injury incurred as a result of any of the information contained in this video. South Main Auto Repair recommends safe practices when working with power tools, automotive lifts, lifting tools, jack stands, electrical equipment, blunt instruments, chemicals, lubricants, or any other tools or equipment seen or implied in this video. Due to factors beyond the control of South Main Auto Repair, no information contained in this video shall create any express or implied warranty or guarantee of any particular result. Any injury, damage or loss that may result from improper use of these tools, equipment, or the information contained.

[theroyaltyautoservice]

Thanks for the shout out Eric! Great video! We do have a torch. Maybe we will bust it out and see how rusty the Professor is with it. Pun intended. 😅

[workingcountry]

As a former Central NY tech I learned years ago that they can't be tight if they are liquid!

[rbailey]

I've heard you say what kind of people watch these me tell you. People with intense curiosity and a thirst for automotive knowledge. Watching you over the years has saved my bacon and kept me calm when things didn't go exactly to plan on more than one occasion. So, thanks for that Mr.O. Not to mention since 2019 I haven't worked much due to two shoulder and two hand surgeries. So it's a double save me from going out of my mind with boredom as well. I hardly ever watch TV unless it's with Mrs. B to watch one of her favorite shows, everything else is the youtubes as meemaw calls it. LOL!

[jamescaron]

I have to say you’re a friggin surgeon with that torch. It’s damn near a precision instrument in your hands.

[rbailey]

"It's quite the nostrils." Ron Burgundy-2004

[turboturtle]

A lot of people don't subscribe to the thermal wrench these days but it's a time tested tool of the trade.

[newjerseybill]

Thanks for the "Introduction to rusty nuts 101" course!! :)

[kenmohler]

My mommy used to put polish on my nails too. But it was 1951 and YouTube wasn’t really an issue. 😂

[kirbyschneider]

You know you’ve been watching way too much SMA when say out loud to your phone “enhance” expecting it to enlarge! Lol. You’ll get odd looks from people around as well! Thx Mr. O!

[waynemontgomery]

I'm an old retired mechanic, and never miss your videos

[randybeard]

When you get as old as me, Rusty Nuts are just something you Live With---lol....

[daveholden]

As Johnny from Fantastik 4 said--FLAME ON! Common sense way to deal with all the rust.

[ronandloriwood]

I am now YouTube certified, Thank you Eric...LOL

[MrHunt]

Joshy in the back working that alignment around 8:40

[davidnull]

In a a future video maybe Eric O. can explain why this method works; it relies on a subtle difference in heat transfer between the metal the nut is made of and the slightly cooler metal across the threads of the bolt; you get one shot at this - if you try a second time both metals will be around the same temperature - you'll cut both when you're only trying to cut one. This method requires knowledge and a great deal of practice - you're not going to do it the first few tries. Rusted nuts are a tiny bit easier, the rust in the threads retards the heat transfer - that gives you a tiny bit more time. This method is really an excellent demonstration of the laws of thermodynamics. Thanks.

[andrecampbell]

Thanks for your video. It was very informative. I'm 70 and have a couple of rusty nuts that need attention. 👍😁

[PhillipBailey]

Around here sometimes the nuts are so rusty and thin I just split them with an air chisel. The induction heater is my second choice if it still resembles a nut.

[BlewShirtGuy]

Funny enough, I find with some jobs it actually goes faster just to give it up and melt everything off than to try and fight it. I've been in both extremes though, grew up and currently live in Iowa but spent 8 years working in Arizona and I can't even begin to explain how vast the difference is.

[JohnDoesGarage]

I used to work on rust just south of Erie, PA until I moved to South Carolina thirty years ago and opened my own shop. Out of necessity, I learned how to use a torch and I still use mine, but not anywhere near as often as I used to have the need. It has been easily over twenty years since I had to get my tanks refilled and I still have plenty of gas left. I have a Purox torch set, that tells you how long I've had them. Great video and being able to use a torch is an invaluable skill.

[peacepoet]

I broke the studs on the exhaust manifold that I needed to repair after having a shop replace the exhaust pipe from the exhaust manifold that comes off the engine. The shop had been hammering things on the vehicle. When I drove away my engine sounded different. I opened the hood of the 72 Chevy El Camino and the exhaust had a cracked by the number 1 cylinder. The shop denied responsibility for the damage. The one I got from the recycling yard is still working great these days. Recently bought her new front tires and a new tailpipe from the muffler to the back end.
Love my El Camino. I purchased her with an overhead camper on her back on February 15, 1975. Been all over the United States from San Diego, California to Atlanta, Georgia and then to the State of Washington. I visited Mount Saint Helen's twice after the volcano erupted. Visiting Spirit Lake I watched the tadpoles swimming in the water undisturbed by the chaos in the area. On my way home I got to sleep in the Rredwood Forest. So many memories of me and my 72 Chevy El Camino with an overhead camper on her back!