[TheForge] Pickling solutions

[PlumDon at aol.com]

I have found sodium bisulfite to be a very effective pickling solution. At the pool supply it goes by the name of Lo n' Slo and various others. I think it is used to lower the ph. When I finish forging an item I drop it in a 5 gal container and within an hour or so it is clean of scale. As the solution weakens it takes longer. Hot iron descales faster. I mix it 1 pound per gallon of water. As with most of the pickling solutions, rust will begin almost immediately.