Hardware rust

[N2VZD at aol.com]

I have always put all the hardware I work with thru my  $20 Harbor  Freight 
gem tumbler. I use no abrasive in the solution , just a little Dawn dish  
soap. After they have been thru @12 hours (overnight) , I drain them , and 
dip  in my parts washer to get water off , then dry in a cardboard tray. . 
This  worked to make them look natural. BUT they did rust in a year or so.  I  
have had a time finding a clear spray that does not turn yellow . So now I 
am  using a Rustoleum  500 deg hi temp motor paint in clear. So far , that  
seems to be holding up. I think I have been doing that a couple years now. It 
 looks more natural than new galvanized  or painted black hardware to me. I 
 was doing some in a dark metallic gray also , but that showed where you 
used a  wrench on it. I use the same coating on Linkages etc after cleaning 
them .
 Regards, Tim Colson       http://www.cnycorvair.com/Little_Corvair_Shop.php