VOGONS


First post, by JK1984

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I have a Dell Optiplex XM 575 that I picked up and there's a considerable amount of rust on the back I/O shield. The shield runs across the entire back panel of the case. I tried removing it but I'm afraid I'm going to break the plastic on the back panel of the case in doing so. I'm mostly stuck around the lock area.. I have tried removing the lock but again, I don't want to break anything. Anyone have any suggestions on how to clean what I can with the shield in place?

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Reply 1 of 8, by kaputnik

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By the looks of it, removing the RF shield from the plastic part shouldn't be all that hard. Just take your time and be careful about it 😀

Cleaning the RF shield without removing it from the plastic will take ages, and it's going to be very difficult to achieve a good looking result. Since chemicals like phosphorous acid etc would be drawn in between the plastic and metal by the capillary forces, and be more or less impossible to completely get rid of or neutralize there, you can't use any of those.

Best bets would probably be some 1000 grit or finer emery cloth, a pen style fiberglass brush to get into corners etc, and some chrome polish on q-tips to finish with. I'd really recommend giving removal another try though.

Reply 2 of 8, by JK1984

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kaputnik wrote on 2022-08-05, 19:02:

By the looks of it, removing the RF shield from the plastic part shouldn't be all that hard. Just take your time and be careful about it 😀

Cleaning the RF shield without removing it from the plastic will take ages, and it's going to be very difficult to achieve a good looking result. Since chemicals like phosphorous acid etc would be drawn in between the plastic and metal by the capillary forces, and be more or less impossible to completely get rid of or neutralize there, you can't use any of those.

Best bets would probably be some 1000 grit or finer emery cloth, a pen style fiberglass brush to get into corners etc, and some chrome polish on q-tips to finish with. I'd really recommend giving removal another try though.

That’s my thoughts about removing it.. but I had difficulty trying to remove the lock. I figured the clip on the lock slides out but I can’t exactly get it off. I’ll try to give it another shot later

Reply 3 of 8, by kaputnik

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JK1984 wrote on 2022-08-05, 19:19:
kaputnik wrote on 2022-08-05, 19:02:

By the looks of it, removing the RF shield from the plastic part shouldn't be all that hard. Just take your time and be careful about it 😀

Cleaning the RF shield without removing it from the plastic will take ages, and it's going to be very difficult to achieve a good looking result. Since chemicals like phosphorous acid etc would be drawn in between the plastic and metal by the capillary forces, and be more or less impossible to completely get rid of or neutralize there, you can't use any of those.

Best bets would probably be some 1000 grit or finer emery cloth, a pen style fiberglass brush to get into corners etc, and some chrome polish on q-tips to finish with. I'd really recommend giving removal another try though.

That’s my thoughts about removing it.. but I had difficulty trying to remove the lock. I figured the clip on the lock slides out but I can’t exactly get it off. I’ll try to give it another shot later

Yea, the clip should slide off. You might have to use some force though.

Looks like lock cylinder is threaded, you could try winding the clip off too.

Reply 4 of 8, by JK1984

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kaputnik wrote on 2022-08-05, 19:27:
JK1984 wrote on 2022-08-05, 19:19:
kaputnik wrote on 2022-08-05, 19:02:

By the looks of it, removing the RF shield from the plastic part shouldn't be all that hard. Just take your time and be careful about it 😀

Cleaning the RF shield without removing it from the plastic will take ages, and it's going to be very difficult to achieve a good looking result. Since chemicals like phosphorous acid etc would be drawn in between the plastic and metal by the capillary forces, and be more or less impossible to completely get rid of or neutralize there, you can't use any of those.

Best bets would probably be some 1000 grit or finer emery cloth, a pen style fiberglass brush to get into corners etc, and some chrome polish on q-tips to finish with. I'd really recommend giving removal another try though.

That’s my thoughts about removing it.. but I had difficulty trying to remove the lock. I figured the clip on the lock slides out but I can’t exactly get it off. I’ll try to give it another shot later

Yea, the clip should slide off. You might have to use some force though.

Looks like lock cylinder is threaded, you could try winding the clip off too.

Yeah the clip didn’t exactly slide off..and I’m afraid of pulling too hard and cracking the plastic. I’ll see what I can do when I get off work. If I can’t get it off I’m not sure what I can do

Reply 5 of 8, by JK1984

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Success! Just used some needle nose pliers and gently pulled and twisted. The clip Came right off. The shield came off relatively easy too.

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Reply 6 of 8, by asdf53

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My favorite tool for this is a brass wire brush. It's very effective against rust, but soft enough so that it won't scratch the steel. But if the shield is made of aluminum, you might have to be more careful. Submerge it in any type of acid (vinegar, citric acid or bathroom cleaner) and after some time brush it off with a toothbrush. If you can't submerge it, apply acid with a sponge or paper towels and wipe it clean with pure water.

Reply 7 of 8, by JK1984

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asdf53 wrote on 2022-08-06, 07:33:

My favorite tool for this is a brass wire brush. It's very effective against rust, but soft enough so that it won't scratch the steel. But if the shield is made of aluminum, you might have to be more careful. Submerge it in any type of acid (vinegar, citric acid or bathroom cleaner) and after some time brush it off with a toothbrush. If you can't submerge it, apply acid with a sponge or paper towels and wipe it clean with pure water.

I was going to soak in white vinegar. But wasn’t sure if there is anything I should treat the shield with once I rinse everything off.