What's new
What's new

What happened to Varsol?

piniongear

Stainless
Joined
Jun 26, 2006
Location
Canyon Lake Texas
I have a need to clean up some machinery. Long ago I used Gunk Concentrate mixed with Varsol. I can still buy the Gunk Concentrate but where has Varsol gone? I cannot even find it with a Goggle search, much less in an auto parts store.
Did the EPA people eliminate this product? What replaced it? Thanks for any help......pg
 
If I am not mistaken, Varsol = Paint Thinner

Yes, it it used in some paint thinner application, but that is not it's main use. Varsol is an Exxon-Mobil product. Apparently it is still made, but I am unable to find anyone who sells it.
Of course I want to buy a 5 gal can of it, not a tank car filled to the brim.
It was once sold in 1 gal cans at Humble Oil gas stations. That was years ago however. I am not even able to find a person who has first hand experience with Varsol. I am getting old, but not that old I hope....pg
 
We use to sell it in the Hardware Store I worked at in the early 1970's....... haven't thought of it since...... Thanks for memories...... the boss telling us "boys" to get another case out of the back......
 
Try a printing company if there is any close to your location,the ones around my area use it to clean the ink off the rollers when they change jobs.
 
humm..... I bought some at home depot about 2 years ago.... pretty sure they still had some last time I was in the paint department, right around where they keep the acetone and all that other fun stuff. I'll have to check again next time I go in.
 
It might be like trichlorethane. We used to mix it with cutting oil for tapping inconnel and k500 monel. It was the only thing that worked well. The federal government made it illegal back in the 90's. Now I use tapmatic or tap magic and it works ok, not great.
 
I'd try a printing business as suggested above---The only time I ever used it was in shop in the early 60's for cleaning up the type and printing press.

It seems I read somewhere that it is supposed to be very bad for your health,so it may have been pulled from the public domain.

Dave
 
I think you just go to your local oil distributor and pick it up. I believe 5 gal is the smallest they sell. I'm thinking they are a Penzoil distributor. A quick check shows that they have been selling me "Rule 66" as a substitute for Varsol. I last paid about $24 for 5gal, but that was over a year ago. They also sold me some kind of "California-approved" stuff once, but I don't remember much about it. Stoddard was always referred to as "dry cleaning solvent", but I don't know if they were referring to the industry of "Dry Cleaning" (as in clothes) or dry cleaning as in no residue of oil left behind. I know my hands used to get a whitish cast to them and be all dried out after using Stoddard.
 
Give Apache Oil in Pasadena a call and see if they will sell some to you. I used to buy Stoddard / Varsol / Safety Solvent from them when I was in the parts business.

David
 
Try a printing company if there is any close to your location,the ones around my area use it to clean the ink off the rollers when they change jobs.

Wow that brings back memories.... My father was a 4 color pressman and used that just like you mentioned. He used to bring home a gallon once in a while and I still remember the smell. ;)
 
I always thought that Varsol was a Dry Cleaner's solvent. My machinist neighbor used to buy it from his friend in the business. Try your local Dry Cleaners.

You are absolutely correct. Varsol was/is used for dry cleaning. I will try to find a supplier for dry cleaner shops and see if I can locate it. Thanks........pg
 
The link provided by USMC pop answers a lot of questions. It turns out "Rule 66" solvent pertains to the California regulation "rule 102" which is apparently popularly know as "Rule 66" (must be an earlier numbering system). Also, I thought that Stoddard was a name used by one company and Varsol was used by Exxon/Mobil. It turns out that the name Stoddard comes from its use in the dry-cleaning industry. I guess I have been getting the "California" solvent on a regular basis, instead of just the one time they told me.
 

Yes, I know that there are different grades of Varsol. I am looking for a Varsol 140. According to a chemical supplier I spoke with today, this used to be used in the dry cleaning industry but the Feds made them go to a higher evaporative rate Varsol.
I looked at the MSDS sheet on the 140 and have given up on being able to obtain it any longer. I consider it to be a non-obtainable product, at least for my use. I guess if I wanted to buy a rail tankcar full Exxon-Mobil would be returning my calls.

Thanks to everyone for your replies and help concerning the matter.
I am all for the environment, but Simple Green just does not get the job done when it comes to removing grease for me.
I suppose I am just stuck with it........pg
 
Varsol found

I had thought varsol was no longer available, but I saw it at an oil dealer yesterday and bought some:
Mills Lp Gas & Oil Co
3932 Smith Farm Road
PO Box 237
Indian Trail, NC 28079
704-821-6329 o
704-821-6995 f
 








 
Back
Top