solvents & metal cleaning

[foxxinabox at wideopenwest.com (Foxx (in a box))]

   now that fall is here and i'm not being outside as much, i've turned 
my attentiont to endeavours within the house. i went through and sorted 
what parts i have and am now in the process of cleaning them. i bought 
some heavy-duty degreaser from harbor freight and it seems to work well 
withthe normal stuff, but the grime that's been there for years is a 
little more difficult. i realize that i will probably have to use a wire 
brish here and there, but something things i would like to leave an 
soak. has anyone used a good soaking degreaser that they would 
recommend? i know that gasoline is a great solvent but i don't want to 
use that inside. brake cleaner is also good but it's more expensive than 
gas.
   also, i know there was a thread a little while ago about removing 
rust from cast iron. will that also work on steel (like engine brackets, 
shift linkage components, etc)? also, i believe there was a link to 
using zinc to plate the metal once it was cleaned. are they any 
drawbacks to doing that to said parts? thanx.

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