I see what you mean, it’s more of a paint. I don’t know if that’s a great idea on rubber. I had used some kind of rust converter liquid years ago that left a residue I had to clean off. For a cheap method you can soak them in Coke, which has phosphoric acid that removes rust, then clean them off. Rust only forms on metal, so if the rust is on the outside it came from underneath. That’s a pretty light amount of rust in your pic. I think it’s manageable. Any non stinky oil works, mineral oil, 3 in One oil, gun oil. Don’t use cooking oil.

I’m sorry, not meaning to spam. I just looked up “Rust Reformer Spray” and people are treating it as a leave-on permanently thing. But, you advise to spray it on then wipe it off? Is there any advantage to simply leaving it on? Seems like a nice coat on top of the messy brown rubber would look nice. Maybe I misunderstand your comment. When I spray it with Rust Reformer Spray should I let the spray dry and the move forward with your instructions? Also what oil would you recommend for your last step? Sorry I’m new to all this, thanks for your input and thanks for being responsive 5 years after your original article! It’s very helpful!

Gotta say I’m impressed you’re still answering questions 5 years later, thank you for your commitment. These are CAP rubber hexbells, so metal handle. You’re saying these images are indicative of rust starting UNDER the rubber and working its way up? —-> https://i.imgur.com/OpS3VUc.jpg https://i.imgur.com/QNiqzeY.jpg If that’s so, is the rubber just done for?

On rubber it’s harder to completely solve, because the rust will have formed on the metal underneath and made its way up through the rubber. I would hit it with a rust reformer spray, let it work, clean it off with soap, dry, and wipe a thin layer of oil on it and wipe off.

I’ve heard that a Magic Eraser pad can sometimes smooth out light scratches in rubber. Car people have used it.

Aside from covering the weight can anything be done? Thank you!

Cool, let me know how it goes!