I was fortunate enough to come into the possession of a few pairs of rusted old tongs recently.
I need to free them up and remove the rust, so they become usable.

Any tips?

A little heat and some Kroil should do the trick.

What is kroil?
Forgive my ignorance!

Its only the best stuck bolt getter outer on the planet!
http://www.amazon.com/Kano-Kroil-Penetrating-liquid-KROIL/dp/B000F09CF4
It is kinda spendy, but I think it is well worth it.

Heat them to dark red (the joint area) and then move them as they cool... this nearly always works.

Heating to a low red dehydrates the rust making it smaller. Then movement or a good penetrating oil and movement can use the rust to lap the rough faces smoother.

Great tips and explanation there. Thanks!
Looking forward to giving this a try.

I have a 5 gallon bucket of used oil out of my Dodge diesel that I just toss the tongs into. After awhile I try moving them, and they have all loosened up after a good soaking. I have a bunch of tongs, so I may leave them in the oil for days, or weeks efore I remeber to check them.

Its a shame, becuase the last time I serviced my car (which is a diesel) I collected the oil in a large can and got rid of it, in an appropriate manner I will add.

I will definately try and heat them to red and move them as they cool. A friend of mine over the road, who also has a diesel that we serviced may have some old oil lying about. Will ask him later!

Any tips for getting rid of the rust from all over them?
I was thinking of just lightly going over it all with my angle grinder and a flapwheel disc.

The heat will take care of most of the surface rust too. You'll just waste time with a flapwheel. Maybe hand sand a bit to get smooth reins where you hold them but I never find it needful.

Shallow pan filled with CLR. Give them a good soak for a few days, the hit them with a wire wheel.

I like a wire cup-brush on the angle grinder for rust removal. It's quick and leaves a burnished surface that's pretty good to the hands.

Hold the tongs in a vice and try not to shoot the grinder across the room. A light touch is all you need.

Lewis

Using them removes all the rust from the reins. I have some tongs stored outside and a day of using them will clean any rust off the reins, it might wear my work gloves out a little quicker though.

I just use them rusty, and after awhile they develop a patina. The only reason I mentioned my truck being a diesel is that an oil change is 3 gallons, so plenty to dunk rusty tools into. Be careful heating tongs, as some are made with tool steels, and could crack if quenched. I always thought that they were just plain nonhardening steel.

I've been told that regular ole antifreeze works too.

I've been told that regular ole antifreeze works too.

be careful tho! antifreez makes the perfect poison for pets and wild animals.

Will be giving this a go, hopefully on Sunday after playing rugby on Saturday.
Hopefully it will all go well.

Will keep you posted and try and bring back some pictures!

I wire wheel loose rust and don't try to remove solidly attached rust. I do lightly hand sand the parts I hold in my hand to prevent wear and tear on my hands!

just another 2 cents ...............
vinegar works to remove rust.............. then I'd wire brush em.

Took then to the forge last weekend and heating them in the fire, seem to get them al moving.
I have to tighten a few of the rivets, but they are all working now!

Need to reposstion a lot of the reigns, but other than that they are good to go.
Thanks for the advice everyone!

When you tighten the rivets do it cold and be very patient... it's easy to get them too tight again. If you do accidentally overtighten them use some penetrating oil and work them a bit and you can usually fix it... if not it's back to the fire again.

I just overtightened my favorite tongs the other day. What I did was I took a little chisel, and lightly tapped the joinery a little bit to spread them back out. Worked like a charm.

if they are mild steel or wrought: heating the joint area up and working them should help loosen them a bit.

if is a bolt I like PB blaster sometimes you have to add a little heat but have never had a bolt I could not get undone

I like apple cider vinegar it smell alright and I keep a bucket around for descaling and reust removal. put them in for a few days and wash them off and give a light coating of oil if you want. As to Kroil it is the best I have ever found I bought a new gallon at the start of the year. It will loosen almose anything.