What's the best (and easiest) way to clean up my wheel bolts prior to installing my winter set up?
 

They came off really hard this spring and I noticed they are somewhat rusty/crusty.

Soak in brake clean?

wire brush

With any sort of cleaner?

not personally on wheel bolts

simple green will eat those

Steel wool/wire brush

PB Blaster!
 

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You want a chemical which both cleans and protects/prevents corrision.

You also dont want to clean metal bolts with a metal brush, or metal wool-pad. This induces dissimular corrision. ;o)

Soak the bolts in Castrol Super Clean. The caustic soda (sodium hydroxide,)....
 

it contains, is very basic pH, opposite acidic, and will dissolve any rust or oxide compounds from corrosion, without needing a lot of scrubbing. However, if the bolts in Super Clean is agitated or tumbled the clean up is a lot faster. The threads may need a stiff brush (plastic or SS bristles) treatment also, but maybe not. Rinse with hot water, dry on a rag towel, then spray the bolts with WD-40 to thouroughly soak the bolts to prevent new corrosion.

Be careful with wire brushes and definitely DONT use a wire wheel on a bench grinder
 

The bolts are treated with an anti-corrosion coating. If you use a brush and get them all shiny and new looking they will rust a lot faster and become damn near siezed in the hub after winter.

They are black for a reason... anti-corrosion. Brush off the little rust that's on them, but dont polish them to bare metal. Don't ask how I found this out...

wheel bolts are black? mine are shiny steel