I would love to hear how many of you have thrown beads away that have rust stains in and around the holes. Seriously! Have you??
Rusty holes are from mandrels that lie around too long (esp. in humid climates) and the rust seeps through the bead release. And...you go ahead and use them anyway, and yes, as long as the release is intact, it's okay! Most of the time, these rusty stains can be dremeled out simply by cleaning beads the way you normally do. Even if you are using a good diamond coated file and not a Dremel.
Rust around the holes is awful, and it really shows up on light colors, eww! This is when lazy people like me leave their beads still on the mandrels soaking in the water bucket for days at a time. Sometimes it happens when I leave wet beads lined up on a mandrel after cleaning, and the darn mandrels had bits of rust on them. They may be stainless steel, but after what we do to them, they are not so "stainless" anymore.
Quick and very effective solution:
A soak in 2 parts toilet bowl cleaner to 1 part water for 10-15 minutes. You can keep this solution in a glass jar, so it's reusable for a long time. String them on a piece of fishing line to dip them in this stuff, and it's easier. Rinse them under running water, and then clean them with soapy water. I found that Snobol brand is the best. This solution is not as nasty as using products like CLR.
If you planned on etching them in etching liquid or cream, you can skip the "toilet treatment" as my DD calls it. LOL! Etching products removes the rust pronto.
I hope this helps someone!
Oh, forgot to add: This solution is safe for your beads. I have forgotten mine and left them in there for 3 hours, and it didn't hurt them one bit. It won't "etch" them, so don't worry about that!