When is some rust too much rust?

L

LexZ

True Classic
I looked at the underside of my ‘74 for the first time since I got her. Is some surface rust underneath OK - see pix - or should I try to remove as much and then cover with Fluid Film? Any guidance is, as always, much appreciated
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Pretty typical for a decades young moto.. pervasive among all steel body motos from that era.
Treat the rust as needed, then finish up as needed.


Bernice
 
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That looks amazingly clean. Especially for a Northeast car!

I'd recommend a bit of elbow grease to stay ahead of it. Clean it with soap and water first, maybe a light Scotchbrite pad to get some of the heavier stuff. Then Rust Remover (hardware store) - this turns the surface rust black and provides some phosphate coat. Lastly a shot of satin black paint. Or if you want to get fancy some auto supply places will color match and mix automotive paint into a rattle can.

An afternoon for the front and an afternoon for the rear and you will have a "fully restored" BAT-picture worthy underside. :)
 
Agree, that's just surface rust. I would coat with phosphoric acid (Ospho is a brand name for that stuff) which treats the rust. Then paint over with your favorite paint.
 
Mark_Toro said:
That looks amazingly clean. Especially for a Northeast car!

I'd recommend a bit of elbow grease to stay ahead of it. Clean it with soap and water first, maybe a light Scotchbrite pad to get some of the heavier stuff. Then Rust Remover (hardware store) - this turns the surface rust black and provides some phosphate coat. Lastly a shot of satin black paint. Or if you want to get fancy some auto supply places will color match and mix automotive paint into a rattle can.

An afternoon for the front and an afternoon for the rear and you will have a "fully restored" BAT-picture worthy underside. :)
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Thanks. Will do.
 
There is nothing to worry about given what you show, just minor surface rust. Definitely worth paying some attention to as others have pointed out. Wire brushing, rust treatment, primer, top coat and then overcoat with body shutz or other anti abrasion coating. Fluid film is a great overcoat.
 
kmead said:
There is nothing to worry about given what you show, just minor surface rust. Definitely worth paying some attention to as others have pointed out. Wire brushing, rust treatment, primer, top coat and then overcoat with body shutz or other anti abrasion coating. Fluid film is a great overcoat.
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Thanks. I had used Por15 on internal rust patches in the trunks. Is that not recommended for undercarriage applications?
 
Painting over rust is a bad idea.
Capillary action will hold water between any coating and the metal if it’s not properly cleaned first.
POR15 is a hoax.
Spray some Marvel Mystery oil or some linseed oil or WD-40 onto that dirty undercarriage.
Unless you’re going to sandblast or dip the shell..
Then my all means paint and prime.
 
Paint Over Rust...(POR) 15, now proven record of failure. Stuff was marketed as an easy fix for dealing with rust, since it's introduction it's record has not been so good.

The old fashion ways of rust removal has been time proven to work, as does stuff like evapo-rust followed nearly instantly by coating with oil or corrosion inhibiting primer.

Alternative is to oil coat the area and deal with that surface rust that way. Seriously, this is surface rust and not that bad at all.


Bernice
 
Rupunzell said:
Paint Over Rust...(POR) 15, now proven record of failure. Stuff was marketed as an easy fix for dealing with rust, since it's introduction it's record has not been so good.

The old fashion ways of rust removal has been time proven to work, as does stuff like evapo-rust followed nearly instantly by coating with oil or corrosion inhibiting primer.

Alternative is to oil coat the area and deal with that surface rust that way. Seriously, this is surface rust and not that bad at all.


Bernice
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What is your take on Rust Bullet?
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Rupunzell said:
Paint Over Rust...(POR) 15, now proven record of failure. Stuff was marketed as an easy fix for dealing with rust, since it's introduction it's record has not been so good.

The old fashion ways of rust removal has been time proven to work, as does stuff like evapo-rust followed nearly instantly by coating with oil or corrosion inhibiting primer.

Alternative is to oil coat the area and deal with that surface rust that way. Seriously, this is surface rust and not that bad at all.


Bernice
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Thanks. I appreciate the guidance. I admit that some YouTube videos led me to try POR15. I trust this forum more and believe in time tested techniques
 
I can see the temptation..
Sandblasting sucks!
Stripping a car to a bare shell and putting it on a rotisserie?
Yuck!
Even worse, stripping it to a bare shell and sending it to another state for a chemical dip!?!?
Expensive!
Tons of work!
Who would ever want to do that?

Well,
Unfortunately,
That’s the only way to get rid of rust.
And,
If you don’t get rid of it,
It will fester and grow over whatever you put on top of it,
Regardless of what that stuff is,
Or the claims they make.

Man,
It would be SO GREAT if you could skip the cleaning part and just go over rust.
But,
Alas,
That horrible monster reality has to come and ruin the fun -again-!
:mad:

We can just play pretend some more if you like.
For a while, it might actually work…
 
I’ve also seen that POR doesn’t just paint over rust.
It also paints over sunflower seeds, paperclips, dog hair, small rocks and gravel…
 
If you read the POR15 website [and ignore the hyperbolic marketing garbage], you will see that it requires prep. Physical clean, degrease and etch/phosphate coat BEFORE the actual POR15. Like all coating systems, you must use the full system or failure is guaranteed.
 
Based on the above, we have determined your X is doomed to failure and is unsafe due to unrepairable rust issues. I will private message you my address so you can drop it off at my house, at your expense. This is merely a public service I provide to keep you all safe from dangerous rusty vehicles.

On the east coast we call that a rust free car.
 
I painted so much of my underbody and metal pieces with POR15. Didn't realize it has been proven to be less than helpful until reading this post. Everything is holding up well for now. . . I did prep well before painting so hopefully that will help.
 
carl said:
Based on the above, we have determined your X is doomed to failure and is unsafe due to unrepairable rust issues. I will private message you my address so you can drop it off at my house, at your expense. This is merely a public service I provide to keep you all safe from dangerous rusty vehicles.

On the east coast we call that a rust free car.
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:) I was happy to see that the rust looks manageable even for a newbie. It was a Montana car from BaT, so I worried it would be even worst that a New England X. My original ‘74 had more rust by the time I sold her in ‘82. I have not yet looked under the carpet so there may be a surprise lurking
 
I would have that Ice blasted to see where you are. You may be surprised how good the condition is. The maybe some spot blasting with glass bead water slurry on anything that the ice does not remove. Then paint or undercoat.
 
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