besides new sheet metal, what are some options to repair surface rust? is sandblasting an option, or will it warp the metal? what about chemicals for stopping, removing or preventing the rust from returning? and last but not least, what primer should i use after the rust is gone?
Well, if it's just surface rust, then you can use an abrasive furry pad (not really sure what they are called) or you can use chemicals. Blue Lightning has some really good products. When you're done use an etcher on the bear metal before you primer it to prevent anymore rust from popping up
Main thing to remember here that the act of rusting is a chemical process, and to reverse it you must use chemicals. Remember safety first, use good gloves and face/eye/lung protection. Just because you have sanded the rust away and it looks gone it will come back if not treated properly. Anyway sand down to bare metal, I like those 3-m fibre wheels you can attach to your drill they work good. Then treat it with an etcher, I use muriatic acid you can buy it in the paint section at any hardware store. Or you can talk to your autobody supply store and see what they recommend. then paint it with a rust inhibiting primer. Also remember that most primers have no sealer and will let moisture and air at the metal and your rust will reappear if you don't paint it in a timely fashion. Good luck.
Don't the POR-15 type products convert the rust into an inert, hard, paintable surface? The promotional material leads one to believe that the process is permanent, and strengthens the material treated. Or am I just gullable?
Don't the POR-15 type products convert the rust into an inert, hard, paintable surface? The promotional material leads one to believe that the process is permanent, and strengthens the material treated. Or am I just gullable?
POR is a rust encapsulator. It does not convert rust, just trys to keep moisture from getting to the metal to prevent further corrosion.
There are several good products and the selection depends on the application. Over at http://www.autobodystore.com/cgi-bin/config.pl?index the favorites seem to be "Picklex 20" and Zero Rust. I suggest you make a visit to that web page and post a more specific question. "Surface rust" is a little vague: is the rust on the surface of exterior sheet metal or on a structural component. Is the problem on the outside of the car or the undercarriage, etc.
You could sand blast, just use a fine grit so you dont hurt the metal.
You dont HAVE to use chemicals. HOWEVER...once you get all the rust removed I suggest coating the metal with Phoscoat. it will prevent your metal from rusting, you can prime it and you can weld through phoscoat.
yeah, sorry about being vauge, but the rust varies in severity. im buying i repro trunk lid for sure, and im replacing the lower quarter panels ( i hate this damn unibody thing, i would rather bolt on a panel b/c i havent developed my welding skills as of yet). anyways, you can see how bad it is if you dont mind looking through my homepage to find a pic of it, or i posted a pic in another thread "just joined" a couple of days ago. but ill hit up that link you provided. i just bought a air compressor and tank and sandblaster, and thought i would ask before i went to town on my car. thanks for the replies, and feel free to keep suggesting plans of attacks on any type of rust, cuz i have about any kind you can think of.