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I need to carry out some minor rust removal on my 72 Midget.
Since this will be my first time doing body- and paintwork
I am slightly at a loss as which primer to use.
I though of using hamerite for the places which will be
covered by underbody seal, since someone told me that this
gives the best protection if I don't have to spray it over.
But which primer should I use for the visible places which will be
sprayed over?
I saw some rust eaters which work as primers too. I was wondering
if this will give additional rust protection just in case some
microblisters of rust remain after wirebrushing.
or should I use a zinc primer (the heritage bodyshells have a
zinc primed underbody and if it works well for them ...)?
or what about these "two pack" or epoxy primers someone mentioned
on the MG mailing list ?
Any comments/suggestions greatly appreciated ...
I have had lots of experience of rusty cars, and in my opinion, the
Finnigans stuff (hammerite, No.1 etc.) is useless on panels WHICH ALREADY
HAVE RUSTED. Zinc is fine, if dipped on a new panel (Galvanising is by
far the best method: porsche have a 25+ year old galvanised bodyshell on
display outside in Germany with no rust.)
If you have a rusty panel, it is imperitave that you clean off all visible
oxidation, and then sand/grind/blast a bit further. The best primers I
have seen are Corroless (the RED one, not grey or white; they use it on
oil rigs!) and Wurst Ruststop (this is the best, but it costs 35 quid for
750 ml!!!)
Don't waste time, money and effort on Zinc with a rusty panel.
Good Luck!, and e-mail if you want any other help with corrosion.
Someone tell me why didn't they galvanise them in the first place? (a bodyshell
costs <250 quid if you do several...)
Scraping, wire brushing, sanding, and grinding then "Coroless". Can plastic filler or fiberglass be used instead of cutting out rusty metal and welding in new metal without rust reoccurring? Can a new metal repair panel be spot welded over a "Coroless" treated panel and be stucturally sound without rust returning? Can a brushed on "Coroless" treated area be smoothed on an exterior panel for an acceptable paint job?
By all means use filler, but ignore instructions to apply filler on
bare metal.
Put the primer on the any bare metal around the whole, paying special attention
to the edge of the hole.
Ensure primer has completely hardened before applying filler, and when
sanding or filing filler, try not to go back to bare metal.
Also a v.good idea to inject waxoyl through hole before filling.
The primer to use before welding is any 'weldable' zinc primer. Eastwood
do one, and apparently the very act of welding makes the zinc fuse to the
body panel better.
I would only use this paint in the area of the pasnel that you are going
to weld.
If you're patient, and progress through enough grades of wet&dry, you
can brush on corroless to an outer panel. It is possible to spray it, too.
Finally, I would say that there is NO permanent paint to cure rust. At
the risk of repeating myself,
the only way to stop rust permanently is to hot dip galvanise.
This is the second time hot dip galvanising has sprung up.
Is that really an option for body panel ? Aren't the panels
distorted by the heat ? On the other hand AUDI's are fully zinced these
days
so I guess it might work.
I was thinking of reshelling my midget in one year or
so. Has anybody an idea if galvanising the bodyshell is
possible and how much it would apx. be ?
thanks, Eric
Firstly, it is true that if a panel is left in the zinc for too long,
or the zinc
is too hot, then large flat (i.e uncurved!) surfaces can ripple very slightly.
This
should not happen if the job is done properly.
Secondly, I have looked into buying a new shell and having it galvanised.
Apparently heritage
will not supply an unpainted shell (they zinc-phosphate dip them, which
is better than than the
original paint, but nowhere near as good as galvanising.)
So, if you were to have a new shell done, you would have to have the paint
shot-blasted off (and hollow sections
heated to burn off the paint.) I have had estimates of around 1200 pounds
for the full job.
That said, the car would still be around long after the oil reserves have
gone!