First, with very thin metal, do NOT remove any rust. After welding is completed, POR 15 inside and out. POR recommends two coats. At this point you have 5 thicknesses instead of one. Two POR on the outside one thin metal two POR inside. There is nothing wrong with more additional coats of POR. You will be pleased with how much stiffer your body will be. For additional stiffness: On the inside where it wont show, apply a cloth between first and second coats of POR. The cloth can be fibreglas cloth, (not mat) or bed sheets or old Tshirts, doesnt matter You are looking to build up thickness, and strength I have done this with good results.
No offense but that is pretty half assed. Will it work, yes. Is it good fabrication? Not at all. As I said before it is a bandaid, I think everyone at some time tried similar cheesy repairs.
Tman You are good at expressing negative comments. I hope your boat sinks and your mother is unable to raise help, as she runs, barking along the shore. A brand new Model T body with brand new sheetmetal is extremely flimsy. A ninety year old body can use any help it can get. How can it be done? There is no 'correct, proper' way except new metal. So, a strong "cheesy' coating that holds up and doesnt look bad must be accepted
T shirts and epoxy? Come on man, I was pretty polite in that reply but you gotta admit it is a half assed repair. Sure you can get away with it. As for the steel, Henry liked 19ga from early 20s Ts up into the 30s+, so that is not an excuse.
I think that tman is correct. The correct way to fix it is with metal, anything else is just a bandaid. It all comes down to time and money and what you consider good. If you can live with a half ass fix then more power to you. If you want it to last longer than a year then you should do it the correct way. My personal opinion is Blast then replace with new metal. The better you get it in metal the better you will feel when you put paint on it. Good luck, Jon.
I gotta say. I had a fat fendered coupe that the guy before me glassed the floor rather than replace it. It was like iron. Stiff and solid. Painted it and away we went. That floor will hold up forever. I saw before pics of the floor and it was full of pinholes and so forth. Not metal like the purist like but just as sturdy and to me a very acceptable way to go with no welding required.
Metal prep and hours of steel wooling by hand ,Snyders have wood kits ......Buy the kit make templates and return the kit .Not my style .....
Yeah, I guess I didn't really communicate that well. My intention was to find out a way to get the metal clean/stripped of the rust so that repairs can be made. I didn't want to stress or wear out the steel unnecessarily. Stripping does seem the way to go and if I can't find a local that does it, I am confident it's a project I can tackle on my own. On another note, I've got an update on the roadster I'll be putting up later. I just got home from a loooong night at the casino and I should have been waking up about the time I'm going to bed.
I am going to try and fiond that Picklex locally or maybe order some to try out. I am fortunate tho, I have a pal with a blaster and portable compressor to haul out to the ranch. Blast my own stuff out back
Here's an update on what I've done so far, based on the help from this thread. I borrowed a blaster from Chris at Salt Flats Speed Shop and got two buckets of sand from the blaster when I dropped the frame off to him. My compressor tank is a little undersized so it took a lot longer. However, I was able to really clean up the body. After blasting, I went over the body with 120 grit sanding disks. I got it from this: To this: Next, after the metal work, I'm going to clean up the steel and ready it for prep/paint. Picklex sounds good but if I cannot get it in time I may go at it with something else. What that something else is, I'm not sure. I'll update this thread once I get there. Thanks again, folks!
Just ordered some Picklex 20, so we'll see how it goes once it gets here. Here's some info on it. __________________ Brent...Great outcome in bare metal! I'm just starting on my '27 Touring, I replaced the rear section as the T had been in a fire on the right rear...the fire cleaned the metal thoroughly, and rusted it from the rear door jam clear across the rear center section. A friend is building a bucket, sold me his rear touring half, with doors. But I was concerned with the front, as there is lots of rust. I have a sandblaster, and know to go 'easy'...but am very interested in 'Picklex 20'. What kind of $$ is a gallon? Thanks for your in-depth study.
Mike, It's not cheap. I just spent $40 on a 16 oz bottle. Supposedly it'll do 200 square feet, which I'm estimating should be enough for this project. Yet, if it takes care of the tiny areas the blaster and sanding didn't get, the peace of mind down the road will be worth more than that $40. If you look at the link I posted there'll be an online store link, the gallon was $139 but that'll do 1600 square feet and I'm sure that's entirely TOO MUCH. I'm going to be frugal when I spray/wipe and as it's immediately wiped off, I'll be sure to use the dampened cloth to cover more area.
If its not deep rust try a 3m purple wheel some scotch brite wheels. If it starts sparking its grinding metal away. Also tapping the spinning wheel on rust holes will clean down in them.
Brent, Wow,the body looks really great! Been following your build, & really like it. Let me know how the Picklex works out. I have been pleasantly surprised at what it does. One word of caution. I am NOT by any stretch a paint expert, but I know that with Picklex you have to be a little careful using etch primer over areas treated with it. Not 100% sure why, but I think it is because the etch primer can have some funky reactions with the acid in the Picklex, since many etch primers have some form of acid in it to etch the bare metal. Again, I am NOT an expert on this though. But, applying a direct to metal epoxy primer is not a problem, just skip using a primer that requires using an etch primer first. A good direct to metal epoxy will be fine. Here's a link with some info on this, this is where I bought my Picklex from: http://autobodystore.net/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=P20&Category_Code=RCAC There is also a good forum @ that sight with lots of paint/primer advice. Len is a great source of info on the forum & by calling the autobody store. Keep the updates coming Brent, looks great Dan
Thanks Dan, I recently read a similar caution and the reasoning was something to the fact that the etchant "etches" through the layer created by the Picklex 20's conversion/chemical reaction. So others know, Picklex 20 is the product used for painting and Picklex is the product used for powder coat. As well, I read that epoxy primer is the primer of choice. Thanks for the compliment, by the way. It means a lot coming from someone with an incredible build like yours.
Eastwood gel rust dissolved would be the ticket here. http://www.eastwood.com/eastwood-s-gel-rust-dissolver.html
Hey, where were you two when I needed you? Hahaha. I agree that it's pricey. Weighing pros, cons, and no definite answers has lead me to try it out. Even at $40, like I stated above, if it does the trick and treats all the minute stuff, I'll be satisfied.
The experiment continued today. I picked up some Naval Jelly for the turtle deck, which had a layer of surface rust on its underside. Per the instructions, I cleaned up the surface. I used a flap disk (80 grit) and blew it of with compressed air. Afterward, I applied a liberal amount of jelly with a brush and worked it in. The directions called for it to be removed after 10-20 minutes. I followed the directions to the letter and the results were minimal, at best. I could get more accomplished with a light blasting and a 120 grit flap disk or certainly with the flap disk alone. I used baking soda to neutralize the phosphoric acid. I poured a half box or so into a bucked and added water. With a new brush, I covered the whole body. The consistency of the mixture was a little thicker than milk. In consideration of the time and result of this process I would NOT suggest it. I don't know what kind of paint is on the turtle deck, it's porous and allows oxidation on top of it but it seemed impervious to the naval jelly. The was rust removal beneath the turtle deck after two applications but not anything that I'd say would be satisfactory (to me).
This is a great thread. I'd be afraid to get my '32 body blasted because I'd be left with a pile of rust afterwards haha!!! Actually there's a lot of really nice metal on there now that the quarters are completely off. I might start with a wirebrush on a angle grinder and see where that gets me first. I tried A MUST FOR RUST and NAVAL JELLY on a friend's merc and it yielded minimal results. Might be good for surface but if you have any pits forget it. I am hoping to figure out what to do for the inside under the braces and such. I have some time though....
The Jalopy Journal
