zjknicks

So after getting a couple of ridiculous estimates for how much it would cost to fix my minor rust spot(s) on my car I decided I was just going to do it myself. I have some autobody experience but it was with a dump truck so the sanding was with a power sander and the painting was with a brush. Only experience I have with my car is with touch up paint. I went to autozone and purchased rustoleom primer, the closest stock spraypaint they offered to my color of car ("charcoal" if your wondering), clear coat, paint tape and a mask for sanding. My main concerns are the application of the paint. I know regular spray cans are not ideal for spraying your car and I am far from a pro with using them. I really just wanna get a smooth application of the paint. I am more than open to any advice you guys can give and will post some pics of the project.

Heres the rust spots and supplies. Total cost is up to $135. $52 for the epoxy puddy and por15 shipped. $30 for the paint and primers. $53 for the angle grinder and sanding disks.








Day 1: I took the bumper off and pulled the molding away and got to sanding and cutting out some of the worthless rusted out metal....I found a power buffer that I forgot about, tried to make it into a power sander, didn't work LOL (altho it would have if the surface was as big as the sanding disc). Sanding by hand for now. Oh and I also ordered epoxy puddy and por15.




before:

progress:


day 2:
these parts are giving me the biggest problems getting all the pitted rust out


pulled back the molding further and found more hiding rust....sooo sanded the rest of the wheel well


day 3:
So I broke down and found a cheap angle grinder for $45. The sanding disk was $8. So worth it, you guys were right. Finished sanding and put on Marine Prep today. I Used a 5:1 water/marine prep ratio.

bumper

right fender


right door


...more to come

Hawkze_2.3

Pics of rust spots?

Dioxine

My advice is to use an angle grinder with a wire brush head (not a grinding wheel). Goes a lot faster and gets everything out. When your done your gonna have pit spots that you will need to bondo most likely if the rust is deep enough. Just make sure you get all the rust out cause if you dont get it all, it will just rust out again. Rustolem can only slow the process dramatically, not stop it all together. Painting is just something you have to learn, practice on something you dont care about first till you get it down. Patience is the key, dont rush it. Ive painted an entire car with a spray can and you couldnt even tell (except that it wasnt shiny). Granted it was good paint and it had the fan nozzle and not the cirlce one.

zjknicks

I think you guys are overestimating the size of the rust spots. I don't own an angle grinder or power sander of any sort so I plan on sanding by hand. I will upload the pictures so you have a better idea of what I am dealing with. I also am not going to bother with bondo unless upon seeing the rust you guys really recommend it. I just have no idea what I am doing with bondo and don't really want to venture into it unless its necessary.

94EG8

The door needs to be sandblasted and the seamsealed and painted again. The rust on the quarter needs to be cut out and new piece needs to be welded in. Sandpaper isn`t going to fix either spot.

Dioxine

Indeed. That rust is far past the service. You will be left with holes going all the way through the metal if you remove all the rust. Sanding that down with sandpaper will get you nowhere.

Hawkze_2.3

Yeah, that's going to take a lot more than the supplies you have there to fix properly. At minimum a grinder or sandblaster to remove the infected metal....

zjknicks

So you guys are saying if I sand down all that and paint it with primer and spray paint it wont help at all? I'm not sure if I agree....

Dioxine

Then do it. In 3 months it will start to bubble up the paint again. You can cover the problem, but its not going to stop it. You asked for our advice and you got it.

94EG8

Yes. You need to get rid of all the rust, all of it, and that just can't be done by sanding. You need a sandblaster. As far as the rear quarter goes it's basically just mush where the paint is blistered, remember they rust from the inside out, so it's worse than it looks.

I'm just telling you from personal expirence if you want a repair that will last at all it needs to be done right. Also spray paint doesn't do a very good job of sealing metal it tends to blister the paint within a few months, you really need proper paint and a paint gun to do it right.

andypwnz

okay, so i'm on my third year of college collision and repair so i think i know my way around this kind of thing (haha)

i'm going to assume you don't have any kind of specialty tools. and i'm not going to tell you to go out and buy them.
yes air sander and grinders are helpful, but in all reality you can do everything an air powered sander can do by hand if you take the time and elbow grease

heres what we do in class basically minus air tools (if someone wants to criticize me on this, go ahead but i hope you've been to school yourself)

1. sand the rust with a coarse grit sand paper 36 to start and then finish with some 80
make sure you can't see any rust (or else it'll just come right back)

2. if you want you can spray the bare metal with some kind of rust inhibitor

3.you'll see pits from where the rust was. those need to be filled with bondo.
if the body is rusted all the way through then you should really weld the holes closed or weld a piece of sheet metal where the hole is. it really depends on the size of the holes from the rust.
^but all that grinding and welding requires tools so just put some bondo in there and call it good. really, it's not gonna fall apart in a month or whatever people 'say' maybe a year, but you have to work with what you've got. right?

4.you have to sand down the bondo and basically make it flush to the naked eye with the rest of the car. imperfections show up more with paint over it so if it looks bad here it will look worse when you paint it. ohh and sand the bondo with 220 grit sand paper and use a block.

5.more rust inhibitor (you can never be too careful, especially cuz you probably sanded off apt that was around the bondo

6.spray atleast 3 even coats of primer. i've always used sand able primer just because you get a better finish out of it. the primer serves two purposes remember. not only to give the paint a good cold background but also to fill the scratches from sanding the metal/bondo. but anyways i usually sand the primer with no lower than 400 grit sand paper and be careful not to sand all the way through to the bondo underneath.

7. then all you have to do is spray 3 coats or so of paint over the repaired area. if its not single stage paint then you need to spray another three of clear coat and you're done

one other thing, before you do any painting, be sure to clean the area with something like mineral spirits or lacquer thinner. and make sure it totally dries before you paint (duh)

i know this is a lot to read but i hope this helps you out!

Hawkze_2.3

Obviously it will help some, but it will just be a band-aid....temporary. You cannot get all the rust out with sandpaper, especially the sandpaper you have, so it will come back pretty quick because rattle can paint is very thin and somewhat porous.

Rust always goes much deeper than what you can see on the outside. If you don't want to fix the metal, you can grind out the rust and put on a few coats of POR15 for a much better chance of stopping that rust.

andypwnz

POR15 FTW

zjknicks

thanks so much man...gonna go out get some heavier duty sandpaper, bondo, rust inhibitor & and go to work!!

atleast you realized what I was trying to get out of this thread instead of saying "you need a sandblaster or it just won't be done right". Obviously I know the job is not going to be done as good as if I had a proper spray gun and a sandblaster people........even the autobody place couldn't promise the rust wouldn't come back so w/e....I am gonna try and do it myself and we will see what happens. **Pics to come....

Oh and PS: i'm doing this in my garage...and the paint can says 60-90* F but its def not that warm around me (tri-state area)...does that matter alot?

94EG8

I'm in no way trying be a dick or anything here, but the rust you have just plain can't be taken care of with sandpaper. Especially by hand, it will become very clear very quickly when you start this project. That and the rear quarter where it's bubbled is basically just rust and paint, you're going to have some holes when you're done. Just so you know you can buy a cheap suction type sandblaster for very little money (I think the one I have was around $20) a bag of zero sand is about $10 and a compressor can be rented pretty cheaply.

Yes it does. Sometimes the paint will dry funny, I've seen blue come out flat grey in the cold.

Hawkze_2.3

You mean at least he gave you the answer YOU wanted to hear....clearly you didn't want help or advice, just reassurance for your own idea. Sanding the rust down just won't get rid of it, plain and simple. If that is what you want, then you have total freedom to do whatever to your own car....but the rust will still be there.

Definitely wait until the temp is above the recommended temp You want the solvents to evaporate properly.

zjknicks

not really my man....I wanted advice on how to do it best with the materials I have....telling me to go buy a sandblaster and spray gun to do it is unrealistic and unhelpful, has nothing to do with what I 'want' to hear. Thats like responding to some starving africa's thread labeled 'i'm hungry, whats the best way to capture a wild animal with this knife I have?' and then you tell him 'well obviously you need a rifle to do it right and get a sustainable amount of food.'

joeshmo

It's like saying: Hey guys, how can I fix this hole in the hoover dam? I have some duct tape, 5 minute epoxy and a cork.

zjknicks

hahah touche...analogy duel?? but yea not really because one is impossible and one is just way more time consuming and will probably not look nearly as good but i am willing to accept that

joeshmo

Here's the bottom line: removing all rust on the surface and painting over can help if the rust started at the surface and spread. Often times, the locations you have posted have rust that starts from the inside and works its way outward (water sits in the bottoms of the doors, condensation on the inside of the rear quarters.) In these situations, you are simply covering the rust and doing little, if anything, to prevent it. Sure, you can rebuild body panels out of fiberglass and bondo and it may last for a while (sometimes even years) but it usually doesn't solve the problem.

But, if you really feel the need to do it this way, do it the best you can. Sand out EVERY LAST TRACE of the rust (if it hasn't rusted all the way through.) Sand outwards from the rust spot to make sure you've gotten it all (rust can hide under good paint.) Any holes from sanding must be fixed using fiberglass or kittyhair bondo (I'm assuming you can't weld, so that method is out.) Then smooth out using bondo and the block. It'll be a big project and likely only last a small time.

Dioxine

If you are set on doing it and your not gonna wait till warmer tempuraters at least leave the can of paint inside untill the moment you are ready to paint. If you dont it will just come out in splatters.

And im pretty sure the rear quarter panel is rusted all the way through. There will be nothing left to paint it will just start falling out a soon as you sand through the paint.

zjknicks

yea I plan on keeping the paint inside my house until I start painting...as for the quarter panel your talking about the part behind the bubbled paint right? if so I agree I plan on having to bondo that.

Dioxine

Good luck. And take your time.

zjknicks

day 1 pics up

Dioxine

Not bad for sanding it by hand