Help with Rust Spot

A

ames905

New member
Hello, there is some very helpful information on this forum about getting rid of rust spots and I feel like I know the basics to it. However, I just want to make sure that there would not be a more efficient way at tackling this spot I have on my car (it is very small, no longer than 1 cm and half a cm wide). In previous posts, I read about 3m's Rust Avenger, but I can't find it anymore, so I found Griot's

Touch-Up Kit. Would this work just as well as the 3m product, and would I need anything else to get rid of this spot? Are there any better alternatives? Here is a (terrible quality, I apologize for my bad camera and picture-taking skills) picture of the spot, where you can just make out the rusty color on the spot where the white (I'm assuming this is primer) is: Picture



What do you guys think? Thanks for your help, I appreciate it and Happy Holidays!
 
ames905- Welcome to Autopia!



Skip the Griot's kit. The sanding tool is OK but I'd get it from MicroMark (do a google) and get some refills for it.



Those disposable brushes aren't too great IMO; you'd do a lot better with artists' brushes (I sure do).



Not sure what rust converter to recommend with the 3M stuff gone, but there are others out there...maybe "rust bullet" or something like that.
 
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Accumulator said:
ames905- Welcome to Autopia!\r\n\r\nSkip the Griot\'s kit. The sanding tool is OK but I\'d get it from MicroMark (do a google) and get some refills for it.\r\n\r\nThose disposable brushes aren\'t too great IMO; you\'d do a lot better with artists\' brushes (I sure do).\r\n\r\nNot sure what rust converter to recommend with the 3M stuff gone, but there are others out there...maybe \"rust bullet\" or something like that.
Click to expand...
\r\n\r\nThank you for the warm welcome Accumulator :) I found a few of the products that you suggested. would these be the sanding tools from MicroMarK? \r\n\r\nI figured I would pick up some artists\' brushes from there as well. As for the rust converter, is this the Rust bullet formula? I have seen people recommend Eastwood converters, is this a good alternative? I\'m kind of confused between part \"A\" and \"B\". What would you recommend?\r\n\r\nFinally, am I missing anything in the process (sorry, I am an inexperienced female trying to figure this out hehe)? \r\n1) Use the sander to get rid of as much rust as I can and clean up the spot\r\n2) Apply the rust converter\r\n3) Apply primer (am I missing a step here?)\r\n4) Apply paint\r\n\r\nHow am I doing? Thank you again for your help so far Accumulator, I really appreciate it.'
 
ames905- For some reason your links aren't working for me :nixweiss But I suspect you've found the right stuff.



I wasn't all that impressed with the Eastwood rust converter, sorta surprised (and disappointed) me.



First, clean the area with something like rubbing alcohol. Then use the abrasive pen-tool to remove the rust (work at it a for a while, even after it looks OK). Then apply the Rust Bullet stuff and let it dry (use enough for *GOOD* coverage/conversion.



Then start with the touchup paint. The converter will work for the "primer" so just go with the basecoat/colorcoat. Don't quite fill the area as high as the original paint. After the color/base coat dries, apply a few coats of clear to build it up a *little* higher than the original paint.



Then level the "blob"/bump of touchup clear with either a Langka-type system or by wetsanding (and the requisite subsequent polishing out of the wetsanding marks). OR, just leave the blob of excess paint there. I do that a lot and it doesn't look all that bad...sometimes better than the results of the leveling efforts.



There are some threads here that explain the whole process better than I did, they might be worth searching for.



Oh, and heh heh, IMO...you women can often do a whole *lot* of "guy stuff" better than most men; you don't suffer from testosterone induced stupidity ;)
 
'I apologize about the non working links, I don\'t know what happened either, here they are in order:\r\n\r\n1 \r\n\r\nrust bullet This is made for automobiles, so I am assuming this is the better one? Have you tried either version?\r\n\r\nI have one question on the sanding, how much do I sand off? Should I just make sure all of the brown stuff is gone or should I go further and take off the primer as well? Should I be concerned with the rust spreading underneath the paint adjacent to it? Is that even possible? Thank you again.'
 
ames905 said:
... Should I be concerned with the rust spreading underneath the paint adjacent to it? Is that even possible? Thank you again.'
Click to expand...



It would depend on why the rust has appeared and where it is. The surface bubbling rust could simply be a weakness in the paint or at a joint, which has allowed water to interact with the metal or it might indicate a more serious problem....



If in doubt, take the car to a bodyshop and ask for a quote, this would give a good indication on the seriousness of the problem
 
ames905- Reading that product info (I've never used any Rust Bullet products), I can't help but wonder if it'll be compatible with the touchup paint; some such products aren't. I just don't know, sorry. Too bad the rust converter I used is no longer on the market, it was an easy answer to this sort of thing.



See if you can ask the Rust Bullet folks whether their product is lacquer-soluble; most touchup paint is lacquer-based.



It pays to sand back beyond the visible rust to make sure it hasn't crept farther than it looks like. Note that this mechanical rust removal is a little trickier than it might seem as any microscopic rust can still come back to haunt you later. I'd take it down to bare metal at least 1/4"-3/8" around the visible rust/chip.



If all this is giving you pause, you might take Lowejackson's advice and see what a (reputable) body shop says. Even pros sometimes have trouble with seemingly simple repairs of this nature, and if the price is reasonable it might be better than doing it yourself. I don't mean for that to be discouraging though, so if/when you need more info/advice post back so we can help as best we can.
 
Thank you so much both of you guys. You know what, I'm going to call up the body shop tomorrow morning and tell them to look at it. Once I get some information about what I'm really dealing with then I'll see what I can do. From what I can guess it looks like isolated surface rust, because the paint surrounding it looks perfectly normal and level, but I'll let you guys know what they find. Thanks again guys for your help :)
 
ames905 said:
I'm going to call up the body shop tomorrow morning and tell them to look at it. ... From what I can guess it looks like isolated surface rust..
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Could be they'll make you an offer you can't (reasonably) refuse :D Some repairs like that are a piece of cake for a pro but a major project for a DIYer. My painter has talked me out of DIYing a few repairs by offering to do the work for next to nothing.
 
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