Massive dent. How do I protect this until I have the money to fix it?

danktaco- Welcome to Autopia!

Just do a quickie version of what really needs done, absent fixing the dent.

-Clean area with pre-paint solvent
-Remove rust via abrasion being careful to NOT expand the area of damage (I like diamond burrs on a rotary tool)
-Treat area that was rusted with some rust-killer product, *NOT* a Rust Converter (I like Metal Blast by Rust Bullet)
-Prime area with something that`ll adhere to the damaged area and that won`t be affected by any residual rust (I like KBS Coatings` Rust Seal or Rust Bullet)
-Topcoat (within the allowable window of time for topcoating the previously used product) with touchup paint

Depending on how well you do the above, you might find you`re able to live with/ignore it a lot longer than you`d expect. But even if it looks [crappy] it`ll be protected from the salt. Not that I`d really worry much about that...Noting that I live in a rust/salt area, I`ve had surface-rusted bare metal stay OK for decades without proper treatment (sometimes without much of any treatment at all!), IME the trick is to just keep it reasonably clean.

But if you`re gonna do anything at all, I urge you to do it at least to the standard I described using products that really work. People try to DIY it with, uhm....suboptimal...products/methods and then it turns out to be a waste of resources and sometimes even makes the eventual/proper repair harder.
 
Accumulator said:
danktaco- Welcome to Autopia!

-Prime area with something that`ll adhere to the damaged area and that won`t be affected by any residual rust (I like KBS Coatings` Rust Seal or Rust Bullet)
-Topcoat (within the allowable window of time for topcoating the previously used product) with touchup paint
Click to expand...

Hey thanks for that super informative answer. You pretty much gave me all the info I needed.

I just have two follow up questions.

One, what care should i take regarding the transition from bare to painted surface regarding the Prime and Top Coat steps.

Two, I DD my car and since the weather has already started to get cold I may not be able to complete all of this in one sitting due to wait time between coatings and having to borrow a warm garage. How can i split up the steps? I guess I can just tape plastic over the area if I need to take it out in the elements.
 
For a temporary topcoat I would consider Plasti-Dip. It`s rubberized composition will keep moisture out, but you will need to keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn`t get scratched or abraded since it is somewhat soft and not permanent.
 
danktaco said:
One, what care should i take regarding the transition from bare to painted surface regarding the Prime and Top Coat steps.
Click to expand...

Given the nature of this particular fix, I wouldn`t worry too much about that transition.

-The solvent will clean up that whole area, the damaged part and the surrounding.
-You should keep the rust killer stuff (e.g., Metal Blast) only on the exposed metal and areas surrounding that which will get covered with the touchup paint (don`t expect to wipe any off).
-Also keep the primer/RustSeal/Rust Bullet off anything you won`t be covering with touchup paint (don`t expect to wipe any of that stuff off either).
-Let the touchup paint overflow a *LITTLE* onto the surrounding/OK paint. Don`t worry about trying to level it and *DO NOT* try wetsanding it.

Keep in mind that "the nature of this job" part...this is a quick-and-dirty fix that`s gonna show. A proper fix will simply require having a Pro do it.

Two, I DD my car and since the weather has already started to get cold I may not be able to complete all of this in one sitting due to wait time between coatings and having to borrow a warm garage. How can i split up the steps? I guess I can just tape plastic over the area if I need to take it out in the elements.
Click to expand...

That "cover with plastic" might work OK, but yeah..your circumstances aren`t optimal. If it`s too cold the RustSeal/etc. and touchup paint won`t dry/cure properly and they *WILL* need some hours in that warm garage or IMO this just isn`t gonna work.

Sorry, I`m just not the best guy to ask *that* particular Q as I`ve always had a heated garage to work in and alternate vehicles to use, so your conditions sound mighty challenging to me!

Oh, something does come to mind- buy *good* masking tape. Cheap stuff leaves nasty residue and might cause additional issues. 3M stuff (they make a few different ones) always works OK for me. Use that if you need to protect the area of operation with the plastic between the primer step and the touchup paint (but see additional thought at bottom of this post).

I`d think of it as three separate/adjacent fixes:
-The big scratch at the top of the pic
-The two "big areas" in the middle, which I`d think of as one really big spot
-The less-awful scratch at the bottom

Additional thought- You could just kill the rust, apply the RustSeal/Rust Bullet, and leave it at that for now. It`d look like a "primered repair-in-progress", which some people would think is OK and others would think is awful but it`d do the "keep this from spreading and getting serious" job just fine. If you go that route, I`d probably use Rust Encapsulator from Eastwood instead of RustSeal/RustBullet as it`s more UV-stable (RustSeal will get milky/chalky/yucky lookng with UV exposure but will be OK functionally). Yeah, I usually prefer RustSeal. And Rust Bullet has worked well for me when topcoated. Rust Encapsulator has always worked OK, but it`s a bit more sensitive about what touchup paint you use on top of it; not an issue if you just leave it looking like a primered spot. RustSeal/RustEncapsulator will work OK untopped if you get a few coats on there, unlike regular primers (which are porous).

I myself would do this instead of the PlastiDip because IMO it`d require less careful maintenance and you won`t run the same risk of have to redo it (possibly in the middle of winter when this would be even more challenging) because the temporary fix was more temporary than expected. Do it as described and it`ll almost be good enough for a paint shop to just sand-reprime-and-paint. Nah, heh heh...sorry, it won`t really be *that* good, but the thought did come to mind ;)
 
One more thing- I`d mask off around the area of operation. Just as a precaution along the lines of "things happen". I`d sure hate for something to go haywire and for you to feel like you made things worse, and just protecting anything that`s not already messed up oughta take that off the table.
 
Also be cautious of having plastic over it as if sun comes out and heats up the area condensation can collect underneath making opportune conditions for rust to start


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Hey, that`s a good point...that didn`t occur to Yours Truly :o

I`d worry less about rust starting than the moisture messing with the (still-curing) RustSeal/etc. Won`t be an issue once that stuff dries completely, but could be in the meantime. Eh, I bet that if it sits for a few hours in the warm garage it`ll be OK, and if you skip the topcoat with touchup paint it shouldn`t matter. But you would want to get to that "RustSeal/etc. has been applied and it has dried" point before venturing out from the garage.
 
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