Rock Paint Chip Rusts - Your procedure

M

mobiledynamics

New member
So I got a rock chip on the hood that went un-noticed - literally I spied a small rust spot which made me Notice...

Anyhow, just short of the usual sand, rust converter, prime and paint, I`d be curious what techniques do ya`ll use....
Still got another 1.5 lease on this one, and well, as you all know, rust is like cancer...
 
If you have a hand like a surgeon you can use a Dremel and the smallest engraving bit. I was able to remove rust from many chips this way, my Lexus was 10 plus years old at the time and I wasn’t worried if I screwed up. I don’t know if I would try this method on a lease.

If it was my leased vehicle I would just cover it with OEM touch up paint. One trick is to thin the paint and buy the finest tip brush you can find. Walmart has a decent set of fine tip brushes in their hobby/craft section.
 
My #1, if not-too-Autopian :o answer is to just live with `em. I`ve let them go for many years (decades in the case of the Jag, before my painter got fed up and fixed `em gratis) with zero problems whatsoever. None. At all.

But OK...this is Autopia, so:

The only rust converter I liked for this specific job has been off the market for years, so I no longer use that approach. Using rust-killer chemicals (acids/etc.) isn`t my approach either as it`s too hard to keep them off the surrounding paint (and IME the effective ones aren`t paint-friendly). So I too do it mechanically.

LEDetailng said:
If you have a hand like a surgeon you can use a Dremel and the smallest engraving bit..
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Use an illuminated and magnified viewing system and a tiny diamond burr and the process is downright Accumulator-proof. Somebody with better vision might not even need the viewing system, but I find it invaluable (I have a magnifying visor fitted with LEDs). A flexible extension shaft makes it easier to control, or at least more comfortable, but isn`t essential. I stick with 240grit burrs, but you do have to go slow and clean them frequently or they won`t last long.

Yeah, it can sound scary, but it isn`t all that hard if you think it through, use the right stuff, and approach it with the right mindset.

I prime with some "paint over rust" type product (NOT POR15!!) that`ll be OK as a primer (lots of considerations there...) and then touch up with whatever seems right for that job (DrColorChips, regular t/u paint, just depends).

One trick is to thin the paint and buy the finest tip brush you can find. Walmart has a decent set of fine tip brushes in their hobby/craft section.
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I seldom go smaller than a 000/"3-Oh", especially with metallics.
 
Iron-X Paste works for me, sometimes it takes multiple hits to clean the rust, with a little agitation from a brush. Once rust is cleaned and metal looks clean, coat with an LSP or touch up.
 
TheMeanGreen said:
Iron-X Paste works for me, sometimes it takes multiple hits to clean the rust, with a little agitation from a brush. Once rust is cleaned and metal looks clean, coat with an LSP or touch up.
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Ah, I`d wondered if it were strong enough for that (VG "B" sure isn`t)! I tried their, uhm...other stuff, forget the name...and it wasn`t much stronger than the "B". Guess I gave up too soon :D

I agree with you on the LSPing, it`s not "the right fix" but it can work pretty well for practical purposes. I`ve been doing that in the Tahoe`s doorjambs where the paint is all worn away (it was deep crusty-rust when I got it).
 
Interesting feedback so far. The only metrics I have on rust is just some ornate ironwork we had at our last house. I went gangbusters on prep - angle grinder, etc, the works. Needless to say, some minute rust still existed in places where I was not going to sit there with a detail sander and get the nooks out - afterall, it`s and outside piece. 2 Years, later, I see bubbling / rust in some area. When rust exist (not sure how fast it leaches), but I do know it goes under the paint surface and spreads. I guess the question is, how longs does that take...
 
For stuff like that ironwork, try RustSeal by KBS Coatings. Whole different ballgame compared to,say... POR15. And use (the right) chemicals for the prep instead of grinding/etc. (well, after scraping/etc. off the worst of it/loose stuff). RustBlast by RustBullet is my fave for that.

What works for ironwork can work for stuff like rear axle housings too :D
 
Ha. I`m OCD about cars, when it`s under my garage and roof, regardless who the true owner is...I`m even replace trim if it get`s scuffed
 
Naval jelly has been around longer than I`ve been alive. That said, I`ve never had any kind of real success with it. So haven`t tried it again since the early 80`s.
 
Potential issue is that mild stuff that`s unlikely to do damage just isn`t as effective as stuff that "burns that rust right off". Navel Jelly wasn`t my first choice even back in the `70s, but at least it was thick enough to stay put on vertical surfaces.

mobiledynamics- For the chip on your hood I don`t think you oughta need the Rust Killer stuff like RustSeal/converter. Just grind it out with the right diamond burr on a rotary tool, use something mild enough to be paint-safe (e.g., that IronX paste) and I bet it`ll turn out OK. That`s what I did on the previous Crown Vic and it was fine when I sold it a few years later.

When I say that the grinding is "Accumulator-proof" (as opposed to, say...foolproof), I mean that it`s also Mobiledynamics-proof ;)

In the sense of "rust is like cancer", this is something that you *could* just handle with, uhm...wait-and-watch, given how you won`t be neglecting the car. (I`d not fix it, I`d compound/polish/LSP/ignore it, but we all have our different priorities.)
 
LEDetailng said:
If you have a hand like a surgeon you can use a Dremel and the smallest engraving bit. I was able to remove rust from many chips this way, my Lexus was 10 plus years old at the time and I wasn’t worried if I screwed up. I don’t know if I would try this method on a lease.

If it was my leased vehicle I would just cover it with OEM touch up paint. One trick is to thin the paint and buy the finest tip brush you can find. Walmart has a decent set of fine tip brushes in their hobby/craft section.
Click to expand...

I`ve used this method also. It was a `72 VW and there were about 30 chips, some about half the size of a dime. I then filled the chips completely with Dr Colorchip, adding mineral spirits to the blending solution which allows you to actually level it instead of removing half of it trying to get it level. It actually turned out great. That was two years ago and they still look fine.
 
I like this thread. I have a chip on the wife`s Kia that is starting to rust around the edges of the chip.

I had been thinking fall-out remover (BDX in my case) then touching up with Dr Colorchip.
 
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