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How to protect bare metal while I do auto body work?

  • I am very new to auto body work, but am trying to learn for a project car. If I have a dent in my car, I have to sand to bare metal to repair the dent (stud welder/puller). How do I then protect the metal from rust? The car needs a LOT of body work, so something that can last for a month without maintenance would be ideal. Doesn't bare metal flash rust pretty quickly? Should I do all of my body work, cover with rattle-can primer as I go, and once finished go back around and sand everything down to bare metal and do a quality air compressor primer? Thanks!!

  • Answer:

    Phosphoric acid Also called rust remover. Skip wally world, cheap auto store stuff. All new cars get dunked into it. It "eats" into the metal. It leaves a coating of phosphorus on the metal. As long as it is on the steel, it wouldn't rust. No acid= rust eventually. The newer stuff isn't as stronger as what you could get 10 years ago (EPA BS?). My brother cleaned up a truck cab. It was left in a dirt floor barn for 1+ year with no rust. I took a truck bed, that had been sanded & left outside by previous owner. No one believed me, that I could get if off. I used a liquid type, with a pump. I got the metal clean in 2-3 days & primered it. It's under a tarp, in the weather for a year now, no rust. Do metal work, then etch the metal & use GOOD primer. I use acid etch primer first ($15 a can / auto paint store). Then DON"T sand through this primer, doing any future sanding. Then body filler. Sanding to bare metal will cause rust again. Bare metal can flash rust VERY quickly. It can happen in minutes with water on the metal.

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"Doesn't bare metal flash rust pretty quickly?" It will if you're in a pretty humid climate. Personally I've always gone the route of just giving a quick light spray with a primer spray-paint, it doesn't need to be perfect, just get a nice thin coat on the metal. If it's thin enough you can even just rub it off with some paint thinner later on, rather than having to re-sand it all down.

Reds right, gun wash/thinner will take your primer off in no time when your ready to spray. I tried coating my metal with wd-40 in my teenage years.......two words....didn't work. I'm sure Fluid Film spray would have worked but priming is the way to go.

That is a very good question that haunts every painter.Flash rust happens fast and needs to be prevented.For one thing,never prime bare metal without using an acid prep first,primer will not adhere properly without doing so.It will also remove any flash rust.This step is critical for long term success. Once properly prepared,coat the metal with a coat of primer to seal it up.Your rattle can primer idea will work if it's a quality sanding sealer type.On the next step after sanding the primer always treat any bare metal again,sanding it has destroyed the acid prepared surface.It is much better to use a 2 part primer now,the lacquer based primers now available are not durable.Obtain a bottle of a metal prep product and read the instructions carefully.

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