Sealing weld seams and painting chassis questions

[Fatherofthree13]

Started really getting rolling on my full pan project. I have it completely stripped and am taking a wire wheel to it all. One thing I noticed when I started cleaning up the pan was the black, rock hard substance they had covering welds and seams. What was it, and how do I properly replace it? My second question is what should I paint the chassis with? I am taking it down to bare metal. It's surprisingly pretty rust free, but far from perfect.

[Dale M.]

On my restore/build I "brushed " on Rustoleum primer and then used Rustoleum semigloss black as color coat...

Reason for brushing, you can flow paint (primer) into seams better than spraying...

You can probably get away with almost any good "chassis" type paint usually made for tractor or farm implements and truck frames it's probably more durable than average paint....

Dale
_________________
“Fear The Government That Wants To Take Your Guns" - Thomas Jefferson.

"Kellison Sand Piper Roadster" For Street & Show.
"Joe Pody Sandrover" Buggy with 2180 for Autocross (Sold)
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All suggestions and advice are purely my own opinion. You are free to ignore them if you wish ...

[Fatherofthree13]

I am taking it down to bare metal. Should I use a self etching primer? Where did you get your primer, and how much did it take?

[ammocan]

any self etching primer of a reputable brand I think will work fine. I had my chassis blasted then used a self etching primer. I painted my chassis with black gloss tractor paint and added a hardener. I brushed it on and it worked beautifully. I agree with the notion that brushing works better than spraying. i felt confident that by brushing it on i was able to get the paint to seal all the joints and corners. the tractor paint with the hardener was great stuff. it leveled out nice and was very hard.

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skill comes by the constant repetition of familiar feats, not by one over bold attempt at a feat for which the doer is yet poorly prepared

[rodjr]

If you are going to metal, I suggest por15 cleaner followed by metal prep then chassis black. Super easy, spray on cleaner with a household spray bottle and hose off, Same for the metal prep except let it sit wet for 20 minutes before you hose it off, leaves an almost galvanized surface perfect for the chassis black.
Seal the seams with por15 patch, nice stuff comes in tube like auto silicone and is thin enough to get in tight spots but thick enough not to run.
Shoot chassis black on easy with a $20 cup gun from H.F. and you have a finish that is tuff as powder coat and looks great. I have been working on mine a while and have tried plenty of times (accidentally) to chip or scratch it with hammers, wrenches and screw drivers, not even a tiny chip or scratch so far.
I shot mine with Raptor liner while the por15 was still "green"

how the bare metal looks after the metal prep treatment, next i sealed the seams with the patch, i don't have a pic of that step. I also used All metal filler where needed after the metal prep, sanded and wiped a bit more prep on areas i sanded bare again.

Then, chassis black, first a very light coat, 30 minutes and a wet coat. I shot the front of the pan on day 1 with the rear torsion tube so i could stand on end for day 2, let it dry overnight. Took about 3/4 of a quart to do everything.

Raptor liner, also you can see the sheen of how the chassis black dries on the rear torsion tube. the whole process was done in 1 weekend. More money than tractor paint but this stuff is seriously tuff as nails, worth every penny.

[ammocan]

I should say that I did not stop with the tractor paint. I then coated the chassis with a bed liner as well. Cant have too much protection for your chassis. I will say though power coating is not the magic some people believe it is. With numerous joints corners and such it has a tendency to leave openings in the finish you cannot see.
_________________
skill comes by the constant repetition of familiar feats, not by one over bold attempt at a feat for which the doer is yet poorly prepared

[rodjr]

[ammocan]

Rodjr could you post a picture of this metal prep stuff? it sounds like awesome stuff
_________________
skill comes by the constant repetition of familiar feats, not by one over bold attempt at a feat for which the doer is yet poorly prepared

[rodjr]

My first pic above is how it looks when done, Some parts do turn brownish but this is NOT rust, i send parts out from work to galvanizing as well as zinc plate, i also see this color at times with those parts.

Here is the stuff:

Oh, here is the seam sealer, works awesome!

[Fatherofthree13]

Tons of great information . I am leaning toward the tractor paint with a good etching primer. I think I am going to do my trailing arms,transmission,and front beam in a silver and the rest in black

[32vsnake]

sandblasted the pan for my buggy and then brushed on Por15

The front beam was primed and sprayed with Nason 2K and it could just as well been done with Por15

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VW's hate me

[Tha Driver]

[rodjr]

True, some por15 products are not uv resistant, however The por 15 Chassis Black is a top coat and is uv resistant.

[Fatherofthree13]

I keep hearing about por 15 but from what I have read, it needs rust to adhere to? I don’t have any rust. Am I reading it wrong? I was also told that I could use 3m window weld as seam sealer?

[Dale M.]

POR 15 likes to bond to rust.... Is it necessary, probably not, leave chassis outside for a few days in the weather, it will form micro thin rust film....Then apply Por 15... As for seam sealers go to auto paint and body materials suppliers shop and get regular auto body seam sealer... IT is better than the stuff the comes on cars from factory....

Something like this may be what you are looking for...

http://www.eastwood.com/ew-brush-on-seam-sealer-qu...MrEALw_wcB

Dale
_________________
“Fear The Government That Wants To Take Your Guns" - Thomas Jefferson.

"Kellison Sand Piper Roadster" For Street & Show.
"Joe Pody Sandrover" Buggy with 2180 for Autocross (Sold)
============================================================
All suggestions and advice are purely my own opinion. You are free to ignore them if you wish ...

[32vsnake]

Lightly rusted surfaces are considered best but media blasted metal has enough roughness for por15 to bond with.
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VW's hate me

[Wetstuff]

I had less than happy results over the long term (5+yrs) with POR—sheet flaking. Zero-Rust seems to have worked better because it did not create a 'shell'. ...'just one person's experience.

Jim
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Manx #2614

[rodjr]

[Fatherofthree13]

Well I am sold on the por 15. Will a quart be enough? A gallon n seems like too much?

[rodjr]

Quart will do it, with one very light coat (If you go to thick on the first one it is easy to run) followed by a wet coat an hour or so later, you will have a bit left over, MAYBE you could get a third coat, assuming you are spraying it. It dries best when the humidity is high, if it is very dry, it takes a while. I would use the chassis black if you are not going over the top with anything (because it is uv resistant). Also get a quart of the por15 solvent, makes cleanup a lot easier and if you should want to thin at all you will be able to. Wear GLOVES, once it is on your skin, It is there till the skin comes off.