What rust repair process is best?

[morgant]

I've been a POR-15 guy for the last 5+ years, but the multi-step process can be tedious. It's nice in Vermont that it likes humidity and will cure faster, but I do most of my repairs outdoors so sometimes I wish for only one or two drying processes instead of the 5+ (MarineClean, Metal Ready, plus two coats of POR-15 before you prime).

So, what methods do you suggest?

[Eric W S]

Galvanize it. Whatever "it" is. Nothing else works as well or actually solves the issue...

[leafsprung]

Moving west will cure it

[Mercedesrover]

I've found Sem Rust-Shield to be better than anything else. Been using in on just about everything for six or seven years now and it holds up better than POR and is much better in the sun. If you're looking for black, make sure you order "gloss" black. The standard black is flat.

Or galvanize it.

[morgant]

Galvanize it. Whatever "it" is. Nothing else works as well or actually solves the issue...

I'm assuming that cold galvanizing applied to patch jobs is not what you're referring to. :\

Moving west will cure it

Moving west along the 44th parallel won't get me much out of the winter & roadsalt zone. Maybe southwest.

Don't know if my Husky would agree though.

[morgant]

I've found Sem Rust-Shield to be better than anything else.

I'll definitely give that a shot next.

[leafsprung]

I take it you have never actually BEEN west. I live at 44.058387 there is probably no road salt for nearly a thousand miles in any direction.

[TSR53]

I agree with you Ike. I grew up in Saratoga, CA and lived in Lake Tahoe. If you happen to live in a "steppe" environment (ID, NV, NM, MT, high desert OR) then rust is NOT an issue. Even living at 6000+ ft the dryness is beyond what you can even think of with uber low 20% humidity, some times it was always in the teens...

After living here in Vermont for 14 years. Rust IS an issue. Imagine cars that crumble as you drive - New England locals know all to well.

We've tried them all here. Würth anti-schutz, Würth rost guard, POR-15, you name it. SEM is da kine followed up with paint, then Waxoyl.

[TSR53]

I'll definitely give that a shot next.

I've got a quart at home - I can bring to Rovers North for you to sample ;-)

[morgant]

I take it you have never actually BEEN west. I live at 44.058387 there is probably no road salt for nearly a thousand miles in any direction.

Busted!

Looking at a globe again shows exactly how off I was. Always forget how much I've been skewed by flat, rotated images of the contiguous 48 states. Due west would, in deed, do the trick.

After living here in Vermont for 14 years. Rust IS an issue. Imagine cars that crumble as you drive - New England locals know all to well.

Part of the reason I decided to go with a Land Rover. If I'm going to spend my summers fighting rust, I might as well do it on something that has a modular design and can at least be attacked region by reqion, even if a frame swap is eventually needed. Aluminum body panels won't hurt.

We've tried them all here. Würth anti-schutz, Würth rost guard, POR-15, you name it. SEM is da kine followed up with paint, then Waxoyl.

Glad to hear further votes for SEM, esp. from someone who's been through many of the options.

[greenmeanie]

Busted!

Aluminum body panels won't hurt.

Oh don't be too sure of that. They won't oxidize in the same manner as the steel components but they will still hurt. The general mode of failure is the steel components start to rust, then the aluminium panels which are usually not coated with anything more than allodyne where they mate up, are taken out by galvanic corrosion as the steel strips them of electrons to feed its death. I can post pictures of a whole truck's worth of knackered ally panels.

Ask any aviation mechanic about airframe corrosion and you'll receive an education on just how vulnerable aluminium is.

You are best to paint all the surfaces of your aluminium panels atleast and then you can get into seperating the mating surfaces with plastic etc.

[Bertha]

I've found Sem Rust-Shield to be better than anything else. Been using in on just about everything for six or seven years now and it holds up better than POR and is much better in the sun. If you're looking for black, make sure you order "gloss" black. The standard black is flat.

Or galvanize it.

SEM is a great product. I had a frame fall to pieces years ago thanks to POR-never again