Galvanized Body Capping & Riveting

[BGGB]

when i restored my 88 i stripped off all the old cappings cleaned them up and sprayed them with a cold galvanizing from a ACE can. at first i hated it because it was all one color gray and not the galvanized spottiness that i was hoping for. it was also soft and scratched easily. its been alittle over a year since then and now i love it. it has taken on the speckles you expect with galv and it is nice and hard. this is a good cheap $5 method if you don't mind waiting a year for it to cure....then again i did apply it in the middle of winter (senoir project that i needed to finsih asap)...as for the rivets i used bigflatsrivets and they worked just fine....good luck

[Terrys]

In areas where the factory could get a bucking bar on the back side of a panel, Rover used dome head rivets. In a few areas where the back side was inaccessible, they used pop rivets. I don't believe this changed until the production of Series III ceased.

All bucked rivets were changed to "pop" rivets in the '73 model year, at least on US 88s. Everything that was bucked on my '72 is "popped" on my '73. Both are original.

[HinFL]

SGS714 - congrats on the purchase of your Series IIA! I hope it's cooler in IL than it is in FL right now for you to enjoy it. I am very happy with Woodcutter's vehicle; thanks for recognizing it. We'll have to keep each other posted on what decisions we make and howgozits as far as this project is concerned.

BGGB - Thank you for your input on the cold galvanizing results. I will definitely bear it in mind as a possibility...

Terrys - You have cleared up the rivet type changeover question in my mind (at least for US spec Series IIIs, which mine is). Thank you for that elusive info! You have a pretty unique perspective since you own/owned both '72 and '73 models. I guess if SGS714 and I go for absolute authenticity on this project and take the remove and replace route, we'll be using different rivet types. We'll see...

[crankin]

Galvanizing is not horribly expensive. I was able to go to a commercial galvanizer and through everything in for $150. That means…all capping, radiator, and bulkhead.

[disco2hse]

When I say angle grinder I'm talking about the tool, not the attachment. A grinding disc would be way over the top. A steel bristle disc will work fine. If you're really concerned about marring the surface you could use a brass bristle disc, but probably not necessary. The paint will probably be loose and will flick right off with the steel bristle disc. If anything, it will burnish the surface with hard application, but it won't scar it.

Don't get me wrong, I like my angle grinder and abuse it regularly on everything from steel to stone but...

Even those 3M synthetic paint strippers will score steel let alone the underlying zinc seen here (I know, I've done it). Even the brass strippers would be too aggressive. On the other hand, if etch primer was used then it may be the only option :/

[yorker]

All bucked rivets were changed to "pop" rivets in the '73 model year, at least on US 88s. Everything that was bucked on my '72 is "popped" on my '73. Both are original.

I used to think that was the case too but I have a '71 IIa 88" that has pop riveted cappings so it might be one of those oddball slow transition things?

[SGS714]

Yesterday I had some time to kill and the temp dipped below 90F so I decided to give the capping a shot using a paint scraper with much success. Some of the chips came off in 1/2 1" sections and of course others were more stubborn. Once you get the first chip off it is not that hard....time consumming but worth the effort. 2 hours and I got the whole drivers side and rear done.

[Wander]

What type of scraper did you use? My IIa also has painted over trim so I'm in the same boat.

[bkreutz]

What type of scraper did you use? My IIa also has painted over trim so I'm in the same boat.

For me the trick was to go from the least aggressive tool and then adjust as the need arose. I used a curved pick that I rubbed along the paint, a lot of it flaked off from the pressure, then I moved towards the "pointy end" and did it again, finally I used the point for the stubborn flakes. It all depends on how stuck the paint is to the metal. I didn't want to scratch the galvanizing any more than I had to. After I was done, a brass brush blended in the scratch marks pretty well while maintaining the "patina" of the galvanized surface. HTH

[disco2hse]

The edge of an old chisel could be good; not the sharp blade, but the side. Using the blade you would pull with it pressed against the paint to be removed, not pushing like it were a chisel.

[SGS714]

I used a 2-3" putty knife (not a paint scraper as I mis spoke earlier) and ended up sharpening often. I was very careful with the angle I used with it and the flex in the large blade kept it from digging in at all. I would lay the edge next to area and then set a couple fingers on the blade to bend it almost parallel with the cap and pushed it and then hit the area with on of those real porious stripper pads by itself to remove the part of the paint that was left on.

[bobzinak]

There are several less harsh paint removers you can get to take of the paint with out damaging the galv. finish, you could try MEK with fine steel wool, just dont get it on your body work. once you get it cleaned off you can lightly etch the galv. with muriatic acid, used with fine steel wool, have a source of water to rinse acid off so it does not over etch the galv. it made mine look like new and removed all the rust stains too. once you have cleaned the galv. give it a coat of clear spray to keep it looking good. the only problem with painting it or cold galv. spray if that it loses the nice galv patterns that are so rover. even after market galv. jobs dont have that smooth rover look..try it, it is fast and easy. (be vary careful with powered tools on you galv. trim) rove on, bobzinak...

[coltsphan]

When we are restoring old window hardware, we boil the hardware in fabric softener and water for a few hours and all of the paint/finish comes right off. Worth a shot.

[disco2hse]

When we are restoring old window hardware, we boil the hardware in fabric softener and water for a few hours and all of the paint/finish comes right off. Worth a shot.

Be good to get the oil off the rest of the vehicle too. Just might be little difficult explaining to SWMBO why there's a Land Rover in the bath.

[ducttape]

Sorry I didn't do a before/after too. Your reddie looks MUCH better after!

I echo what Disco said. I used a curved pick tool that I rubbed along the paint, it just popped off (glad the PO didn't use acid etch primer) here's a couple of before and after pics. (do this outside, the little paint chips will drive you nuts trying to get them off the garage floor)