Ripped the Band Aid off! Build Thread and Advice Sought.

[PH4]

Last weekend took the bed and seat box off the 1962 109 and this weekend will try and remove the bulkhead wings etc. No turning back now. The chassis is solid so far other than surface rust. I had considered going galvanized but based on the condition of the chassis it may be over kill. Any tips or advice as to what i should do the chassis while the body panels etc go to the painter? How to preserve? I prefer to keep it a rolling chassis if not going to replace with Galvanized chassis. Best regards,Attachment 6480

[giftshopduane]

Slap a coat of something on it (Rustoleum rust encapsulator etc...) and oil it every fall. Where do you live? Rust belt? Its a lot of effort to go POR 15 at this point or media blast or galv... do you want to turn that corner?

[crankin]

You can never go wrong with galvanizing it. It will last longer than anything you paint on it. However, if you don't want to go through all that labor and time to get its all ready for the dip...POR 15 is your next best protection.

[albersj51]

I'm a big fan of chem stripping and galvanizing. I had all the steel parts (frame, bulkhead, rad panel, etc) galvanized for long-term protection. I don't know where you live, but I am in South Carolina, hardly the rust belt. However, I felt it worth the extra effort and expense to keep everything rust free for a long time.

If you are totally against dipping it, then consider something to get in and clean the inside of the frame rails (these things rust inside out) then spray a protective paint, like MasterSeries coating, POR-15, etc. Eastwood makes a spray with a wand for this purpose, but I can't speak to its effectiveness. Then I would prime the outside with a rust preventative (MasterSeries/POR), then topcoat (eastwood chassis black). To derust the outside, I would use phosphoric acid (Ospho) to turn the iron oxide into iron phosphate (inert). Its not perfect and doesn't penetrate, but, if you knocked all the flaky stuff off first with a wire wheel then go back and use ospho, it should get a good bit of the rust (you can never get it all!).


Also, don't forget to give the bulkhead some rust protection as well. Get inside the doorposts as best you can and thoroughly coat the footwells with something good. No point in going this far and repainting only to get a rust bubble in a couple of years.

[I Leak Oil]

Painting will help a little but honestly these things rot from the inside where moisture and dirt collect. Galvanizing is really to protect the inside more than the outside surfaces which is why it's so effective on rover chassis'.
Paint it and use something like waxoil (or your favorite home made brew) on the inside.

[PH4]

I am in Charleston, South Carolina so rust is a factor. The bulkhead needs work. It is very rusted on the portion above the speedo and below the vent openings. albersj51, where in SC did you get your chassis and other parts dipped and galvanized? Did you have anyone do work on your bulkhead in SC? If you have time, I would appreciate giving you a call to discuss.

[giftshopduane]

From what I understand (again its very little.) in applying POR15 don't you need to have the chassis SUPER clean, then let it rust a little in order for the POR15 to adhere properly? Honestly I have read conflicting opinions on prep and app. I don't get the feeling that this going bare frame and blasted in order to galv or POR15. So wouldn't those be off the table in this case?

So wouldn't a general "industrial" type of a coating ( coat all!!)work best in this scenario? Especially since he's in South Carolina. In a perfect world would we all go Galvanized?

A little help with this one because I am about to do the same thing, and certainly dipping, media stripping and Galv are not on the budget. Good old fashioned paint and Schutz gun bar oil for me... worked fine on my Classic for years and certainly cost less.

[crankin]

It will boils down to what your skill level and money wise comfortable doing. To each his own. If you are going through all this trouble to strip it down and clean it up to paint it...why not dip it and go the glavy way? In addition, the aluminum contacts with galvy will not break down like it does with steal. But its not my truck and I can't force anyone's hand. I just know that 30 years from now, I don't want to do what I did in my 20s all over again in my 60s.

We know that galvanizing will test time and come through beautifully. A good paint job and waxoyl periodically will do the same thing. It will be tricky to get inside the frame and to knock out all the problems there unless you go the galvy way. Lets face it the frame has lasted 35+ years and looks great. Anything you do will protect it that much more.

Aside from that, In S. Pittsburg, TN, there is a place that will dip 100 pounds for $100. and that includes stripping it first...Not a bad price. This was their price 3 years ago when the world was feeling the crunch.

[albersj51]

I am in Charleston, South Carolina so rust is a factor. The bulkhead needs work. It is very rusted on the portion above the speedo and below the vent openings. albersj51, where in SC did you get your chassis and other parts dipped and galvanized? Did you have anyone do work on your bulkhead in SC? If you have time, I would appreciate giving you a call to discuss.

I'm in Greenville and had everything dipped at South Atlantic Galvanizing. I know some of the guys in Charleston and Columbia use a place in Columbia...but I don't remember the name of it. Its a mom-and-pop operation.

As for the bulkhead, I have zero welding/fabbing skills so I bought one from Ike (pangolin 4x4) that had no rust and had never been repaired, same with the chassis. You may want to call Ike and get a quote on the work from him. Shipping to and from Oregon is rather expensive, but he'll do the work and get it dipped for you and ship it back. At least you'll know its dead on as opposed to finding out later the welder didn't line up the door posts right and it off kilter (that was my fear).

Sure, I'll PM you my phone number. I'm more than happy to discuss it.

Jason

[albersj51]

It will boils down to what your skill level and money wise comfortable doing. To each his own. If you are going through all this trouble to strip it down and clean it up to paint it...why not dip it and go the glavy way? In addition, the aluminum contacts with galvy will not break down like it does with steal. But its not my truck and I can't force anyone's hand. I just know that 30 years from now, I don't want to do what I did in my 20s all over again in my 60s.

We know that galvanizing will test time and come through beautifully. A good paint job and waxoyl periodically will do the same thing. It will be tricky to get inside the frame and to knock out all the problems there unless you go the galvy way. Lets face it the frame has lasted 35+ years and looks great. Anything you do will protect it that much more.

Aside from that, In S. Pittsburg, TN, there is a place that will dip 100 pounds for $100. and that includes stripping it first...Not a bad price. This was their price 3 years ago when the world was feeling the crunch.

I agree with Clint. I was thinking the same thing a year ago, "is it really worth the effort and expense to galvanize these things? Its South Carolina, not Maine". When I went through the amount of time it would take to strip everything, knowing i couldn't get inside, where it is most important, it would have taken forever. Also, the price of consumables (wire wheels, flap discs, etc) and primer and paint and waxoyl, etc its not much, if any, more to get it galvanized. I think I spend $400 to galvanize all of my stuff, including some extra stuff. I also had everything chemically stripped to get inside, which was another $300 or so dollars.