Rust Bubbles

[SaxMan]

Baby Blue has a handful of rust bubbles in the usual places -- wheel arch, where the front fender meets the rocker, and on the rocker at the front wheel arch. A couple of small ones on the wheel arch have "bloomed", so I know those need to be addressed this winter.

My question is for the rest of the bubbles, which are likely in stasis, since the car is garage kept and never driven in inclement conditions, how urgent is it that I address those? Baby Blue's current paint is a respray, and while close to the original Mineral Blue, it is not an exact match, and I am not sure I could find matching paint. My concern is that if I address the rust spots, the car's appearance will look like a patchwork of rust repairs. I do plan on a repaint somewhere down the road, as the current paint job is a great 8 foot paint, but not so good up close. On the other hand, if I don't address the rust while it's manageable, will I have bigger sheet metal issues down the road?

On the upside, the floor pans are original and are in great shape.

 

[nomad]

It'll wait till you do the whole car if you can stand to look at them. Hey, they,re made of steel! Sooner or later steel always wants to go back to being iron oxide! Drive it and enjoy it!

Kurt.

 

[Keoke]

On the other hand, if I don't address the rust while it's manageable, will I have bigger sheet metal issues down the road?

---------------------------------------------------------------YES !!!!!

 

[nomad]

On the other hand, if I don't address the rust while it's manageable, will I have bigger sheet metal issues down the road?

---------------------------------------------------------------YES !!!!!

Yes but fixing a little rust right cost's about the same as fixing more....that is within reason, of course. I think you know what I mean...of course if it is a little hole versus changing a whole panel....I'll quit now!:friendly_wink:

Kurt.

 

[jlaird]

Any good paint shop can match paint. Guess what the older paint gets the lighter it becomes, it all has to be matched.

 

[HealeyRick]

There's "rust", then there's "RUST!" How bad is it? Any holes or structural stuff? If its minor stuff, look into a local votech autobody night course. Bring your car in over the winter and prep it for a full repaint in the spring. You might be able to shoot the paint yourself, pay someone in the autobody class to do it, or bring it to MAACO for an inexpensive way to do it. I did my Nasty Boy that way. Did all the stripping, rust repair, priming, blocking and sanding and had a local body shop shoot it in basecoat/clear (I bought all materials) for $350 (this was in 1994). Came out pretty good, huh?

 

[nomad]

A friend who raced trans am and fooled with cars constantly used to have them all painted by then Earl Sceib. Did just what you did in all the prep and took them his paint. As he said, those guy's shoot paint all day long so they know how to do it. The difference is in the prep and material.

Kurt.

 

[aeronca65t]

I "touch up" my cars as needed. I think it's a better strategy than letting things go (which I have also done.....to my own dismay).

Generally, I used oil-base enamel paint from Tractor Supply. I mix colors as needed (until the color is at least close) and always add the optional hardener. This has worked decently on my MGB and other cars.

You can find it ~HERE~

Actually, the one car I ignored was the Miata (for about 10 years) and now I have a little welding to do on that (it's on jack stands right now.....I started it last week and it's about half done). When finished it'll use the same enamel paint, applied with a foam brush. It's my commuter car in the Winter and not a Show Queen so no worries about perfection.

 

[Jim_Gruber]

Nial the only issue I had with hardener is pot life is around an hour or so per instruction on the can. Wonder if the hardener/ gloss can be used with other enamel paints ieRustoleum.

 

[aeronca65t]

Jim: They claim it's good for about 8 hours.

~See Here~

To be honest, I generally let it sit for 20 minutes (as suggested) and then use it within 30 minutes (or throw it away). The hardener is supposed to good in a sealed can for about a year.

 

[Jim_Gruber]

And when using roller did you go 50/50 on paint / thinner to build up the layers?

 

[aeronca65t]

No. I only used about 20% thinner. Otherwise, it seemed too runny to me for rolling (this was on the race car).

 

[Jim_Gruber]

With Rustoleum I built in up in layers 50/50 Rustoleum and mineral spirits. It took 5 or 6 coats to get adequate coverage but you could work in multiple sections at a time, or a single panel at a time. Once you got the technique and roller pressure down I was able to add a coat to the bonnet from start to finish in less than 30 minutes. And it dries although slower even if temps are below freezing. Unused paint goes into a plastic tub and foam roller into a ziplock Baggie positioned so it does not lay flat and develop a flat spot on the roller. Interlux Brightsides Marine Paint has 5 or 6 shades of Gloss White. I think tgat is the way I believe I will go on paint.

 

[sqbsprite]

I was faced with this issue last year on my TR6. It's a decent looking car and good example of a survivor. It was showing rust in the rear fender seams and I wanted to stop it before it got worse. I ended up removing all the fenders and cleaning, repairing rust, priming, and the spot painting them. Yes, it shows, but you have look twice to see it. I have the peace of mind that it is not getting worse.

 

[Gerard]

A friend who raced trans am and fooled with cars constantly used to have them all painted by then Earl Sceib. Did just what you did in all the prep and took them his paint. As he said, those guy's shoot paint all day long so they know how to do it. The difference is in the prep and material.

Kurt.

Maybe not the best choice anymore. I completely prepped a '62 Sprite about 15 years ago. It was even completely shot in primer and blocked. (I am very good at body work and getting very straight panels as I got some education from the pros on that) All they had to do was shoot it. I even had all the trim off and masked areas to make sure it was done right. I had the bonnet, boot and doors shot off the car too. Well, I agree, these guys know how to shoot paint. What they don't do is shoot in a booth or of they do, they spread cat litter on the floor to avoid/minimize cleanup. All the vertical surfaces were perfect, but the horizontal surfaces were completely imbedded with dust and dirt. What was worse is when they shot the low areas (rockers, etc, they blew cat litter into the paint. I was just floored at how it turned out when I made their job so easy. It looked great as long as you were ten feet away or didn't look to close.

 

[HealeyRick]

If you're going to try to find a painter to shoot your car after you do the prep, it will take a bit of work to find one. First, a lot of painters don't like doing this. Since the paint job is dependent on the prep, they don't want to be responsible for bad prep work or incompatible substances under their topcoat. They generally won't give a waranty of paint they've shot over someone else's prep. Good painters tend to be very protective of their reputations and don't a job put over crappy prep to be identified as coming out of their shop. If you find someone willing to do it, discuss carefully the materials you want to use, including fillers and primers. You'll be better off using the same brands as the painter uses to make sure you don't have any bad reactions with the base and topcoats.

 

[nomad]

Maybe the the best choice anymore. I completely prepped a '62 Sprite about 15 years ago. It was even completely shot in primer and blocked. (I am very good at body work and getting very straight panels as I got some education from the pros on that) All they had to do was shoot it. I even had all the trim off and masked areas to make sure it was done right. I had the bonnet, boot and doors shot off the car too. Well, I agree, these guys know how to shoot paint. What they don't do is shoot in a booth or of they do, they spread cat litter on the floor to avoid/minimize cleanup. All the vertical surfaces were perfect, but the horizontal surfaces were completely imbedded with dust and dirt. What was worse is when they shot the low areas (rockers, etc, they blew cat litter into the paint. I was just floored at how it turned out when I made their job so easy. It looked great as long as you were ten feet away or didn't look to close.

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Ah, yes, I remember we had this discussion before, Gerard. I guess one would have to see how they do things.
Rick, you're right about good painters or good anybody's. An arrangement would have to be discussed ahead of time. I did everything up to the prime and paint on my Midget and the bill was $1600. They did a great job but unfortunately they also have gone to water base now and are the guys that painted my Miata hood. Looks like I'll be looking for a good paint shop since the mixing for TSC paint isn't something I care to tackle.

Kurt.

 

[Gerard]

First, a lot of painters don't like doing this. Since the paint job is dependent on the prep, they don't want to be responsible for bad prep work or incompatible substances under their topcoat.

Excellent point Rick... quite true in most cases unless they are familiar with your skills.