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removing that interior rust

13076 Views 13 Replies 8 Participants Last post by  Maverick
Just removed the seat, rubber, and gas tank out of my '52 Chevy truck. The rust is not that bad. I picked up type of bristle pad that attaches to a drill. I started removing some of the heavy pieces but it picked up a load of dust. I then used coca-cola, but it left a nasty mess. I haven't used any manufactured removel jells. I heard they tend to leave some items black. Anyhow, wondering if you had some decent results with anything that doesn't cost a load of cash. I prommised the wife to keep the spending low. :(
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coca cola? Thats a new one on me, hope you can fight off the ants. Wheres the rust in question? try to clean the chips and get it reletivly clean with a shop vac or a hand broom and put some por15 on it, it comes in clear as well as black and grey I beleive. Why are you worried about rust removers/converters turning it black? Let me know if you need more help or if I got it all wrong. Exsplain it a bit more? Glad to help.

Pacifica?

HK :D
Coca Cola contains phosphoric acid which is the active ingredant in the rust disolvers/converters. Like Navel Jelly. Makes you feel good about drinking that Coke dosnt it? I have a '49 Chevy I had to do the same thing with. I got all the loose rust off with the wire wheel on my grinder. Then I put Navel Jelly on it and let it sit. You can get Navel Jelly at Home Depot. Let it sit over night is best, then with soap and water I scrubed the heck out of it with a stainless steel scrub pad. then painted it with Zero Rust. <a href="http://www.zerorust.com" target="_blank">www.zerorust.com</a> To me its easier and safer then POR-15 which I have use and was nervious about it the whole time. Plus it can be sprayed were POR-15 cant. Hope this helps! :D
Maverick, I'll hafta check that sero rust stuff out :D

Makes me feel alot better, coca cola with de-rust my innerds :D <img src="graemlins/drunk.gif" border="0" alt="[drunk]" />

HK
Not only that but think about what it dose to your teeth! :eek: BEER! all natural ingredants! :D The guys at Zero Rust are real friendly and helpful! Good Stuff!
use muratic acid you can get it at any swimming pool supply store, eats rust fast but it stinks, use plenty of caution and have lots of water around to flush it away if you spill, use a plastic wash tub for the outside or pour acid in tank to clean inside leave in for 20 minutes - 1 hour depending on strength of solution and severity of rust flush with water and baking soda, been using this in tractor gas tanks for 35 years.
The muradic acid works well too, but be carful that stuff can get pretty nasty pretty quick on your skin or anywhere not wanted, wear chemical gloves and eye protection while using it/working with it. make sure its rinsed and or washed out very well before you replace anything or work around it. I've seen a few guys not rinse it well enough and it burned there skin as well as some cloth deterioration on the interior of the car. Just a few words to the wise, works well though.

HK
thanks Fellas.

I'll try that naval jelly. I guess it's more concentrated that cola! The rust is mostly on the floor, seat frame, and gas tank area. I also used a steel brush to lossen up the corners. It's my first restore. Maybe I got to figure out what is acceptable and what will need more elbow greese. :D
Hi, hope your project's comin along fine. I've restored cars for many years and have found an excellant product that works very well on surface rust after cleaning the loose stuff off with a wirebrush or wirewheel: Rust Destroyer <a href="http://www.rust007.com/html/rust_destroyer.htm" target="_blank">http://www.rust007.com/html/rust_destroyer.htm</a>
This stuff is guaranteed for 5 yrs to stop rust and I have found it working much longer, some vehicles I treated with this stuff 12 yrs ago still have no buubling where I applied it. Its also available in spraycan form for less than $10 per at dept stores in US, up here in Canada I can't seem to find the spraycans anymore, but the liquid cans are still available at certain marine shops that also swear by its quality. :cool:
Now that I am in the final stages of my 65 Ford Falcon Ranchero restomod project, I think I can advise you with experience relating to rust converters.I converted a fair share of rusted floor board material befor replacing. That really cheap phosphoric acid that may be found at any home improvement store, under various brand names is a good first step. That is the green water thin liquid item on the shelf. Comes in various quantity bottles. Quart size spray bottle is probably the best value. Just spray it on and watch for results. A couple of hours or overnight. The residue should be rustfree with a white powder left over. Spray it with water if you like or not. The residue is safe compared to other caustic products. The finished metal can be painted over with a POR 15 paint product which will seal the whole mess. That stuff is armor like and doesn't clean off skin well. Don't get too messy. You'll be sorry. There are plenty of dealers online for the POR 15 products.
EMAIL PROTOCOL SAYS I SHOULDNT WRITE IN CAPS BECAUSE IT'S LIKE YELLING, WELL, MY EYES ARE HARD OF HEARING. IF YOU HAVE AN AIR COMPRESSOR, OR ACCESS TO, GO TO HARBOR FREIGHT OR SOME SUCH STORE AND BUY A SMALL SAND BLASTING SETUP.($20-30) ,.CLEAN SAND IS ONLY $2 A BAG. THEN BLOW AND FINALLY VACUUM CLEAN. THE SMALL GUN ALLOWS RELATIVELY PRECISION WORK, AND YOU WILL FIND A ZILLION USES FOR IT AFTER, LIKE CLEANING TONS OF THINGS. I ONCE RENTED A COMMERCIAL TRAILER MOUNTED COMPRESSOR AND BLASTING TANK AND CLEANED TO BARE METAL MY ENTIRE '50 GMC FRAME AND ALL. (COMPLETELY DISASSEMBLED). THERE ARE DIFFERENT GRITS OF SAND AVAILABLE, BUT FOR YOUR PARTICULAR TASK, JUST GO TO THE LUMBER STORE/YARD AND BUY CLEAN SANDBOX SAND.
ces69jen, since you said you ar fairly new to restoring a old truck or car I want to intoduce you to a new word,ISOCYANATES! Stay far way from paints that contain this! If inhaled it will turn your lungs rock hard. :eek: I assume its used as a hardner in paints such as POR-15. Which I dont doubt one bit is a good product probably tougher then Zero Rust. But, why take a chance if it will kill you! This is why it cant be sprayed, and the safest way to use it is with a fresh air resporator. Just wanted to pass that along to you. Be safe so you can have fun! :D
Get a sandblaster. This will cost you under $100.00 on ebay. Then, you can clean rust off anything (as long as you have a compressor). Gotta have one anyway if you're gonna be involved with old cars. You have to look at the long term and if your're interested in this web site, you will undoubtedly do more than one car. Sand (0r media) blast it, weld in new metal with a mig and you're down the road. There is no short cut, do it right or do plastic models and dream. That's the long and short of it. Don't wimp out on us, be one of us. end of story.
I would like to add one more thing that I forgot. When useing the Phosphoric acid stuff try not to let it dry and try to get it all off after it changes or disolves the rust. If its left on and painted over your paint wont stick. Zero Rust also has a great product called "Prep-Step" that you mix with water thats great to put on bare metel to prevent flash rust and help adhesion.

<img src="graemlins/mwink.gif" border="0" alt="[mwink]" />
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