Re: Question about body work / paint prep...

["John M. Livingston" <john@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks Matt, that's exactly what I was looking for!  The paint on my Ambo is
pretty bad, there's obvious drip marks and over-spray from somebody taking a
spray can to it.  There's also been a poor bondo job done on it in one spot,
all in addition to some areas of light rust.  I suspect that I'll end up
taking wide swaths of the original paint off myself, my goal is to get the
body in a position where I can take it to a Maaco for a quickie paint job.
Eventually I'll want to have a nice, show quality paint-job done but there's
too much other work to do before it's ready for that.  My initial goals are
to get it running reliably enough so I can take it to the local cruise-ins
then get an inexpensive paint-job so that it looks at least reasonable and
it's protected from further rust and damage.

John M. Livingston
1965 AMC Rambler Ambassador 990-H
http://1965rambler.blogspot.com



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Matt Haas" <mhaas@xxxxxxx>
To: <mail@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Monday, November 08, 2004 7:29 PM
Subject: Re: Question about body work / paint prep...


John,

Short question, long answer. How bad is the surface rust? Is it really
light or is there deep pitting? If it's light surface rust, do the
following:

- Wash the car with a good grease cutting dish soap and towel dry.
- Degrease the area you're working on with a wax and tar remover.
- Sand with 60 or 80 grit to get most of the rust off. Make sure you sand
back a few inches from the visible rust to make sure you get it all and
that you dust the area off frequently so you can see what you're doing.
- Treat with a rust converter such as Navel Jelly (this is a mild acid -- 
make sure you follow the directions). Make sure that the rust converter can
be painted over with the type of primer you're using.
- Wash with detergent, dry quickly, and degrease again.
<SNIP>