Smoothing Rust Pitting In Sheet Metal

Your metal should feel and look smooth.

Smoothing rust pitting in sheet metal. Remove pitted rust by sanding it as smooth as possible and coating with a rust inhibitor and primer like a naval jelly type of substance. I bought a frame for my 31 for ford roadster from a guy who had leaned it on its side against the back of his garage. Part of the frame was in wet dirt and pitted a bit when it rusted. Belzona 1151 smoothing metal a 2 part epoxy based repair composite for rebuilding shallow pitting in metals damaged by erosion and corrosion.

Here s how for pitted metal whether sheet or frame steel. Apply eastwood fast etch to the area with the rust pits. If there are tight spaces where rust ridges or paint remains use a sandpaper sheet manually to reach out into these areas. Wipe the sanding dust off the metal with a rag.

Cover the area with plastic wrap to prevent the fast etch from evaporating before it can work. Promoted by things you ll need power drill with wire brush attachment sand paper clean cloths naval jelly rust remover paint brush power brush the rusted areas with the wire brush on the power drill to remove the loose rust and flakes from the sheet metal. The best tools pros use and diyers should too. Scrub the metal with a wire brush to remove rust particles from inside the pits and wipe off the particles with a.

Flap discs work well but can remove good metal. How to make pitted metal smooth. Wear safety goggles a dust mask and. Wound wire wheels or cups work well but don t heat the metal rust and melt the rust into the pits.

Be careful not to push down too hard. Fast etch eats into the rust dissolving it and leaving clean metal behind. This solvent free material is specifically formulated to easily fill in areas of metal loss up to 6 mm deep quickly restoring large areas and avoiding hot work and plate welding. I sandblasted the frame down to a dull silver gray finish before priming.

Grind down heavily rusted metal spots faster with a wire wheel and a drill or angle grinder. Remove the worst of the. In the same fashion start with 80 grit sandpaper before going to a smoother one. If the area is heavily rusted and pitted and wire brushing by hand is ineffective use a drill with a wire wheel photo 2 and a primer that adheres to rusted surfaces such as krylon rust tough or rust oleum.

Grind lightly over the pitted area of the metal. Remove as much of the rust as possible without removing metal metal removal is more of a sheet metal strength concern than frame steel. Wrap a sheet of 80 grit sandpaper around a sanding block and sand the pitted area aggressively.