Rust Converter recommendation?

Thanks everyone for the typical great information.

X10.....Ospho

works great

fluidfilm....very easy to use and stops the rusting process.

Ospho..... Amazing stuff. Spray it on with a garden sprayer and it reacts with the rust into a hard, epoxy like material.

My favorite is Hammerite Rust Cap

Thanks for this thread, I need that.

Ospho's active ingredient to formulate iron oxide to another material is phosphoric acid. I've been using these rust reformulating products for years. I paint things like cooling towers, tanks, vehicles,and steel equipment.

One of the best iron/rust etching compounds is Martin-Senour Iron Etch. It is sold at auto body shops and is fairly expensive. It too, is phosphoric acid based.

Lately, I've been using water softener cleaner, the liquid stuff sold at most big box stores. It is inexpensive and contains a high concentration of phosphoric acid.

Besides Ospho, there are other rust formulation products that can be directly painted. Some work better than others. I've found that the additional rinsing step between applying an etchant and painting is worth the labor cost. I'm sure to get any materials off the surface that interferes with paint adhesion and, since I use scuff pads and brushes for this, it allows for better surface prep.

One further tip: Always apply a good primer before finish paint is applied. Since the general public becomes lazier as time goes forward, there are many "Primer and Paint" in one can being sold. I guess if I made and sold paint, I might make that product, also. It's a disservice to the consumer, IMO. One of the better metal primers is Sherwin-Williams Industrial DTM Primer. It's available through your local SW store. It will bond to different metals, directly, including aluminum.

Good luck with the painting!

trailerbob wrote:
Check on Ospho.

Ditto. Just bought a jug of it for restoring a couple of cars. Got it because of all the positive reviews I found. Supposed to be excellent stuff and can paint right over it. Ospho is a liquid that can be sprayed or brushed on and gets left on (not rinsed off). Phosphoric based products are not alike and are formulated differently.

I got my Ospho on Amazon. Lots of internet sources.

An important point that hasn't been mentioned yet:

You should NOT worry about "the whole underside" of the vehicle beginning to rust. Those areas that rust first and the most won't cause a problem for about a hundred years.....because things like frame members are really thick AND the total oxidation slows down a bit once there is a good coating of rust on there (unless maybe it stays wet ALL of the time.)

Naval Jelly does work. However, it removes the rust leaving a very clean surface that is ready for quick oxidation. When you rinse it off, IMMEDIATELY paint the surface. Otherwise, it will quickly develop another rust layer, like in minutes.

Been there, done that.