Rust removal project begins tomorrow

[jayhawkexplorer]

Hey guys,
I'm going to be starting a rust removal project on my '97 XLT tomorrow. All 5 of my doors have some bubbling and rust beginning to form on the bottom inside. I know its next to impossible to eliminate the rust without getting new doors, but here's my plan to at least slow down the cancer.

1. Remove inside door panel
2. Wire wheel the rust down to bare metal as much as possible
3. Use some of the Duplicolor rust fix spray to hopefully get the rusty areas as primed as possible for painting.
4. Spray undercoating into the inside door channels and probably over the old rust areas. (this was suggested to me by one of the best body work guys in town, according to my co-workers at O'Reilly.)

I'll take pics as I go along, maybe this will turn out to be a great fix for those of us from the rust belt After this project, I move on to repainting trim and a full detail job. Wish me luck...

 

[jayhawkexplorer]

Update: Started on the passenger side doors, the rear passenger one is pretty far gone. I'd have to use a grinder to get down to bare metal on it, so I may just have to do what I can with the wire wheel and rust neutralizer, then paint it knowing the rust will be back. Oh well, this is definitely not a permanent fix, just delaying the inevitable.

 

[MONMIX]

just delaying the inevitable.

Well spoken my friend !!

Your plan sounds decent for your expectations.
Do your best to make 100% sure you see NO RUST.
Unfortunatley you may end up with some holes.
Make sure you prime before you paint, and prime before undercoating too.
Some undercoating can be more porrous ( sp? ) than others.
Good luck

 

[jayhawkexplorer]

Update: Done with the passenger side doors and the tailgate. They look decent, though not professional by any means. I hope what I did has helped delay the cancer, I don't think I could have made it any worse then it was. I started on the driver's side rear today and it looks the worst of all thus far. Really deep rust all along the bottom of the door, but I think I can get most of it with the wire wheel. I've now chewed through a wire wheel and wore it down to almost nothing, so off to O'Reilly to get another. I would guess I've got a year or two left before the rust starts showing up on the outside. Its disappointing, I've got two years left on my used car warranty and the thing will be getting really bad by the time the warranty is up. Oh well, then it becomes a hauler/winter car and I'll get me an '06 or '07 Mustang GT