Just picked up a Silverado shipped from the east coast. Right where the cordwinder goes into the body, the unit is starting to rust. Maybe the vac was left in unheated storage?? Anything that a guy can do to get rid of the rusting. I thought maybe painting it with a rust paint, but when you slide the cordwinder back in, the paint is going to peel off as it will not be baked on enamel. The other thought I had was to use a car rust proofing treatment like rust check, wipe it on with a rag and just let it sit there. This is the second vac I have purchased from the east coast and will likely be the last. Both east coast vacs have had rust problems. Vacs I have purchased from other areas have all been fine. Any suggestions here??
Vernon
Post# 34308 , Reply# 1   3/8/2008 at 10:31 (5,890 days old) by lux1521 ()  
Sand it, prime it, paint it. If your lucky you will still have some metal left to work with when you done sanding. I had a diamond j that was mint on the outside but was so rusted on the inside that it was flimsy in places. I hope yours is not that bad yet.
Oh, and you wanted to know the serial number on my Silverado. Its S89365F. Sorry I diden't get back to you with that earlier.
Post# 34319 , Reply# 2   3/8/2008 at 13:42 (5,890 days old) by danemodsandy ()  
POR-15 is a rust-stopping product used extensively for car restoration (POR stands for Paint Over Rust). It's a sort of primer; you can get it in most auto parts stores. I'd strip that housing, sand down to bright flat metal, then use POR-15 to prevent recurrence of rust. After that, I'd prime and paint as usual (the POR-15 can has suggestions for that). Your auto parts store will also have a selection of Dupli-Color auto touch-up paint in spray cans; you should be able to find a very close (maybe even exact) match for your Silverado's silver. You will probably have to use the Dupli-Color clearcoat over the paint to get a glossy result. With today's auto paints, the colour coat does not have a gloss on its own; the gloss comes only when you clearcoat.
So far as the baked enamel/spray paint thing is concerned, if you do a good job of painting and let things dry for about a week before reassembly, you should get a decently durable result. Spray paints are quite good nowadays, if used correctly.
I'd suggest some painting practise if you're not yet handy with a spray can. It's possible to get a flawlessly smooth and shiny result if you know what you're doing. Be prepared to "waste" a can or two of paint in practise before committing to your final paint job- it will make all the difference. The small investment in extra paint will seem like nothing when you have a flawlessly painted end result.