hardtail_pride Posted August 5, 2009 Share Posted August 5, 2009 SO i have been looking for an affordable rust repair for MY budget, and i know this isn't the most quality repair, but it fits my needs and doesn't have to look that good in the end. Just curious if any one else has tried it. I read about using a Boat Foam spray to fill in rust holes, then after its hardened use bondo over the top of that to have a harder surface. My whole rear quarter panels are pretty much gone, so i was thinking of filling them full of foam, then bondo etc. I'm not worried about aesthetics, more about the weather entering into my car and Wasps building nests. I know its more of a rinky dinky fix but would it work and hold up for say 2 years? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erik litchy Posted August 5, 2009 Share Posted August 5, 2009 wont foam hold water in? you need that to drain. what i did is weld some angle iron on top of what was there. its been years, and its only got surface rust now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwilson87 Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 Let me get this worded different. Fill a void in the quarter panels with the foam, (like expanding foam you use on houses and buy at home depot?) then sand it down to match curves or whatever when it dries, and then bondo over that? meh, sounds good to me but might wait for some of those with higher knowledge to pipe in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indrid cold Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 "REAL MEN OF GENIUS PRESENTS: Mr. Expando Foam mold bondo guy!" Anything is possible with these rigs... try the road less traveled and see if there is a reason it is! Good luck... and send pics of results.. good or bad! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 A few issues. Body flex will ruin the bond and destroy the foam as the foam has no give.. Faom will keep in humidity and make the rust worse then it is now. Foam will also hide future rust till it is too late. Foam also isnt paintable in this application, and I dont know how it will react with metal in temperiture changes. Spary foam has the same coeffecient of expansion as wood so in that applicatin its not an issue. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 For a beater with a heater I prefer the aluminium sheet and rivets method. Looks much more Mad Max post-apocalypse style. Anyway that's my sugestion. You cut a piece the size you need, bang it into shape with a dead blow or soft face hammer and rivet away. I prefer to avoid methods that will make my rigs look like I had no bloody clue what I was doing..... riveted aluminium will never look like that because there is no mistake - your intention is obvious - to make a lasting, functional repair..... looks be damned. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardtail_pride Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 (edited) Well I'm all about the bend and rivet idea, but here is a pic to show my predicament. There is that much rust and i started cutting away and now there really is nothing to rivet to. On the lower area anyways. I was thinking of filling all of that with foam. I don't know. Any suggestions a basic DIY kid could do? Sorry about the bad pic quality. I hope this doesn't come down to duct taping over the hole and painting it hahaha Edited August 6, 2009 by hardtail_pride Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
()__1337_CRAYOLA__()> Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 just foam it and lightly bondo it just in case it falls out and call it good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardtail_pride Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 Thats what im thinking. My awesome fabricating skills made a really shoddy bent up steel panel to cover it. But that had a lot of gaps due to rust taking the inside of the wheel well also. Once i cut away and it all just fell apart, i had to ditch that method. Maybe rivet the top to the existing body then throw foam inside to hold it all together? I'm about ready to go suby hunting again, then i remember this is just the "beater with a heater, and AC!" for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwilson87 Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 That looks fun, bring that by sometime and we can come up with some orem ghetto style fix! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardtail_pride Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 Ya for sure. This is going to be the ghetto wagon. Trying to have a budget functional toy and driver to get me to the slopes! Anyone know if it will pass safety with gaping holes like that? I can imagine getting failed cause exhaust could enter in the cabin that way, but its summer so all windows are down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redcap Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 For a beater with a heater I prefer the aluminium sheet and rivets method. Looks much more Mad Max post-apocalypse style. Anyway that's my sugestion. You cut a piece the size you need, bang it into shape with a dead blow or soft face hammer and rivet away. I prefer to avoid methods that will make my rigs look like I had no bloody clue what I was doing..... riveted aluminium will never look like that because there is no mistake - your intention is obvious - to make a lasting, functional repair..... looks be damned. GD I like this. A lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rust Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 Paper Mache it! Don't forget to fill the rust holes w/ candy for the kiddies. Subaru Piniata:lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Ed Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 How about fiberglass? I've used it to repair the rusted out spots on horse trailers, and as long as you can grind back to shiny metal, it seems to hold up ok. Ed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardtail_pride Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 (edited) I would do fiberglass but i have no experience there and dont know if it would cover that big of a hole. Would it? i looked into the fiberglass repair a bit and wonder if it would contour around a small ledge to hold the whole patch in place, because i havealready messed up and not left enough surface area for it to bond to. Edited August 6, 2009 by hardtail_pride Did some research Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoobieDoo Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 I would do fiberglass but i have no experience there and dont know if it would cover that big of a hole. Would it? i looked into the fiberglass repair a bit and wonder if it would contour around a small ledge to hold the whole patch in place, because i havealready messed up and not left enough surface area for it to bond to. You didn't mess up, if that's what it took to remove all the rust. You can treat it, patch it, and it's still gonna come back to haunt you! How about using a good fender from a donor car? You could use it as a mold for fiberglass, or cut it long, and weld or rivet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caramanos2000 Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 Hey man I just rebuilt the floor on the trunk of my dads GL with Fiberglass. its really easy to work with just follow the directions. I had the same problem you did with a supuersized whole with no good support but I did this and its solid as a rock now Bought a Fiberglass Repair kit from Autozone $19.99 Used Aluminum Tape for Ducting $8 Sheet metal screws $3Fiberglass drywall joint roll $5 I built an inner support like a mold with the tape on the trunk so the fiberglass would have something to hold its shape while it dries. I did 3 layers of fiberglass over the foil tape and to give it more strength I used the fiberglass joint roll because its really thick. I laid one layer of fiberglass mat down, then one of the joint stuff and then a final layer of mat. After it cured for 3 hours and was solid I held it in place even more with some sheet metal screws along the edges:grin: Quick tip- The woven mat is much easier to work with than the strand mat. USE GLOVES! After I was done I sprayed some rubber undercoating over it and good as new. Still need to paint the edges white again:) If you can reach the opposite side of your repair you can use some screws with a locking nut on the other side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardtail_pride Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 I stayed up late researching rust repaair using bondo and fiberglass and am really stoked now to try it out myself! It looks like it would be cheaper to to than the foam kit anyways so i will give it a try. Hey Caramanos (face hands? haha in spanish anyways) is it safe and or will it be structurally sound to use the aluminum tape for a base layer? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opelsuby Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 here is an example of the mad max repair method I'm doing on my truck. 1. The metal i used is extra roof flashing. Galvanized!!! 2. Cut out bad rusted metal. 3. Spray with rust inhibitor or really good primer. 4. Attach metal to body and hold in place with clamps or vise-grips. 5. Drill holes. 6. Attach poprivets. rivet gun from loca chain hardware store (Menards up here). 7. Optional now: Apply bondo over repair job. Attach flexible fender flare or spray on bed liner. 8. Wallah!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardtail_pride Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 haha i like that! Thats my level of body work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yo'J Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Opel, I like that! With a little fiberglass you could give it wings! Or make it vanish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caramanos2000 Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 I stayed up late researching rust repaair using bondo and fiberglass and am really stoked now to try it out myself! It looks like it would be cheaper to to than the foam kit anyways so i will give it a try. Hey Caramanos (face hands? haha in spanish anyways) is it safe and or will it be structurally sound to use the aluminum tape for a base layer? Thanks! Absolutely the tape is just being your mold so you can at least get a little shape to it. After the fiberglass dries I removed my tape entirely but you can just leave it if you like, it serves no purpose other than to support it while it hardens. BTW Caramanos is a Greek last name, pure coinsidence I also live in Puerto Ricoooo I can post some pics of my finished repair and materials if you like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flowmastered87GL Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 I'm with GD... use real metal. Foam just traps moisture and makes the problem worse than if you did nothing in the first place probably IF you are worried about the metal looking funny, slightly bend the existing metal in first, rivot it and then bondo over the seam. Then at least there will still be real metal holding the parts together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Diamond plate always looks cool, even the aluminum stuff. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msteel Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 That looks fun, bring that by sometime and we can come up with some orem ghetto style fix! For some reason this post reminded me of my days at Provo High. Somebody in school there had a car (a Pinto, I think) with the top cut off and zebra stripes painted on. The owner covered it with a tarp when he thought it might rain... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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