I asked this on the suspension board, but nobody has an idea...

Say I was going to box my control arms. What do I do about painting the plate (to cover the u-shape)? Do I not paint the inside at all? That makes sense, 'cause it would make for a better electrical connection for my MIG. But wouldn't the paint bubble up?

Or should I not paint anything "inside" the boxed arm? Won't it rust up tho?

Anyone worry about this? Or did you just weld the "U" shut and paint the outside?


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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
---Think your car could be pic of the week? Visit http://www.f-body.net for details!

 

when i did mine i never worried about it. if you want you could paint it first and then weld it. mig is a very low heat input process so there would be some paint left, not sure how much.

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-=ICON MOTORSPORTS=-
1st & 3rd

 

use some VHT hi temp paint.. :P

 

Tom,

1. Paint the inside and let it cure.

2. Weld to your heart's content, then brush primer or rust-preventing paint in at the ends of the arms.

3. Tilt the arms so that the primer/paint runs down the inside of the bead you just welded.

4. Forget about the rusting from the inside.

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Later,
Vader
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"No matter how hard you try you can't stop us now"
Adobe Acrobat Reader 4.0

 

I coat EVERYTHING ferrous with zinc phosphate primer, you can get it at a hardware store that sells marine products. It is marketed for marine outdrives and is therefore very durable and makes a great primer. It is very thin and seals remarkably well. It is about $20-25 a quart, but you thin it 100% (1:1) with lacquer thinner. Brush it on the parts, it wont bother the welds and it will stop them from rusting. If you let it dry more than 1-2 hours, scuff it with a scotch brite red pad before painting. Hammerite paint is cheap and very durable. Also avoid spray cans on anything other than interior.

 

Most auto body stores will have what is called a weld through primer that you paint on both inside and outside surfaces. This will seal up the weld and give the metal protection. Then, on the outer surface, I'd use something like a 3M undercoating.

 

Great! Thanks for the ideas, guys!


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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
---Think your car could be pic of the week? Visit http://www.f-body.net for details!