Welds rusting

stangman16

Active Member
Nov 16, 2004
640
4
29
San Antonio, TX
I did the cowl vent repair about 3 years ago, and it appears the welds are rusting. I'm curious of two things, how did this happen (so I can be proactive for future projects) - and how should I go about fixing it?

I used 3M weld-thru primer on the underside parts that had to be welded where I could not paint. I have a cheaper welder from Harbor Frieght with no gas... On the top I grinded the welds down, wiped the metal off with wax & degreaser before priming and painting. I did not use epoxy. (it was supposed to be temporary until I could paint the whole car, but its now been about 3 years and I still havent got to paint it yet)

How should I go about fixing this? Get out the dremel and grind down the front windshield area, use POR15, and topcoat with a black paint until I can paint the whole car? Or do I have to take the windshield out to properly fix this?

Any thoughts or suggestions welcome, thanks!


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"I did not use Epoxy"...I think thats the issue, no real sealer over the metal. I spray epoxy on everything and bodywork on top of that.

To fix it I would remove the glass and take it down to the steel again and see how bad it is, maybe you can just grind, Epoxy, and repair.
 
That's nothing but a little surface rust....your plan of grinding it down to metal and coating with POR should do the trick....I would remove the windshield and do the whole area while your at it if you are that worried about it....that way you won't have to worry about it in the future.
 
Theres nothing wrong with epoxy from a can, its just a lot thinner, so several coats will be required. If you have an air compressor, you can get a small touch up gun for like 20 bucks out of Harbor Freight or Northern Tool...its a necessity in my tool box!
 
Primer

"I did not use Epoxy"...I think thats the issue, no real sealer over the metal. I spray epoxy on everything and bodywork on top of that.

To fix it I would remove the glass and take it down to the steel again and see how bad it is, maybe you can just grind, Epoxy, and repair.

Primer absorbs anything, water ,grease, cat pee(dam kitty!).
You must paint over it before exposing it to water or moisture.
Good call on the weld-though primer , I used it too.
 
Epoxy in an aerosol can is no replacement for commercial 2 part epoxy. If your going to pull the winshield, dont cut corners by using rattle can paint.