If I decide to strip my 67 Convertible, which method is best? Second question - If I decide to have it dipped, who does this, anyone know someone (reasonably close) in NC that does this work?

AUTODR,
I've been wondering the same thing about stripping my 68. I'm absolutely not a body man, so hopefully ragtopman or someone else will comment. From what I can gather from this site and some of the people I've talked to here in B'ham., the answer depends on what you are after, what condition the body is in, how much time and effort you want to put into the car, and how much money you want to spend.
To dip the car, you are going to have to completely disassemble it, everything on it that isn't steel is going to be destroyed or damaged. If you want to know for sure that all of the rust is gone everywhere, then I think dipping is about the only way to do it. I have a rust spot in front of the right rear wheel where a dent was poorly fixed, and the seems between the outer quarters and outer wheelhouses have some rust creeping up between them, the rest is some condensation rust on the inside of the quarters and roof panels. I considered dipping the car, but I've decided to get a body shop to replace the exterior metal, and I'm going to rig up some kind of sprayer to apply a conversion coating on the interior surface rust.
According to an ad in Hemmings Motor News, there is a Redi-Strip in Allentown, Pa. (610) 437-7878. That's the closest one listed. They don't dip the car in a primer after stripping, so you might want to consider that. The one in Jackson, Ms. wanted $800.00 to strip just the shell (no doors).
If you have a rare car and you really want it rust free, then that would be the way to go.
I hope this long post helps, or at least sparks some debate,
Mike

I think I probably will go the dip route, the car is already diassembled in preparation for repairs and modifications, so probably the easiest means to rid it it of cancer. I started with a basket case anyway.

I had my 69 Z/28 dipped by Redi-Strip and was very happy with the results. After pulling the quarters off, it was amazing to see how good a job the dipping did to get all of the nooks cleaned out. The car didn't come back in any kind of primer, but I think it did have some sort of protective coating on it to prevent flash rusting.

-Marc

If you decide to dip it, it has to be dipped in another bath of some sort be it zinc or an epoxy, or all the seams will blow out on you down the road.

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67 Camaro SS Conv.
70 Challenger R/T Conv.

dipping: is an acid bath...eats metal too, go for the blasting ...a guy here in Md. can take the color off a soda can,with out damage...seen it; and blasting doesn't always mean sand....they even use sodium bicarbonate(baking soda).what does all this mean.... you could have it blasted with out taking any trim or glass out.thats what i like. but it comes with a price.also ,as always check references.

on another note,it really does depend on amount of damage.

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My68Camaro (http://hometown.aol.com/Dougs68Camaro/index.html)
Doug G.
68 Camaro
406 ci.

[This message has been edited by DOUG G (edited 10-17-2000).]

My concern is for rust removal. We can do any blasting ourselves, but I dont want any nasty surprises popping up later, and the car has a considrable amount of rust.

We have had two of our customers dip their cars. They do come back looking great, but like ragtopman said they came without being diped in ant type of true protective coating applied (epoxy, wash primer, e-coat, ect). They did have a coating on them like mwh mentioned, but it was just a soapy film that washed off with water. Both customers that we did them for have moved out of the area, so I don't have any personal long term pros or cons. I've heard some horror stories and I've heard from others that are very happy. All I can say is if you do it, and its not dipped in permanant coating make sure you get some undercoating equiptment (wonds, ect) and coat every place you can see once, and everywhere you cant see twice.
Good luck, Austin

Well, decision has been made, I called and scheduled appointment with stripper today, and yes they do coatwith a rust inhibitor, but not an epoxy. What to do when I get it back?

AUTODR, You don't have to share this if you don't want to because its about money but how much roughly is it costing you to have the body dipped? Is it just the shell you are having dipped or are you giving him the fenders and doors to do also? If you have the means please post some before and after pictures. Lastly and this may be a stupid question but do you have to remove the cowl tag when its dipped, just thinking the cowl tag is made of lighter metal

68SS396, I'm not sure if Autodr is sending it to Redi-strip in Allentown, Pa, but I will eventually. The prices qouted a year ago were $1000 for the shell, between $50 and $200 for body panels and $250 for subframe. All non welded parts must be off. Any non steel parts have to be off, this includes the cowl tag and VIN tag. If the shell is a conv, the doors must be braced. Kevin

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69' SS-350 ragtop, M20, 3.55 posi. Totally Disassembled & in boxes (I'm working on it!)
69' Hugger Orange Z-21 ragtop 327/PG, Driver

Interesting, Thanks Kevin. I never thought about the subframe, good idea. Sounds like a better solution for the subframe than blasting. Always wondered how to clean up inside the frame rails of the subframe. Speaking of that it seems it would be pretty difficult to coat the inside of the frame rails on the shell after dipping, even if they do dip it in a solution afterwards. Would their last step be good enough to protect the places you couldn't coat like inside the frame rails? Sorry, just thinking out loud. Dipping sounds excellent but protection afterwards is the biggest fear I would have.

The cost is 900.00 for the shell and if you want doors they are extra. Was advised that cowl tag must be removed or lost forever. All non steel parts must be removed. I'm using Carolina Chemstrip - I talked to several of their customers (they will provide references) and everybody said they were great. And yes you are right, you must brace doors on a convertible.

AUTODR,
Did you go with redi-strip or did you find another place? The guy at the one in Jackson said that none of the redi-strips dip in primer. Another place in MI. said they would strip and e-coat the shell for $1650, but that's way too far for me.
Even though you can't dip it yourself, it seems as though with the right products and patience, you could do a good job of protecting the metal.

P.S. I will have before and after pics. Please dont chuckle too hard when you see the basket case.

Ok, you beat me to the punch. How did you find out about Carolina Chemstrip? I've had a hard time finding someone close to me.

I almost had to give up the next born to find out! But seroiusly, I just kept asking everybody I knew and finally someone told me about them. I think most of them know each other, so a call to one of them might produce the right answer. Hope this helps.

I dipped my '69 about 7 years ago and then painted it about 4-5 years ago. In between it was in primer and having metal replaced. I made sure I put some good primer everywhere I could possibly get it especially all the seams. So far, no rust anywhere - of course, I live in Colorado where there is no appreciable humidity but it gets rained on periodically.

When mine came back from the dip tank (no coating, just bare metal) I washed it down with metal prep and then very hot water, then primed it.

BTW - I think the idea of charging for doors and subframes is a load of crap. The guy that did mine said throw everything in that I had that was remotely related to the car. He was dipping it in a batch so extra parts were no impact to him. I tossed in every single body panel, all the suspension pieces, subframe, headers, battery tray, etc. - even a spare hood. They charged one price for a little or a lot (remember this was 7 years ago) ....... $400!!


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Scott
'69 400SB, Richmond 5-speed; '99 HD Road King Classic
www.geocities.com/sdenning1 (http://www.geocities.com/sdenning1)

I think Redi-Strip actually dips and bakes the parts so all the old sealer, filler, lead, everything is removed. I was told it would be around $1700 for the whole car/parts. If you're doing a frame off restoration, might as well start with the cleanest frame and shell you can get.

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Jeff H - 93 Indy 500 Pace Car(supercharged), Hugger Orange 69 Z28 with JL8 brakes & crossram

Visited a company in Memphis today (I sell industrial drives and hoists) that has a dry ice blasting process. The dry ice is ground and used as the abrasive media. It removes paint with no metal degradation at all, only problem is expense. Costs about $200 / hour. This company (Heavy Machines Inc) is renting their unit, but don't know from where.

One of the reasons (besides cash flow) that I have not had mine dipped yet was, what to do after it came back. I cannot prime right away and I have a LOT of welding to do so the coating Redi strip puts on would rub off quickly.

I think I found a solution, but I have to test it first.

Bear in mind this is all theory, so beware.
Here it is..
3M makes a wand ($50-$75) to get into all the nooks and crannies to spray the wax type sealers (cavity sealer) This would require holes to get to all the nooks. On a conv, you can get to everything but the rockers and under the top motor, but if you go thru the rear wheel wells, you can get to them and hide the evidence under the undercoating. Instead of using the wax sealer, use rassonil. According to the tech sheets, it has a thin consistancy, so the wand should work. The rassonil will convert the rust (should be very little after the dip) and protect it (2 to 3 coats required) and it will air dry. If you do it on a rotisserie you can be sure to cover all areas. Then use Zero Rust thru the same wand, this will give a good top coat. then prime when you can with expoxy primer (were you can reach), but not etch. etch will destroy the rass and zero rust. Then weld and fix and recoat the bare spots the same way after you are done. After the car is finish painted, use the cavity wax on the insides again using the same wand (cost savings here) and assemble car.

That should protect all the afore mentioned areas.


As to the 30 year old sealer, I have cut a 69 conv up to make patch panels and can atest to the fact that the factory sealer is not doing it's job anymore!

One more thing - If you dip the hood or trunk lid, there are small dallops of something that isolate the frame from the sheetmetal. I'm pretty sure they will disappear and then you have to squeeze something back in. On the hood it is no problem, but the trunk lid is solid with very little access.

How is everyone going to tackle that problem?

Please let me know if my theory is full of holes or not.

Thanks, Kevin


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69' SS-350 ragtop, M20, 3.55 posi. Totally Disassembled & in boxes (I'm working on it!)
69' Hugger Orange Z-21 ragtop 327/PG, Driver

I know this thread is rather old, but I hope someone is still watching it.

I have a 67 GTO that I am going to have Carolina Chem-strip dip. Has anyone found a place to get a car shell primer dipped (electrostatic preferably) that is relatively close to Raleigh, NC or even a place that does both?

Personally I would have it blasted.. "NOT SODA"
I would not want to have the metal treatment applied to it for starters.. Refinishing products dont' like to adhere to the acid. It has to be properly neutralized or you will have problems. the question I have is how do you get to all these areas to neutralize them? Let alone corrosion protection..

Now if you dealt with a place that stripped then neutralized then baked then put in e-coat, I might have second thoughts, then you know every area is treated properly.. But even at that you still have to be possitive of the products they are using and the procedure..

I just get so worried about this stuff leaching out after it's been painted.. or even worse, having delam problems because there was some of the acid film left somewhere..

I prefer machine sanding as much as possible then have the rest blasted.. Sure it takes more time and ends up costing the same or even more, but at least you know what you have, and won't have any unexpected surprises!!

I don't like either method by itself. However if its a one or the other answer I would blast with a well known and well referenced blaster.

I have had to many bad experiences so I now do it myself starting with brushed on strippers and than a combination of blasting and sanding with a D/A.

It does not take as long or is a difficult as you might think and it gives me total control. Additional I don't have to worry about chemicals seeping and causing a problem down the road.

Hi,

I saw your post about chemstip and was curious if you have already used them or not. I live in NC and was thinking about taking it to them as well if you had good experiences. How did you get the car to them....on a flatbed or similar?

-Inet

http://69camarorestoration.com

. . . so I now do it myself starting with brushed on strippers and than a combination of blasting and sanding with a D/A.

It does not take as long or is a difficult as you might think and it gives me total control. Additional I don't have to worry about chemicals seeping and causing a problem down the road.

sounds like what I did ,
brush on stripper
then scraped off
then when dry I cleaned it off with acetone
then a little light D/A sanding with fine grit to show clean metal
as you said not as much work as you would think.