Restoring the front end on my 69 z, the front steering components are suppost to be natural metal finish. spindles, tierods, links etc, all the colors from eastwood, oem, dont look right! SILVER !! Any ideas, the parts are already blasted, and i do want to drive the car, cast blast? clearcoat? thanks

I go to alot of indoor high end vcar shows and help judge the ACA Camaro nationals at Carlisle. Seems to me most of HIGH dollar restos are using some form of stainless steel or natural steel paint as youve listed above. You could try blending or layering a couple different shades or colors??????
Cast Blast combinations are generally used on sway bar, spindles, springs etc etc.........Its a very touchy subjective and almost an art form to create the right look, and therefore few who make a living at it will reveal there techniques......

The correct way to do it is to strip the part to bare metal. Soak it in metal prep at full strength for about 30 minutes. Remove from the metal prep, rinse and dry the piece. Next. use a wire wheel such as those found on the opposite end of a shop grinder. Polish the piece. Next, wipe it down, and clear coat the part. VHT high heat in a spray bomb works well for this and dries to a semi-gloss finish. What you end up with is a true natural metal finish that is protected from re-rusting due to the metal prep and clearcoat. It really looks great compared to any of the "all-spray bomb" treatments.

I agree with Bob for the most part. I agree that the natural metal look is the best look.

You can get the metal looking great and natural. But after much experimentation, I have yet to find a way to keep it from rusting after a period of time.

Ive tried pretty much everything I can think of. Nice clean steel, never touching it with your bare hands (thats a big part), cleaning/prepping just before clearing, whether it be rattle (tried Eastwood products and VHT) or catalyzed urethane clear that you use for the exterior of the car. Ive even tried it right out of the blasting cabinet (new media), prepping it immediately, then clearing within minutes. Still, rust shows up after a while.

Ive tried every way I can think of, still no luck. Hopefully someone here has a tried and true method thats held up over a long period of time.

dave

jsffd
This a 1969 chevelle SS, if you're interested in any color combinations, holler.

Rob

wow Rob, that frame is impressive, the colors look pretty close, what is the metal finish? paint , clear,? any advise is appreciated. thanks John

rear brake backing plates etch prime gray #sxa1031 and eastwoods detail gray

front control arm shafts napa zincrom primer #7222 and napa iron/block cast #7250

rearend cover etch prime gray #sxa1031 and sema promax #61023 semi gloss black

contol arm shims #sxa1031 and eastwood detail gray

tie rods napa zincrom primer #7222 and napa iron/block cast #7250

tie rod clamps #sxa1031 and eastwoods detail gray

steering gear box napa #7222 and napa #7250

steering gear small cover eastwoods silver cad

steering gear ring and nuts sem promax semi gloss black

driveshaft straps and bolts #sxa1031 and eastwoods detail gray

front wheel grease cups #sxa1031 and eastwoods detail gray

ends of drive shaft #7222 and #7250

universal joint clips and clip area plasti-cote clear, small bottle brushed on

transmission #7222 and # 7250

transmission side cover eastwoods silver cad


driveshaft plasti kote non sandable primer and eastwoods detail gray

hurst shifter plate valspar antirust flat black

front springs sxa#1031 and eastwoods detail gray

front stabilizer bar sxa#1031 and eastwoods detail gray

rear springs sem #15031 landau black flexible paint

This is stuff you can do without a lot of equipment, just spray on light coats, especially the cast iron so you can see the roughness of the cast after you're done, I have more on the rest of the chassis, but you will need a air compressor and paint gun for that if you do it like I did. Hope this helps

You can clean cast iron by wetting it and then take a air hose and spray the wet off from it, I wouldn't take a wire wheel to cast iron parts, you want the cast to stay rough looking, also you can use lacquer thinner to clean a lot of stuff, although the lacquer thinner you get at wallmart and building supply places doesn't smell like pure lacquer thinner, so I always follow up with acryliclean. Be carefull with the lacquer thinner, highly flammable and it will make your paint blister if you get any on it.
I'm not good with a computer, so if this copy and paste stuff doesn't doesn't read out like it should, you still have the information

Once you clean it up or sandblast it, you will have pock marks etc. The only way to get them out is filler. Theres lots of ways to do it, this is just one of many.

Sandblast
36 grit on pock marks and gouges
body filler
re sand 180 grit on pock mark and gouge area
two good coats of z-chrome sprayable body filler over everything
sand with 180 grit
resand with red scotchbrite, works better in tight areas
two coats of epoxy primer

z-chrome is a rust inhibitor and sealer and it sands decent

Use a siphon feed gun, you can't get a hvlp in close enough, also use the cardboard out of a roll of paper towels to spray through on real hard areas

I used ppg epoxy primer and leave it at that, if you want it to shine a little you can take a california duster to it.

I hang the frame about four feet high to spray it, so you can duck under it, also I have a jig to support from the inside of the frame so nothing touches the outside.

The one on my website has set over a year, from a heated shop to a ventilated garage without any heat, so it does good at 20 below or out in the heat of the day.

If you scratch it or nick it, you can touch it up with a cheap air brush and you will never see it.

But this is just one of many ways, it takes a while to do one, but theres probably an easier way, but if you want it right it's going to take filler.

Lay the epoxy on pretty wet, and a good sized nozzle to spray the z-chrome
good luck

Rob

I'm copying from my posts, the second post is for the frame, control arms, rear end, and crossmember.

I'm not that good with a computer, I have a lot of tips on restoration, some day I will write it all up in one package.

If you need any more, let me know.

Good luck

Rob

i do what belair bob does!!!!!

I didn't mean to contradict what belair bob said, I was in a hurry and just copied it from my other post, I just noticed about what I put down on wire wheeling cast iron. He knows what he's doing, and I rework a lot of stuff to try to get it right.

I would like to see a good closeup of the natural metal, probably better then mine, and if it is, I will be changing over to his way.

I'm old, but never to old to learn.

Rob

Im also interested in Bobs technique and its longevity. As I mentioned in my earlier post, Ive tried every way that I can think of to get bare metal thats been coated to hold up after a year. I can get it to look great, and does so for a few months. But after a longer period of time, it has always come back through, even if its a little bit.

dave

Well hopefully he will see that were talking about it again. Then again, I wouldn't blame him for not saying anymore, the way I screwed up by saying what i did.
This isn't the first time I've said something I shouldn't have. I just get in a hurry on here.
I use the ( I'm old excuse ) and thats pretty flimsy.
When I type I use two fingers, and it takes me a long time to put something down, my fingers won't keep up with the thought process.
I use these forums for most of my information, and I think I will do a lot less posting and just learn what I can.


Rob

Hey Rob, you keep those two fingers flinging and nimble as we all learn from everyone. I have both enjoyed and learned different techniques from this string, and gee, if all the mature camaro.net experts quit posting the forum would not be the same. Thanks everyone!

Dont even worry about it Rob :thumbsup:

dave

Hi Guys, Have been reading the post. To clarify, the Metal prep (metal conditioner by Dupont), retards rust formation. Its a green liquid in the bottle available at any auto paint supply store. If you want the longest lasting solution, use Imron, or any other two part urethane clear over the bare metal. When you are through, and the paint has thoroughly dried, rub it with "000" steel wool so that the part is not glossy. This provides all of the protection you need, while maintaining the "natural" metal look. I did the spindles and driveshaft of my 55 in this manner. It lasted several years, and looked dynamite in the process!