Sill Stone Chip Protector

[Hendry]

This relates to my modern shit, but thought it best to stick it in this section as its a bit of a generic question than a car specific one.

 

Anyway, my car has a kinda roughcast/artex type rubbery coating on the sills, not out of sight, actually about halfway up the sills, the smooth painted finish stops and along the entire length of the sill is this texture, its painted body colour, theres a straight line where the normal painted surface stops and any metal work below that line is that texture, only at the edge of the rear of the passenger side sill its gone rusty and the textured bit has became unstuck and bits have fallen off, another bit flaps around like its lost its stickiness on the backing but is still attached to the textured bit still affixed to the car, it doesnt chip or flake off like normal paint and is kinda thick, as you can tell ive no idea what it is, but beneath that is bare metal on my sills, luckily the rust isnt actually rusty and all bubbly and flaky yet, its just stained the bare metal a browny colour, ive rubbed it back to the bare silver metal and its not perforated or anything, it basically looks the way it wouldve done in the factory as a bare unpainted shell, however i obviously want to prevent further rust getting worse, and it looks unsightly a browny colour on a silver car, as does the large bit of missing stonechip protector/underseal/whatever it is.

 

Naively i assumed the metal was actually all rippled where this stonechip/underseal is and it was just painted over so all id need to do was rub back and paint, didnt realise the rubbert rough finish was just applied to the metal like the paintwork elsewhere is and that beneath that was smooth metal too.

 

Anyway ive waffled on enough, im looking to find out if and where I can buy more of this stuff, does it come as a sheet, is there a set process to mixing something up to give the rough finish or can something like that actually be bought in an aerosol can and produce that finish by being sprayed on?  

[Guest]

You can buy it in aerosol form- Gravitex is ok, but the pressure in an aerosol isn't enough to give a "factory" finish. Much better if used with a Shutz gun and a compressor. Upol raptor looks interesting, basically pickup truck bedliner, so gives a textured finish.

[Hendry]

You can buy it in aerosol form- Gravitex is ok, but the pressure in an aerosol isn't enough to give a "factory" finish. Much better if used with a Shutz gun and a compressor. Upol raptor looks interesting, basically pickup truck bedliner, so gives a textured finish.

 

As its only a small section, maybe 2"x2" what sort of stuff would they have used in the factory? any ideas? hopefully I can get something close to that and just do that section and hope it doesnt stand out too much as i dont fancy removing the whole lot along the full length of the sill right under the car to the jacking points. 

[sierraman]

Hammertoe hammered finish is probably closest you'll get. Don't think it overpaintable though.

[Mally]

You could buy a tin of underseal, brush some on and play with the finish until it sort of matches whats on all ready.

Maybe even spray some on thickly and dab it to match.

Pretty easy to wipe off small amounts before it sets if it won't match.

[fordperv]

Grind all the rubbery shit off and paint the sills, when this stuff starts peeling away moisture gets trapped and rots sills mk1 focus style

[beko1987]

Textured wallpaper sprayed body color?

[sierraman]

I had good success with Aldi Direct to Metal Paint. Gives a really tough finish, I've painted spades with it and at didn't chop off in use. Much better than Hammerite. Did the sills on the Focus with it. It's only a fiver a tin as well.

 

Failing that as above, I'd strip it back to where it's sound, brush on zinc primer then spray it. Make sure you get plenty of coats on

[PiperCub]

^^ That's interesting, I'd been looking for an alternative to Hammerite - something I've long given up on to be honest. Will try it when it next shows up in Aldi.

[jonny69]

Shutz applied with a small radiator roller will do what you want. Then simply paint over the top of it.

 

SHULZ:

 

[sierraman]

^^ That's interesting, I'd been looking for an alternative to Hammerite - something I've long given up on to be honest. Will try it when it next shows up in Aldi.

It's in there now they stovk it regularly. Really economical as well, flows well, I've done all sorts of jobs and still got 2/3 of tin left.

[Hendry]

Grind all the rubbery shit off and paint the sills, when this stuff starts peeling away moisture gets trapped and rots sills mk1 focus style

 

Hmm interesting, i did consider doing that because the rubbery stuff looks crap and when the cars all cleaned up and polished, they let it down because the rubbery stuff is impossible to get as clean as the paintwork so it looks like youve forgot to wash that far down, what youve described is exactly whats happened, a bit has peeled totally off, moisture has started oxidising the bare metal although its only just at the changing colour bit yet, not bubbling or perforating yet.

 

If I was to grind back the rubbery shit and paint them, wouldnt this need to be a bodyshop/professional job to blend the paint in with the paint higher up the sills? and isnt the point of the rubbery stuff because normal paint would just chip that low down on the sills from all the stones being thrown up at it. and in turn the chipped bits would turn rusty anyway and start gradually rotting? 

[sierraman]

I wouldn't grind all the Shutz off unless it was a real mess. It would be a right job, make a right mess as well. I'd just repair where it's damaged.

 

Alternatively you could ask the woman across the street from me to to rest her arse against the undried paint finish. That would give the orange peel effect you are after.

[Honey Badger]

In this situation I'd get round this by ignoring it and never walking round the passenger side of the car again.

 

Happy to help.

[beko1987]

In this situation I'd get round this by ignoring it and never walking round the passenger side of the car again.

 

Happy to help.

That's how I've fixed the keyless entry sensor not working on the front passenger door of the gooner, fixed forever!

[Hendry]

I wouldn't grind all the Shutz off unless it was a real mess. It would be a right job, make a right mess as well. I'd just repair where it's damaged.

 

Alternatively you could ask the woman across the street from me to to rest her arse against the undried paint finish. That would give the orange peel effect you are after.

 

     I actually lol'd at that. 

 

Anyway sorry i thought you meant get rid of all the rubber crap and just paint the sills with normal paint to avoid moisture getting underneath the rubber coating.

 

Ill try and get a picture. 

[Hendry]

Pics:

 

 

 

 

[twosmoke300]

Just a word of warning - Shultz doesn't like being over painted but stone chip does .

I would get some gravitex personally

[sierraman]

Depends if you are after a workmanlike finish, I'd grind back to where the metals clean then give it several coats by hand of zinc primer then top coat. You'd struggle to match it in invisibly whatever you do.

[DodgyBastard]

^^ That's interesting, I'd been looking for an alternative to Hammerite - something I've long given up on to be honest. Will try it when it next shows up in Aldi.

 

DSC_0276 by srblythe, on Flickr

 

DSC_0278 by srblythe, on Flickr

 

DSC_0282 by srblythe, on Flickr

 

DSC_0848 by srblythe, on Flickr

 

 

It takes ages to dry though.

 

Also painted this with the Aldi metal paint.

 

DSC_0366 by srblythe, on Flickr

[Kiltox]

I reckon it was the cola that sorted those wheels out

[nisfan]

I've found hammerite to be pure shite, it doesn't like to be painted on smooth metal and it's rust prevention properties are nil

[JayW]

It takes ages to dry though.

Thanks for that, I've got about 8 variously coloured tins of this on the workshop destined to repaint the Campervan!

 

 

In other news: If that sill covering is as thick and rubbery as it looks, brush on seamsealer is your way forward!

 

It's thick and rubbery and it's easily manipulated into any finish you like and it also takes all paint finishes.

 

I use it for sill and underside protection and at a tenner a litre it's good value. I use UPOL but they're all very similar.

[sierraman]

I almost want a steel wheeled car again to paint the rims.

[Timewaster]

I did the sills on the Galaxy last week.

A quick rub over with 400grit, rusty bits back to metal and kurust then a couple of coats of Graviguard grey stone chip and a topcoat of Hycote dark grey bumper paint.

 

Looks almost factory as it follows the grey strip line at the bottom of the bumper.

 

Body colour would have been a right faff and black looks really obvious.

 

Unfortunately the bumper paint comes in 150ml cans and I recon I needed 160ml.

Literally 2 more squirts would have done it.

[sierraman]

Looks quite good that Graviguard. I'd be worried if I saw it over some freshly welded sills though!