See pics below for current condition of my '97 F350 undercarriage.

Lots of factory paint is still in place, but lots of surface rust is starting to take hold too. There's zero rot - just surface rust. I think it's in great shape for a 20yr old truck overall, and I'd like to scuff and spray the whole underside with some kind of satin black paint to keep it that way. What do you guys recommend I use, given what you see in these pics?

 

POR 15 is what I use on my trucks, it holds up really well in the rust belt.

Do not use the cheap "undercoating" in a spray can that parts stores advertise, because in a few years it will look the same as it did before(or worse).

I've heard of people having good luck with Chassis Saver, and also Master Series. But I still use POR 15 because it's always worked great for me. You just need to make sure it's lightly rusted, or scuffed up really rough. Since it is designed to be painted over rust it does not stick well to smooth surfaces.

 

Unless you are completely sandblasting the the enter chassi, save your money and just rattle can the frame

POR will only stick to heavily rusted or sandblasted metal. If not, it just flakes off in sheets

 

Looks like your typical 20+ year old rust free California truck.She needs nothing.It'll look basically the same after another 20 years lol.

 

Thanks for the input guys.

Here's the problem. I just shipped it to New England, where vehicles go to die. The condition of the truck will go downhill in a hurry if left as is. The moisture and nuclear salt they put on the roads here SUCKS.

Trying to get ahead of this before that 'light surface rust' starts becoming 'heavy flaking rot'!

 

After you paint it, every fall, get it squeaky clean and spray-coat it with Fluid Film.

 

That's a good idea and what I am planning to do. Can't really do much better than that for long term protection. I already use Fluid Film regularly on my other vehicles. Good stuff.

I'm just trying to decide what paint products to use to restore the chassis now, before applying the Fluid Film (which I'll do in 3-4 months, right before winter hits).

 

If you value that truck,you'll take her off the road come first snow and keep it there until spring.A little front wheel drive car will do great for those months and you'll keep that truck as is for many years to come.Anything short of this,it will eventually rot away on you.

Show us a pic of the top side of this cream puff. As you know,we don't get to see them very often out this way.She turns heads and gets compliments near daily,doesn't she?

 

FWD cars, cars in general, are a major fail many winters here. All the traction in the world doesn't help when the snow is deeper than the ground clearance. I routinely pull neighbors' plow-bound cars out with the PSD. And winter is WAY harder on unibody vehicles than full-frame.

 

Well,of course your limited sitting out the storms and nothing short of a 4wd belongs on unplowed roads but roads these days are plowed good.It's a small price to pay to save your truck.I just crossed through the northern states with small cars (old beater's engine blew out in WY).I just waited out the storms in my tent.

 

The truck in question is a 1997 F350 XLT 7.3L 4x4 I picked up recently. Cream puff is a pretty good descriptor for it. The truck has 99K on the clock and never worked a hard day in it's life. For one thing, the camper cap + bedliner has been on it since day 1, so the bed floor is in time-capsule condition. The truck drives and rides like new. The 7.3L just purrrs - it's my first diesel too. Body is in excellent shape; just a couple tiny dings and dents.

While I wish I could keep it off the road in the winter, I actually bought it to plow my driveway with. I know, super cringe!

I almost feel bad for moving it across the country to NE given how nice it is.











Used it to tow my '64 F100 hot rod project just recently too. That 7.3L pulls like a dream!

 

Sweet rides, for sure.

 

What a beauty.To turn a truck around these parts into that, would require a complete frame off restoration and cost several thousands of man hours and money both.Amazing.Take lots of pics.She wont look anywhere near that after 5 years driving on winter roads,no matter how hard you prep it.

I bet you could sell that here in New England and have more than enough to cover the cost to hire your driveway plowed for life.
A $500 yard truck and a $500 plow will keep your driveway clean......just saying.

 

PLOW??!!!? Yeah, if you do it right, you can get it to survive salt-belt winters. But plowing? That's a whole 'nother category of wear/tear.

If it weren't for the background, that ^^^^^ magic-hour photo could be from a brochure.

 

This.
I'd drive the '64 in the winter before I drove the '97. The '64 isn't a pristine example of a survivor.