rust proof '72
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From: Calgary Canada
rust proof '72
I bought a '72 F100 a couple of months ago with 56,000 original miles. The thing that struck me about it is that it is completely stock and original and there is almost no rust. Up here in western Canada rust is usually a big problem because we put salt on the roads in winter and that usually rots 30 year old vehicle.
When I look underneath it looks like the previous owner has sprayed the undercarrage with oil. It doesn't smell like motor oil but rather gear oil. I think that is what has saved this truck. Does anybody out there know about this method? What kind of oil to use? How often?
When I look underneath it looks like the previous owner has sprayed the undercarrage with oil. It doesn't smell like motor oil but rather gear oil. I think that is what has saved this truck. Does anybody out there know about this method? What kind of oil to use? How often?
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From: Gainesville, FL
rust proof '72
Sedric,
It's not oil, I don't think? If you can't rub it off then its cosmoline. Look at the color with a good light on it, it's got a reddish color to it. They use the stuff on european vehicles that have to come over in a boat. It protects them from salt. It is applied with a spray gun and has a splattered pattern. The stuff won't come off and I've seen thrirty year old Porshe that still have a hefty coat on them.
Good Luck, Have Fun,
KingFisher
It's not oil, I don't think? If you can't rub it off then its cosmoline. Look at the color with a good light on it, it's got a reddish color to it. They use the stuff on european vehicles that have to come over in a boat. It protects them from salt. It is applied with a spray gun and has a splattered pattern. The stuff won't come off and I've seen thrirty year old Porshe that still have a hefty coat on them.
Good Luck, Have Fun,
KingFisher
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From: Hollister, CA
rust proof '72
I've got what appears to be the same thing on my 2000 VW Eurovan and in the manual they say it is for rustproofing and not to clean it off. The only problem is it always looks dirty.
Reggie
Reggie
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rust proof '72
friend of mine used to own a ford dealership....lucky guy...but when i bought my truck i noticed that there was an undercoating material on it, so i talked to him, turns out it was a dealer option, not worth the sticker price either, i think it was like a 100-150 bucks on a new vehicle back in the 70s but it only cost the dealer 20-25. kinda weird why soo many people had it done, but i am sure glad the original owner to my truck did, almost 25 years old and still not one spot of rust on the original paint job. now that is quality ford engineering.
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From: Calgary Canada
rust proof '72
It's oil all right...it is clear, you can rub it off with your finger and it smells like oil. I remember a neighbour once telling me that he sprayed the bottom of his car with old motor oil and that kept the rust away. I thought he was full of sht at the time but maybe he was on to something.
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From: Gainesville, FL
rust proof '72
Sedric,
Sorry for the assumption on my part. I've got a 76 F100 that leaks everything. It leaks so bad, it leaks fluids it doesn't even have! There is no rust though! It works but, it is expensive and bad for the enviroment. The rubberized undercoating is a good option but, it won't stick to metal that has been saturated by motor oil. Motor oil not only coats metal but it helps salt stick to metal. Six of one, a half dozen of another.
Good luck, Have Fun,
KingFisher
Sorry for the assumption on my part. I've got a 76 F100 that leaks everything. It leaks so bad, it leaks fluids it doesn't even have! There is no rust though! It works but, it is expensive and bad for the enviroment. The rubberized undercoating is a good option but, it won't stick to metal that has been saturated by motor oil. Motor oil not only coats metal but it helps salt stick to metal. Six of one, a half dozen of another.
Good luck, Have Fun,
KingFisher
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rust proof '72
i read a quote on this board months ago where one fellow said that his dad had always coated the bottom of his pickup with gear oil, and then went hell-for-leather down a dirt road.
the dirt would get all worked into the gear oil, forming a nasty, but effective rust-proofing.
the dirt would get all worked into the gear oil, forming a nasty, but effective rust-proofing.
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Fleet Owner
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From: Creedmoor, North Carolina
rust proof '72
Sedric, I have heard of mixing old motor oil and kerosene or diesel together and spray it on with a garden sprayer. I knew a feller down at the coast that sprayed his 4X4 that he drove on the beach with it.
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In the cool still quiet of night, you can hear chevies rusting away.
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rust proof '72
My truck's first owner had a cosmoline spray put on mine when it was new. I just had it resprayed last year. The stuff is great in preventing rust and stopping the spread but it sucks when you have to do anything to the truck as it get everywhere and stick to everything. Clothes are shot, rags are shot, tools need cleaned in gasoline etc.. And in the summer it will drip cosmoline when it gets real hot out. Sure has keep my truck looking good though. Oil baths seem to be done alot more than cosmoline though. I think it might be a enviromental thing.
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rust proof '72
Oil works great for rustproofing! Oil coats steel and even pockets of rust. Places that are already rusty can be kept from getting any worse by brushing on (or spraying on) oil. The oil doesn't do anything special to steel, but it does keep the oxygen out by coating the metal. If the oxygen can't get in then the steel can't oxidize. As far as salt "sticking" to oil, salt sticks to everything, it gets splashed everywhere, oil or no oil. If you really care about your vehicle, you don't drive it in the salt, period. If you must drive in the salt, oil helps. I like to use used 90wt oil on my floorpans, fenders, etc when I have it, it's thicker than motor oil and sticks pretty well, and it really does keep the rust from progressing. It soaks into everything and makes a hell of a mess, but it keeps the oxygen out. It certainly isn't very environmentally friendly, but then, most Ford trucks aren't.... in fact, internal combustion powered vehicles in general aren't environmentally friendly.
Adam
Adam
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From: SE PA
rust proof '72
A little different idea, use the one-step bed coating (Dura-bak or Hurculiner), holds up to the salt, has a dull black finish clean or dirty, is "tough as nails" when running dirt/gravel roads, should last a long time and if it does chip over time it's fairly easy to touch up.
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rust proof '72
-I live on a farm, and we would always spray the bottom of the farm trucks with diesel fuel or DW-40 in a bug sprayer. Diesel is still rather hard to remove once it soaks in, and DW-40 soaks deep into the metal. It works good as long as uou don't mind the smell for a while. It only works good if you can commit youself to spraying it often (once a month or so) (Yet a small commitment for a lifelong free of rust). Moisture is what usually kills metal the fastest, so whatever displaces moisture should help prevent rust.
-Dan :+
-Dan :+
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rust proof '72
Do you mean WD-40, or is DW-40 a Farm associated product like
weed killer or something?
Dennis
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weed killer or something?
Dennis
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From: Gainesville, FL
rust proof '72
All,
1. Cosmoline is removable through the use of "Decosmoline". It is a real product and it really works.
2. WD-40 is not a good product to prevent rust.
3. To eliminate rust: scratch, sand, blast, whatever gets rid of existing rust as best you can. Then coat the exposed area with Naval Jelly or some product that has phosphoric acid. After the effected area has turned dark, coat the surface with an acrylic or epoxy primer. DP40 is a good product. I coat my frame with Rustoleum enamel. And fender wells with rubberized undercoating.
Good luck, Have Fun,
KingFisher
1. Cosmoline is removable through the use of "Decosmoline". It is a real product and it really works.
2. WD-40 is not a good product to prevent rust.
3. To eliminate rust: scratch, sand, blast, whatever gets rid of existing rust as best you can. Then coat the exposed area with Naval Jelly or some product that has phosphoric acid. After the effected area has turned dark, coat the surface with an acrylic or epoxy primer. DP40 is a good product. I coat my frame with Rustoleum enamel. And fender wells with rubberized undercoating.
Good luck, Have Fun,
KingFisher
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