Got any body shop guys here? I have a few rusted spot on my truck. a few on the roof are my main worry, don't want it to rust though. How should i go about repair the rust spots? do i just sand off the rust and put touch up paint or should i put something like primer or rust bullet on there first? what is the best way to sand a small spot? i have a dremel with a small wire wheel and small sand bits? thanks

 

I usually paint helicopters, but the same applies- remove all of the rust with t he mildest means possible. Now that doesn't mean using 1000 grit sandpaper for a deep rust pocket, but do the best you can not to cut through the metal, so in your instance you might want to try a dremel with a small STEEL wire wheel, as anything else WILL leave embedded piece of wire in the metal, and cause rust through disimilar metal corrosion. Once the rust is gone, if it's not too deep, you can give it a coat or two of primer, then color sand the primer to match the contour of the surrounding area. Once dry, then you can spray the actual color over the primer, but use at least 3 light coats overlapping the primer, so once dry you can again colorsand (water and up to 1500 grit paper) the finish color so it blends perfectly into the original paint.
I cracked the hell outta my dually fender once, fiberglassed it, smoothed it out, and painted it the same way I just described, and you would never tell that it was damaged. Lemme know if you need more help or clarification, I'll be more than happy to help.

 

any specific primer to use. would a product like rust bullet be better then paint over it?? thanks

 

Yes, you want to use Etching Primer it will adhere better to the bare metal, You should be able to buy it in an aerosol. That would be your best bet asuming your not going to use a paint spray gun.

 

I did use an aerosol primer, but since I was painting fiberglass and plastic, I was able to get away with regular primer. While an etching primer is of course better, any painter worth a dime will tell you that prep work is 90% of the job, so that's why you can also effectively use regular primer. To paint my repair, I went and bought- or rather got eye gouged at the dealer- the matching paint in the little tube. I thinned it with laqur thinner, as it's a laquer base paint, and sprayed it with a small hobby airbrush I use for my HO scale trains. Although it took 2 bottles at the cost of one arm and one leg, it looks like, well, it looks like nothing ever happened!