Bad Advice: Ask DR – “What should I do?”
My girlfriend has been acting very strange lately. She seems distant and distracted and I just don’t feel we have the kind of intimacy we used to. She often claims to be working late and I have begun to suspect she is having an affair. The other day she said she was going out with her girlfriends for coffee. I snuck into the garage to watch her leaving through a gap in the door, looking for anything suspicious. While I was in the garage I noticed my fully-restored 1975 VW Kharman Ghia has a rust bubble forming near the bottom of the rear fender. What should I do?
Gian
The DR replies –
Rust, the dreaded tin-worm, is something that must be stopped in its tracks as soon as possible. First, you must clean the affected area, using a course sandpaper, wirebrush or other abrasive. This is to ensure that all loose material is removed, leaving behind only the solid underlying metal. Next, paint on a good rust converter and follow-up with a rust preventing sealer coat. Now prep for respraying as usual, ensuring that no bare metal is exposed in the process. Once properly finished off, your rust problems should be taken care of for the foreseeable future but be sure to check on it regularly just it wasn’t sealed up completely. Depending on the location of the affected area, you may want to undercoat the panel as well.