Anyone have experience using CLR

str8axle63

str8axle63

Member
My Truck cab has some areas with decent paint, some areas with surface rust and some down to bare metal. Im looking to try and protect the finishes at the state their in, except the surface rust which I want to clean up .
I like the clear look over patina but I would rather not clear coat it.
I have seen that a few guys use CLR to, I guess clean up the above finishes, then apply a good paste wax with some decent results.
Would like to hear from anyone that has done this. Maybe some before and after pics? What do you apply the CLR with?
Would wet sanding get the same end results?
thank you for your help
 
Under my floormat was pretty nasty, I wire brushed it, then applied Rustmort with a sloppy brush. It's thin and clear as water, converts rust to iron oxide. There were spots that needed a second coat but it was complete with that, do nothing else, just saturate the rust. Surface dries black, with a slight sheen to it, and is ready to paint. It's not a paint itself, but a surface prep. Under the car, I wore a full face mask and gloves, but could have done without the gloves because it got on my arms with no bad effect. I bought it at a paint store, but I see it is on Amazon now.

EDIT: I should add that I did that 17 years ago, and it still looks like it was yesterday.
 

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ford38v8 said:
Under my floormat was pretty nasty, I wire brushed it, then applied Rustmort with a sloppy brush. It's thin and clear as water, converts rust to iron oxide. There were spots that needed a second coat but it was complete with that, do nothing else, just saturate the rust. Surface dries black, with a slight sheen to it, and is ready to paint. It's not a paint itself, but a surface prep. Under the car, I wore a full face mask and gloves, but could have done without the gloves because it got on my arms with no bad effect. I bought it at a paint store, but I see it is on Amazon now.

EDIT: I should add that I did that 17 years ago, and it still looks like it was yesterday.
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I'm sure that this is a good product and does what it is intended to do but I suspect that in this case there is not any desire to add any color to the existing surface but to clean it up a little and keep it as is.
 
On the worst areas of the 52 Merc, roof mainly, where it was down to primer and bare metal, I used fine steel wool and a little diesel fuel. It did a great job. Plus its good exercise to keep warm in this cold country.:D
After that I went over it with Turtle rubbing compound. On the front fender tops where there was basically no paint left, just surface rust, I steel wool and diesel fueled it and then sprayed clear coat to give a little shine and protect the surface. I'm happy with it. But if your original paint has any shine left in it the steel wool will dull the finish.
 

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str8axle63 said:
My Truck cab has some areas with decent paint, some areas with surface rust and some down to bare metal. Im looking to try and protect the finishes at the state their in, except the surface rust which I want to clean up .
I like the clear look over patina but I would rather not clear coat it.
I have seen that a few guys use CLR to, I guess clean up the above finishes, then apply a good paste wax with some decent results.
Would like to hear from anyone that has done this. Maybe some before and after pics? What do you apply the CLR with?
Would wet sanding get the same end results?
thank you for your help
Click to expand...

Nothing beats first hand experience (called "trial-and-error"). Find some rusty sheet metal scrap or a hidden spot under your truck and try it!
 
Ospho is another treatment that is available. Phosphoric acid converts the oxides on iron/steel surfaces to iron phosphate. It blackens the metal some after it dries. I usually sand it smooth after its applied so I can get a smoother prime & paint job. I just smooth it though, I don't try to remove the black phosphate on the surface. That phosphate coating is very slow to start corroding again but it will if left unpainted and out in the weather.

If you paint over untreated iron/steel surfaces the rust will come back under the paint. There are a lot of etching primers available and they mix phosphoric acid solution right into the paint to get the etch effect. There is not a lot of it in there but there is enough to do the job.
 
I saw a guy on another website that used CLR on his car which had surface rust. He used it and the pictures looked good. He did not give a good description how he applied it.
I has hoping maybe to see if anyone on here may have had some experience with it
 
If is was me, I would go with the procedures most restores and painters would use. If you are really interested in the CLR approach might post the question on the HAMB, there is a much larger base of folks to draw from and a lot of body and paint guys over there.
 
Putting clear over anything not prepped properly and sealed with primer, will fail in a few years (or add more patina). Probably be decent for a few yrs depending on climate.
 
Tinker said:
Putting clear over anything not prepped properly and sealed with primer, will fail in a few years (or add more patina). Probably be decent for a few yrs depending on climate.
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Hopefully I will be around for a few more years to see if you are right about that. My clear spray over the almost bare metal on my fender tops looks great (after 6 months) but it won't be getting wet or spending time outdoors other than driving.
 
Stuff will last a long time if out of the weather. Ozone & moisture in the air have an effect but not near as fast acting. UV light damages the clear coatings due to the ease of light penetration. Few clear coatings will last out in the sun very long.

CLR is acidic with at least five different types of acidic compounds mixed in as well as glycol & ether compounds. It will remove rust but it won't convert rust like phosphoric acid will.
 
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