DIY rusty arch fix

[RobMorris]

Hello

Ok - so yesterday this it what my front drivers side arch looks like (worst of the 4)

I first started picking at the flaky paint. And then used my drill with a wire brush end to grind down the rust out to clean metal.

As per

Once ive really cleaned the arch up i intend to spray them with silver Hammerite for protection then cover the arch with these which I bought off ebay - in 'ready to paint' finish.
eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace
Il paint the arch extensions using Halfords paint to match the car.

Not sure what to put in between the fresh painted arch and extension?

Updates to follow

 

[NW_Merc]

Not sure what to put in between the fresh painted arch and extension?

Do the extensions clip on in some way? If they just stay attached you could spray the inside with waxoil

 

[KillerHERTZ]

until you see shiney metal you still have rust and if you cover that up it will be back in time for Xmas. I know this as I've done exactly the same myself in the past... even the smallest black spot is still rust

 

[NOMONEYBUTAMERC]

^ +1. did my mates arches in april.looked great for about 6 weeks , then started to blister. Need to get rid of all rust traces, then use good primer/undercoat, several coats , then get an aerosol made up to correct shade (about £13 from haflords), give a couple of colour coats then finish with clear laquer. Worth taking time to do properly. I only did a rush job on my mates as he was giving it away.I think chrome arches give the impression that they are just there to cover rust

 

[RobMorris]

They clip on at each of the bottom edges.
Waxoil is a good idea. Thanks

 

[RobMorris]

Just some additional info for you gents
The car runs great - its just the arches and IMO the wheels let it down.
Ive sourced some other E class 16s that I prefer and I am attacking the arches to get as best finish as possible.
I paid £750 for the car, and ive had several quotes to fix the arches 'properly' for between £800 - £1000. Doing it myself will cost less than £100. Gots to be worth a shot?

 

[AANDYY]

Doing it myself will cost less than £100. Gots to be worth a shot?

Agreed but you will be doing it every few years.

 

[NW_Merc]

As KillerHertz has said, if you dont grind it back to as far as you can to remove the rust and expose good metal it will come back and very quickly because it would have affected lower layers of the metal and because you have removed the loose surface stuff, the bottom layers will take hold.

It may well be that you 'might' require new wings if there is not much good metal left after your efforts. Either way, I would start with good, non-rusty metal otherwise you'll be redoing your job in a matter of months.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Heres mine:

Note how all you can see is just shiney metal, no black specs at all.

 

[RobMorris]

I see the shiney shiney!
But you can see the ripple effect left by previous rust right?
What did you use to take the rust down?

 

[KillerHERTZ]

I was lazy, I should have applied some filler to smooth it out before I sprayed the primer.

I didnt bother as it was the 'inner' part of the arch and not easily seen.

I got it that shiney with an Angle Grinder, didnt use any anti-rust solution at all, I simply removed every possible bit of rust

 

[RobMorris]

Nice - what fitment did you use on the grinder?
Assume not a solid plate and you used a wire type fitment?

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Used a £5 eBay wire fitment, worked perfectly!

 

[RobMorris]

Great - cheers mate

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Remember to coat the inside of the arch with bodysealant (I take it your removing it?)

I used Dylax, picture of my sideskirt removed:

Also, another rust shot, half rusty, half ground down:

 

[RobMorris]

nice mate - mine looks just like your did on the left of the pic so O know whith the right tools and effort I can beat this rusty cancer!

 

[millo777]

Even if you think you've got it all out with a grinder, I'd still use a chemical rust remover or convertor to make sure it's all gone. even when you think it's all removed, you'd be suprised that this stuff can still picks up a few spots left behind.

My preferance would be zinc primer on the bare metal, then a regular primer followed by base colour coat if required. Don't rub down the zinc primer though, just let it dry and apply the regular primer over it. If it's going to be covered by a trim piece, I'd probably just apply underseal over the primer and be done with it.

I can recommend Bilt Hamber Dynax UB. Great stuff and easy to apply in aerosol form. I haven't tried their rust remover or zinc primer yet, but have read some very good reviews.

Take some pics of each stage and post them up for each stage if you can. I'm sure there are quite a few people out there with similiar rust problems.