Land Cruisers are very good at rusting, especially if you drive on salted roads. The best rustproofing there is is rubberised undercoating, but that can only be applied on brand new vehicles, as it doesn't stop rust, it just protects against salt and water. I decided to try some options for used cars.
There are specialised coatings like fluid film and even paints you supposedly can put straight on rust, but as I don't have any of those I'm not testing them.
I might go buy some fluid film equivalent and some hammerite for a second test if there is interest.
The contestants:
10W40 synthetic engine oil: used engine oil is an easy DIY solution. I used brand new oil though.
Linseed oil: supposedly extremely good at rustproofing. The source of that information is probably 150 years old though, so how does it compare to modern oil?
Wood tar: a lot thicker than the oils, which should make it last longer. Hopefully not thick enough to trap moisture though. Smells fantastic, if it even somewhat works it might be worth using it just to have your cruiser smell like a wooden boat.
The experiment consists of coating painted, bare and rusty sheet metal with each coating.
The rusty piece is real 70 series steel, and is coated on both sides to avoid skewing the results by rusting from the backside.
Those are then put in a tub of very salty and slightly dirty water until we get a result.
I'll be back in a few weeks with the results. Suggestions for more things to try out are welcome.
There are specialised coatings like fluid film and even paints you supposedly can put straight on rust, but as I don't have any of those I'm not testing them.
I might go buy some fluid film equivalent and some hammerite for a second test if there is interest.
The contestants:
10W40 synthetic engine oil: used engine oil is an easy DIY solution. I used brand new oil though.
Linseed oil: supposedly extremely good at rustproofing. The source of that information is probably 150 years old though, so how does it compare to modern oil?
Wood tar: a lot thicker than the oils, which should make it last longer. Hopefully not thick enough to trap moisture though. Smells fantastic, if it even somewhat works it might be worth using it just to have your cruiser smell like a wooden boat.
The experiment consists of coating painted, bare and rusty sheet metal with each coating.
The rusty piece is real 70 series steel, and is coated on both sides to avoid skewing the results by rusting from the backside.
Those are then put in a tub of very salty and slightly dirty water until we get a result.
I'll be back in a few weeks with the results. Suggestions for more things to try out are welcome.