Hey guys Got a sweet new exhaust put on the other day. Is there any way to treat it with something so that it doesn't rust (even surface rust). Would like it to stay looking nice for as long as possible. Thanks for any advice!
hopefully it's already galvanized.. but either way, scuff with steel wool or sandpaper.. solvent wipe with acetone.. and coat as much as you possibly can with a cold galvanizing spray(has lots of zinc for silver/gray appearance). As you'll quickly discover.. it's always best to do that sort of thing before it's fully installed. EDIT: always do a solvent pre-wipe before scuffing/sanding or you'll just push contaminants into the "tooth" you're creating for the protective zinc layer.
Sweet! Thanks guys! I'll call the exhaust shop on monday and see if they did any of that - it's a pretty quality shop If not, I'll do it myself
A few pics - (If you have anything negative to say about it, please table it for a few months while I enjoy it )
Not a negative comment I promise! Lol. Just a recommendation. You might want to run your emergency brake cable over the exhaust. Where it is now, it will be directly heated by the pipes and will rub on them when engaged. Looks great!
Thanks! It's off the road until after midterms - I'll do some research and see about doing that before I drive it again. I'll be under there doing shocks anyway. Good call!
Easier to prep and spray the cold galvanizing spray on fresh pipes vs ones that have started to degrade. The welds will be the toughest to clean rust out of too. Just friendly advice from someone who's done it both ways.
Thanks! I'll get to it as soon as I can. Gotta keep my scholarship too Do you have any advice about cold galvanizing from your experience? Is there a brand/product you've found to work best? I have about a week to order what would work best. Any other advice I might not get from the label? (don't get it on chrome, rubber, paint, asphault, ect... wear gloves, ect...)
I just got off the phone with the exhaust place. They said that it IS aluminized exhaust pipe. They also emphatically told me NOT to cold galvanize, as it will become toxic when heated. They recommended aluminized engine paint for the section of pipe that's visible before it reaches the chrome tip if I want to be positive of cosmetics. They said the aluminized pipe will hold up pretty well on it's own as long as I'm not driving on a bunch of salt. Thanks for the Rust Bullet tidbit - I have 3 cans lying around and was very tempted
Might want to tell them that just about everything becomes toxic once it's heated by the pipes. The smell of aluminized pipes curing probably ain't quite so good for you either. lol They must not have tried it before because it's just zinc fortified spray paint is all. Then again.. why would they want their steel systems to last much longer?.. when it affects the sale of the upper scale stainless jobs and repeat customers. Have used various brands for years and the one I typically use nowadays is the Rustoleum branded stuff aptly named.. "cold galvanizing compound". Holds up well to the heat in the intermediate pipes too. EDIT: this stuff is easy to get just about anywhere. http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=53378806
There might be some of that going on. But these guys have been pretty upfront with me. We'll see... Haven't decided what to try yet
I use any type of high temp paint, engine paint, caliper paint, even bbq paint, and it does slow the rust down, of course using stainless tubing is the ultimate, but pricey.
