FE-FC Holden Discussion Forum

At some time in the past my FE underbody was painted with a bitumous type rust protector. It is quite thick in places. My question is what do I do with it. Do I simply paint over it or do I remove it. If so, how?

Hey Theo.
Most of these types of coatings can be painted over. If however you want to remove it, the best way I found is to apply heat to the panel from the other side. This slightly melts the stuff and you can scape off while warm.
Regards
Alex

you can also soften it with kero, white spirits petrol, prepsol or pretty much any solvent but its messy stuff once you dissolve it like this.
they usually claim to be paintable but sometimes a browny black colour will bleed through the paint.
wouldnt matter to mauch if you paint it black but you wouldnt really want to leave it unpainted.

Theo

I removed this stuff from the underside of my FE the hard way, on my back, with a variety of scrapers, screwdrivers, wire brush etc.

I can say that the stuff had done it's job fairly well over the years with the exception of part of the passenger front floor.

For this reason I would say removing it would be a good idea so you can be sure there is no rust lurking.

If I had to do the job again, I would try what Alex suggested.

Although FCCOOL is on the right track too, as the areas where oil (around the diff and gearbox) had accumilated over time, it was very easy to remove as the oil had softened it.

Maybe you could use a spray bottle of kerosene to wet the areas the night before to make it easier to remove the following day.

Cheers, Gary

Theo
    I would advise removing the the tar/orminoid ? ? paint from the car .  My first attempt at rebuilding  an FC many moons ago with a couple of mates, we had a shell "donated" to us from Schofields (W/Sydney)  Great,  tar painted underneath .....spent a couple of months ,  flaring guards , rubbing back panels etc. went to jack it up AND  as the trolley jack gently rose  :D...  the body gently "lowered"  :-X.  to get to the top of the jack we opened the  left hand door  >:(  . the floor had rusted completely through.   Better to be sure than sorry.    I went and bought an "already done one"

  Norm   :)

Thanks Guys. It looks like the best bet is to remove it. I've made a start (with brushes and scrapers etc) the hard way. I'll try some of the various recommended solvents next. The spray the day before to soften sounds a good idea. I'll let you know how it goes

Hi Theo,
If you use the solvent method to remove the bitumen make sure you have a tarp under the car or you'll end up with a bitumen garage floor. You'll also need some disposable overalls as you'll be covered in black crap from head to toe by the end.
This is the messy way to do it though and you'll still need a scraper for the thick spots and corners. So hard work and a heat gun as Alex mentioned sounds the best way.
You really only need to remove it in all the rust prone areas to ensure you have good metal beneath. It can be left in the centre of the floor pans for a bit of sound deadening as you can check topside of those for rust.
cheers,
Leigh

Thanks for the advise all.
I've made a start with a heat gun and wire brushes, both electric (angle grinder, drill etc) and manual. What a lousy job. But it keeps you warm on a cold evening.

my fb loofed perfect till the 'tar' came off,no floor channels,u name it ditto a friend s hd...........forget tar cars

it also looked perfect.......lol ::)

Yeh, your right. I've started removing THAT STUFF and have found some concealed rust. And this in places that looked good. So now it will all have to go. Ah well it'll keep me out of the house and off the street. Thanks all