A flat, or dull clearcoat? Sealer?

[351Coupe]

I love the way my Fairlane looks, I want to preserve the look and patina it has now, so I want something to seal it just the way it is.

I want to clear it like it is, but my concern is that usually when I see a clear sprayed on something like this, even if it's supposed to be flat or dull, it still looks pretty glossy, and the surface rust looks too reddish.

Here's the car, my 63 Fairlane, with 48k original miles, that my great grandmother bought from the original owner in 68. It now has a 302 H.O. and a C4 along with the stock Bullitts from my 04 GT.

[shumpertdavid]

Bitchin ride, from my understanding there are flatteners that you can add to the clear to achieve the effect you want. I'm sure some of the paint and body guys will chime in.

[CJ]

You need to take care of that rust before you seal it. There are semi gloss clears available from many different manufacturers. If you like the way the rust looks you can reproduce it.

[Rick Modena]

There is actually a flat clear that I bought to do some HD wheels. I just applied black basecoat and then followed up with 2k flat clear, they came out nice and you have full clear coat protection.

[CJ]

There is actually a flat clear that I bought to do some HD wheels. I just applied black basecoat and then followed up with 2k flat clear, they came out nice and you have full clear coat protection.

Is there a clear on the market that will neutralize rust?

[Rick Modena]

I don't think so, but if the clearcoat is applied over the rust, it should stop the spread since rust happens with humidity and rain and reacts as a process. So if you seal it with clearcoat it should suspend the process (spread).

That is if the thats the 'look' he wants to achieve.

[CJ]

I don't think so, but if the clearcoat is applied over the rust, it should stop the spread since rust happens with humidity and rain and reacts as a process. So if you seal it with clearcoat it should suspend the process (spread).

Wont it just start to bubble up in a few years?

[Rick Modena]

Wont it just start to bubble up in a few years?

Im sure it would. I really don't know though, anyone that brings me a car with rust, wants it removed and refinished, lol!

[CJ]

Im sure it would. I really don't know though, anyone that brings me a car with rust, wants it removed and refinished, lol!

Yeah I've never intentionally painted over rust, I'm pretty sure it would bubble up in a few years and require a respray.

[Rick Modena]

I did a 51 chevy many years back for a movie that was being shot in the area, they wanted the car to look old, it was kinda of glossy. I shot it with a single stage red and added flattener to it and it killed the gloss and made it look rustic from a distance and certainly enough for the movie film it was shot on.

[71chevellejohn]

Wont it just start to bubble up in a few years?

It didn't even take a year for untreated rust to bubble up on my buddy's Nova.

[Rick Modena]

Yeah I've never intentionally painted over rust, I'm pretty sure it would bubble up in a few years and require a respray.

You are correct though, if rust isn't taken care of correctly it will come back, it must be totally removed or neutralized from the steel panels.

[CJ]

You are correct though, if rust isn't taken care of correctly it will come back, it must be totally removed or neutralized from the steel panels.

And it can be a huge bitch. I had some paint flake off on my hood, start out about a quarter size chip, then it eventually became about the size of a saucer, open to the elements I was just lazy. When it came time to get rid of it, I had to use an 80grit pad on my air sander and I had to take a ton of material away to get all the little pinholes out. Just 6 months exposure took 30 minutes with an air sander and 80 grit.

[Rick Modena]

Yes sir, it can be a bitch to get rid of. Thats why I charge double my hourly rate to repair rust.

[351Coupe]

Well, it looks like I'm stuck between letting it go like it is and repainting it (a solid white, NO FAKE PATINA!).

If I'm going to invest that much time and money into paint, I'm not going to do all that just to put a fake rust look on it to look like it's something it's not.

I either want it to be like it is now (with no fakeness), like it has history and a story to tell, or I want it to look new.

I just think it's pretty bitchin' like it is now, and want to keep that look. However, I do not want rust taking an upper hand. I would prefer it to look like it does now over a new shiny paint job that covers up its history.

I guess I'll roll with it as is for a while before repainting it with a nice paint job.

Like they say, it's only original once.