How To Repair Auto Body Holes

Rust is merely a fact of life. It tends to exist a constant issue close to the shore, in boiling areas and in the common salt belt. Even a chip from a stone tin requite rust a foothold on your automobile and pb to cosmetic or structural damage. Body repair is oft considered one of the most fragile and complicated automobile repairs, merely learning how to Bondo rust holes is luckily quite elementary.

While "Bondo" is the name of a 3M product, it has also become a generic term for plastic trunk filler, and several companies brand similar stuff. The putty can exist useful for filling rust holes in the nigh rust-prone areas of a motorcar including quarter panels, fenders over and backside the wheels, and the bottoms of doors. However, whether or not yous can Bondo a rust pigsty will depend on the location and severity of the rust.

To Bondo or Not to Bondo

Small surface rust tin can often be sanded and painted, but major rust pitting and holes may crave a little more effort and material — specifically, Bondo or some other quality body filler.

Withal, Bondo shouldn't be used on every kind of rust hole. Because information technology tin't support whatsoever weight or protect you in a crash, you should never try to utilise Bondo for rust holes in anything structural, such as frame track or reinforced areas on unibody vehicles (i.e. most modern cars and crossovers). Fuel tanks and exhaust systems are also a no-go because body fillers will non cure when exposed to fuel and will crack when exposed to oestrus.

For structural components with rust holes, welding or replacement are the only options. On the other manus, for non-structural body repairs, knowing how to Bondo rust holes can aid you restore your vehicle's appearance and prevent more than rust formation.

How to Bondo Rust Holes

To go started, the body filler needs something to stick to. Rough-sanded bare metal is best, simply primed metallic will practice. A rust converter should exist used to prepare rust-pitted surfaces for torso filler. Rust converter stops the oxidation procedure that creates rust and prevents the rust from spreading. If rust has thinned or eaten through the panel, and so the Bondo needs a backup. Fiberglass sheets, metal mesh or fiberglass screen can be used.

Once you have a adept surface to work with, mix torso filler with a spatula or plastic scraper on a piece of cardboard. Only make what y'all'll apply in about x minutes, or else the filler may cure before yous are done. Using your spatula, work the filler into the surface. Effort to continue the final thickness (post-sanding) less than a quarter-inch to prevent future cracking.

Afterward 15 to xx minutes, employ coarse sandpaper (30 to lx dust) to shape the repair and feather it to the surrounding body surface. After another xxx to 40 minutes, the surface should be set up for terminal sanding with 180 to 300 grit paper. After cleaning the dust from the surface, you lot're ready to prime and paint. For more details, check out this write-up on the plastic body filler repair procedure.

There are some parts of your vehicle that may never rust, just other parts might seem similar they could turn to dust right before your eyes without proper attention. Fortunately, if you catch the rust in time, you can prevent cruddy body damage or unsafe structural issues. The best approach is prevention, and then be sure to take care of rust when it's still minor with some touch-up paint or undercoating. If that rust gets to the next level, knowing how to Bondo rust holes might just save the day.

Cheque out all the pigment and torso products available on NAPA Online, or trust one of our 17,000 NAPA AutoCare locations for routine maintenance and repairs. For more information on how to Bondo rust holes, chat with a knowledgeable expert at your local NAPA Car PARTS store.

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Benjamin Jerew View All

Ben has been taking things apart since he was five, and putting them back together again since he was 8. After dabbling in DIY repairs at dwelling house and on the farm, he found his calling in the CGCC Automobile Repair plan. Afterward he held his ASE CMAT for 10 years, Ben decided he needed a change. Now, he writes on automotive topics beyond the web and around the world, including new automotive applied science, transportation legislation, emissions, fuel economy and auto repair.