I had a customer come in today who works at a chemical stripping plant that told me she could have my body, doors, trunk lid, fenders, & frame stripped for $600. She said they bake it in an oven @ 800* to remove the paint, then soak it in a vat for 12 hours to remove the rust and any bondo, then dip it in another vat to coat & preserve the metal.

I have two questions:

1) Is one process better than the other? What are the pro's/ con's of each?

2) Depending on the process chosen, would it be better to have any panel replacement done first?

She was telling me the custom body shops that use their service replace panels first then have the entire body stripped so when it gets coated in the last step the new panels get protected as well. It sounds good to me... just wondering if anyone else has any experience or knowledge.

Thanks,

Eric

I dont plan to dip BECAUSE it removes everything which can be a pita but I gotta ask -

Did she explain how exactly you know what panels ro replace and whats hidden under paint and bondo, etc BEFORE a car is stripped? Do they recommend stripping paint and checking for damaged panels and finding what needs to be replaced before you send it over and have the paint stripped?

A friend of mine had his 70 Challenger 'vert body dipped- Took it home, cut out all the rust, welded in new panels- once its ready, he's planning to take it back, have it dipped again to get rid of the flash rust, and then have it e-coated (which will cover all the hidden areas)

That's a good point - you obviously could uncover more damage after stripping. My thought is that the major repair work would be uncovered and repaired before being totally stripped & dipped. I've also been told to have the major repair work completed BEFORE taking the body off the frame; although I had considered removing the qtrs and then having the body blasted; which would give open access to the trunk and wheels wells.

Overall, the car is solid - it sat in a barn under a tarp and has a lot of surface rust. I know that I need work on both qtrs - haven't determined if I need full qtrs or patches. On the drivers side there is a crease between the door and wheel well that has been drilled and pulled with a slide hammer and then filled with bondo. Both sides have rust between the rear wheel well and the bumper and have separated from the trunk extension; which, by the way, trunk extensions appear to be salvageable. Trunk and floor pans are solid - I need to remove the front and rear glass to inspect to see if any repairs are needed.

She did say that it would remove everything - said one customer had 400 lbs of bondo in his car, the customer wanted to see it and they weighed it. I know each process has it's pro's & con's - I kinda like the idea of the whole car being treated and getting into hard to reach areas. Just trying to weigh options. Plus the price seems pretty reasonable.

The stripping chemicals will ooze out of EVERY crack, crevice and seam for a LONG time. This will ruin the new paint and you will not be happy.

Have it media blasted. 600.00 is way to cheap to dip a car so there is something they are not doing. there is a place in detroit that does it they get 2500.00 just for the body not including fenders,doors,hood,t-lid. the stuff comes out looking like new(except for the missing metal where there was rust) I just blast all my stuff & have excellent results.

The stripping chemicals will ooze out of EVERY crack, crevice and seam for a LONG time. This will ruin the new paint and you will not be happy.

Agreed.

Media blasting here in Fl. is $500 for an entire car. And no messy chemicals to deal with when I body work and paint it.

$60 for two gallons of stripper at NAPA and an afternoon of seweat equity and the body is done. I did mine that way and it kinda sucked but I am glad I did it. Neutralizer and DA after that. Paint came out good.

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