How is the best way to get the caked on dirt of the frame,ive been using a wire brush but its not doing too good,i degreased it and used a pressure washer also and that got all the loose stuff but there is still alot of caked on dirt about 1/8" thick in places.Thanks in advence for any advice.

Sand blasting always seems to take stuff off.

I have heard sandblasting will take the rust and paint off but not the old grease and dirt,I dont know though.but thanks for the suggestion.

Try a grinder with a wire cup and/or wire wheel. Dirty, but it cuts through it pretty good. You will still have to degrease after you are done, and you will want to wipe it down or scrub before painting.

Thanks alot I'll try that tommorow. graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Sand blaster WILL NOT touch baked on grease and dirt. You need to remove the dirt first. Try a putty knife or screwdriver for the small areas. What I use and would think it would be a bit faster and cleaner then wire brushing...Eric

Sand blasting will take your frame from this
http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/YenkoChevelle69/FullFrame.jpg
to this.
http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/YenkoChevelle69/SandBlastedFullFrame2.jpg

My last resto was a 69 Malibu convertible that I had blasted, but the next one is a 69 SS hardtop. I will try to find a place that will dip it and galvanize it inside and out. There was a posting on this site a while back where the guy did this and almost made me sick when I realized how much better this approach is and not that expensive. Consider it if you want that frame to last 50 years or more.

yenkochevelle69,

What blasting media did you use on your frame? i've never blasted anything before but it seems like a good approach to starting my resto project. Thanks, Joe.

Well guys I'm almost done with my frame,I took a gasket scraper,and putty knife to most of it.Where it was kinda loose and not baked on i used a wire brush.I tried a wire brush on a drill but all it done to the baked on areas was smear the dirt and greas alot worse and it made it real hard to scrape it off.My frame wasnt real rusty itwas just real dirty.After i cleaned it as good as i could i used some degreaser,then marine clean,then metal ready,then por 15,and i tell ya what I am real happy with the outcome.it is the first tim i used it,i usually cleaned the other frames as good as i could and primed them then painted them with krylon,and i tell ya what there is no comparising.I was kinda afraid of brush stoke marks but i swear it looks just like it was sprayed.I used the glossy por15,you can also get flat black,but i like the gloss on my frame.If any of you need to do something with your frame and dont have th money to do a frame off and have it sand blasted,go with por15 you will love it.If i had the money and time i would have done like yenko,I can tell just by his frame that his car is going to be one nice ride,really frame off is the only way to go.I would like to post some pics of mine if i ever get a digital camara.Well good luck all. graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Joe,

I had my frame blasted by Southtowns Sandblasters last year. They charged $100 and it came out perfect. They are on Rt. 20 just on the edge of Hamburg. There are a few photos of my frame on my website.

Thanks R.J.! I'll be sure to give them a call.

BTW, what was the turnaround time for the blast?

Originally posted by sevt_chevelle:
Sand blaster WILL NOT touch baked on grease and dirt. You need to remove the dirt first. I don't know Eric, mine was pretty bad and the sandblaster got it all. He had an industrial style blaster, big 1/2 inch nosel throwing sand under 150PSI pressure. There was not one speck of rust, grime, ect on mine. I was very pleased. A lot of it depends on the blaster. This guy did a lot of dump truck beds and you know those are very caked when he gets them. The frame and 2 rearend housings, rad support, control arms and some misc stuff was $180. He charged $60/hr.

Joe,

It was a week maybe. They do allot of industrial stuff and bridges. If you talk to them they likely will tell you when they could do it and you can get it in and out quickly.

The man who did mine had a great setup, out in the country. He used black beauty, and charged me 160 to do so. Most of the residue blew out on the trailer on the way home. I took an air compressor to the rest and POR15ed it. Looks good.