Hi to all
We are preparing to strip the car roof, has anyone suggestions on suitable sealants for the multiple nail holes in the tin and then a primer/topcoat combination for tin roofs.
We opened the car last night for the Concert on the plaza and had our new donated car lamp working, it looks great in its new place!

http://mikepannell254.fotopic.net/p66799126.html

Mike Pannell
Cheyenne

I'm thrilled to see that roll roofing go! Thanks.......

Tin? Maybe terne or old galvanized? Little squareish sheets with flat soldered seams?

I've used a glop that is applied over tape that gives with the roof as the roof changes dimensions with temperature for this before, with several years in place it seems to be surviving well so far. You could also experiment with elastomer, liquid solder, JB Weld, or other epoxies. In any case, a clelan and dry surface is going to help it last better than the choice of exactly which sealing agent you choose.

I'd avoid Bondo, or other hydroscopic choices, or fiberglass or other brittle ones on general principle, however.

dave

On our Lawndale/Chester & Lenoir NG boxcar, we used a two-part epoxy from JB Weld. Like Dave says, prep, prep, and prep are the most important steps. We probably cleaned, brushed, sanded, etc, about 1/2 dozen times before we applied the epoxy. We then cleaned it again before applying POR-15 to the lightly rusted metal. From our research, it seemed to offer the most bang for the buck and came highly recommended. After a couple of weeks for the POR-15 to cure, we lightly sanded it and applied a topcoat of paint.

Good luck!

Matt Bumgarner
Alexander Chapter-NRHS

We called it a tin roof but clearly it isnt. They are 24" strips of metal which run under the clerestory framework and up into the interior window wells and finish on the inside edge of the interior glass windows, does JB Weld 'give' enough to seal holes and seams ?

Cheers
Mike

Matt says so - he's used it and I haven't for this purpose. JB Weld says it will work on engine water jacket repairs, so it theoretically should have some tolerance for expansion and contraction.

dave

As a former body shop owner, I would suggest a URETHANE sealing caulk available from FUSOR corporation. It is similar to the seam sealers used on the seams of pickup beds, and trunk gutters. It remains flexible, and can be painted over with no problems. As far as painting the metal, stay away from epoxies, they do NOT stand up well under the sun, and the topcoats peel off. Your final cleaning should be done with rags soaked in Lacquer thinner, then use an ACID based etching primer first. Follow with a urethane wet on wet primer if you want to put the topcoat paint on right away. If you are NOT painting the top coat the same day, use a urethane sandable sealer, scuff it with a scotch brite pad before topcoating to provide adhesion then the next day. IF you want your roof paint to last longer and not fade away in a year, use a clear coat as well on the final finish. Yes, I know automotive type finishes are expensive, but if you get with a local refinish jobber, they can make recommendations on FLEET type products as well. As the old saying goes, "you get what you pay for". That is especially true in paint products. There is nothing worse than spending countless hours restoring something, then watching it deteriorate and fade away in a year or so.

Yes, the JB Weld applied well and held up to a few months of us walking all over the top and constructing the roofwalks. We would use it again.

One thing of note that we did do, which I neglected to tell you, was to wipe down multiple times the entire surface with Naptha. It's cleaning/degreasing effect goes a long way towards letting whatever prime coat you go adhere to the surface.

Matt Bumgarner
Alexander Chapter-NRHS