Old truck rust:
one of our worst enemies.

Old truck rust is a problem that has to be understood in order to be controlled. Rust is a general term for a series of iron oxides, usually red oxides, formed by the reaction of iron with oxygen in the presence of water or air moisture. Several forms of rust are distinguishable visually and when we first notice its presence the tendency is for us to think our truck is gone. Oxidation is a serious problem but it's not the end of the world.

This is a natural process and it is present in big buildings, in famous bridges, in the gigantic oil drilling platforms offshore and in modern cars too. Even the Eiffel Tower, in Paris, France is under constant attack by rust.

Your old truck is certainly under the permanent attack of the two elements that are the main culprits for old truck corrosion: water and air. I wish I had better news but the fact of the matter is that there is no way to cure this. The most you can do is to keep your eyes open and try to prevent corrosion. But how do you prevent old truck rust?

There are several ways to prevent corrosion involving chemistry, electricity and so on. But, for all practical purposes, from the point of view of the owner of an old truck, painting is the way. Keep in mind, though that you have to make absolutely that sure there are no rust spots in the surface to be painted. You have to have the surface completely cleaned and down to bare metal. If possible, make sure the other side of the surface is free of corrosion too. It makes no sense to clean and paint one side of the metal if the other side is being attacked by rust.

The type of steel used in old trucks is much thicker then the metal used in modern cars. That gives us a slight advantage since the corrosion will take a little longer to bore through. But that doesn't mean that the steel used in old trucks would resist corrosion. It doesn't and it can't.

OK, so you bought a nice old truck and a few months later you notice that little rust bubbles has formed under the paint, around one of the corners of your windshield. You do an inspection of the whole truck and find more bubbles in the fenders, in the body and under the cab. What do you do?

Don't start screaming and don't run to your body shop just yet. Old truck rust has no cure but it is a normal thing. If you see bubbles which are less than half an inch wide, your truck will not be consumed by it immediately. You have some time until the problem gets really serious. The small bubbles you see are only a warning sign that the problem will require your attention.

I don't want you to get the wrong idea and to think that I am saying for you not to worry with the first signs of corrosion. That's not what I'm saying and I don't consider myself an expert who would be able to advise you on what to do. I am just using my own experience with my 1954 Chevy truck.

When I bought the pickup corrosion had taken hold of almost every part of my old truck. I dismantled the whole truck and did a complete frame up restoration. The first thing we did was to sand blast all the metal parts to get rid of the corrosion. There were holes in several places and they were all patched. To make a long story short, the truck came out of the restoration with no rust at all.

About three years later I saw a couple of bubbles under the paint, around the windshield and at the bottom of the right front fender. Old truck rust was back. I could do three things: have the rust removed from those two spots, paint the whole truck again or just wait. Being prone to procrastination I decided to wait.

Four more years went by and during this time several other corrosion spots were discovered in the fenders, the cab and the cargo bed. The first two rust bubbles, around the windshield and at the bottom of the right fender, became much larger than they were when first discovered.

The solution? A new coat of paint needed to be applied to the old truck. After almost eight years there were several scratches and the paint was beginning to fade. I found a good body shop and had the rust spots removed before a new coat of paint was applied to the truck. It looks great now and it is a good feeling to look at is and see that there is no corrosion to be seen.

But I don't have any illusions. There is no corrosion to be seen on my truck now but nature is working and rust will come back. Old truck rust always comes back. It may be already developing in unseen places like under the cab, inside the fenders, under the cargo bed and so on. I can't do anything about that. But I can keep my eyes open and when I see a little bubble under the paint I can repair it immediately or wait another couple of years. One important tip to help with the prevention of corrosion: keep your truck inside your garage. This way water will only attack it when the truck is driven under rain or when washed.

So, my advice is for you to keep your eyes open and once in a while do an inspection of your truck to see if there are any rust spots developing. And remember these words: you can wait a while until you're good and ready to tackle the problem but make sure you do it or you'll lose your truck to rust.

Preventive measures can be taken against old truck rust with the use of some great products like "Miracle" Paint permanent rust and corrosion inhibitor.