In article ,
AL_n wrote:
Thanks for the responses. It's funny, but I've always thought etching
primer to be a con. I used to use it when I was doing a lot of
refinishing work in a certain factory in the 1980s. I found that after
it was cured, you could scratch it off as easily as most other paints
and primers. OK, it might roughen the surface of the steel very
slightly, on a microscopic level, but any abrasive paper does that far
more effectively.

It's what most pro body shops use on bare metal these days, I'm told. But
as regards adhesion, that would need to be checked very much later, rather
than just after it's cured.

I think (not sure) it was Which Magazine that tested a number of rust
inhibitors, many years ago, and found Hammerite to be exceptionally
effective. I've found it to be good too, but have never used it of car
body repairs as a primer.

I painted a wrought iron fence in sections using Black Hammerite,
Smoothrite and ordinary Wicks gloss - all direct to the steel. The Wicks
gloss lasted longer - and of course was very much cheaper.

You might also have problems getting car paint to stick to Hammerite -
without using a sealer coat. And of course the rough finish it produces is
exactly what you don't want for a decent final finish.

--
*A hangover is the wrath of grapes.

Dave Plowman London SW
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