underseal and wof

[erics8]

Hey guys, finally finished painting my underside and engine bay (thank god for that!) And was thinking of undersealing my wheel arches, however I remember many years ago getting grief from the testing station for having undersealed my rear arches and beaver panel on my austin marina van, anyone have any ideas as to the legitness of undersealing? Cheers

[Bas / NZ]

Go tell the guy that TOLD YOU THAT TO GO, well this is a public forum, but you know what I mean...

[BusyKiwi]

They only moan if there is rust under it, ie the underseal and bog or whatever is covering it and they know it's there but can't see it.
The testing station can look but can't touch so to speak, meaning they are not allowed to poke or scrape anything.

Go for it, but seal up anything you want sealed up, prime and put some paint on before you underseal, so if a stone chips the underseal you'll still have some protection under. no paint and water can travel under the underseal and rust out the metal.
if you want to paint the underseal wait a week or so or it will shrink

[erics8]

Cheers guys, that's what I'm worried about busy, being a bedford I figure they'll assume there's rust everywhere! Might just do it and then drive around in the dust so it looks ancient hehe

[Rogue Trooper]

So while we're on this is there a good underseal product you'd recommend? I've been (very) slowly painting bits underneath and want to start undersealing certain areas so when I bolt things like the rear part of the exhaust system and the fuel tank up soon I don't have to pull them out again to paint.

[BusyKiwi]

They're pretty much the same these days. Just remember to mix well and thin with kerosene for desired texture - test spray first. Stick to the same brand as well, some are chunkier than others and if you swap half way through you'll see the difference

With underseal less can be more, don't load it up, as like rust proof it can crack and the thicker it is the easier it is for stones to chip it.

For the rear quarters (outside behind rear wheel arches), front valance or anywhere outside there is a product called stone guard or stone chip that is a real nice thin texture and sticks like poop to a poopie thing

[erics8]

Good run down there busy, cheers  I'll have a shop around this weekend I think

[Rogue Trooper]

Ta very much. I'm brushing it on otherwise it'll end up over everything so I'll test-brush it instead.

[BusyKiwi]

if you're brushing don't thin down to much or you'll make a bigger mess - brushing it actually very messy, you'll get more on you lol so wear long sleeves, gloves, glasses and a hat at minimum, balaclava would be ideal especially if your laying under the van to do it - speaking from experience lol

If you don't have a proper underseal gun, you can use those degreaser guns, just take off the nozzle or better yet cut the pipe down

If you do use a gun and it gets blocked, place your finger or rag over the end and blast to blow it back in the container, but be warned, only a very short blast or the container can pressurize and go pop - again from experience lol

You can also warm up the tin of underseal before you apply it, fill the sink up with hot water and place the container in the water (with top off) for a few minutes to warm it up, it'll go on smoother.

[Bas / NZ]

I used it from a can, only because the stuff is so good, 7 cans to do a jumbo, ok this was taken before the reco auto and new driveshaft went in, all clean under there now..