Club 80-90 Forums

My van is showing a few signs of rust on the bodywork.

I don't really have the means to do a full respray or even the desire as I don't think the van is really worth too much, but I do want to carry out some minor touch-ups.

I'll grind /sand away the areas of rust, apply some rust converter then paint the areas, after filling in any small gaps with 2-part filler (nothing major)

There are so many different brands of filler (Bondo, is what they call it in America)

Which brands are good and are there any to avoid .. you can get it in builders' supply shops which look less than half the price for similar (?) products in the car accessory shops.

Looking on the internet, I see you can also get a filler for very small holes which doesn't need a hardener .. think it was referred to as spot filler.

2K Polyester fillers are used in automotive industry dor the surdace repairs - not sure what is sold in the builders's shop, but my guess the automotive stuff is finer and hardens quicker.

There are 1K fine fillers (mainly acryl) but it needs to be compatible with the coatings used above it.

About the brands - bigger brands tend to be better quality, more easy to work with. Here in Hungary the most available (and cheaper) ones are made in Poland like HB Body or Motip brands. They are fine for DIY.

Big Boy body filler is good. Really easy to apply and comes in a few different types depending on what your doing. Available from Tool Station/ Screwfix etc.
David.

jrt wrote: ↑17 Oct 2022, 19:23 Big Boy body filler is good. Really easy to apply and comes in a few different types depending on what your doing. Available from Tool Station/ Screwfix etc.
David.

Thanks .. I've actually used Big Boy filler before, for repairing furniture prior to painting and it worked well.

Available in my local Toolstation ... so that's my next trip

can't see any spot filler though at Toolstation ... used to fill pinholes / scratches .. maybe can try Screwfix ... for some reason wherever there's a TS, there's a SF too