Por-15 Trunk

[DSPTurtle]

Guys,
My question is... I have spent many hours grinding away all of the seam sealer and the trunk is looking pretty good. If I use POR-15 and topcoat it with Chassiscote, do I still need to replace the unsightly seam sealer that I have removed? I assume the seam sealer was there to keep out any rust but since I am going to POR-15 it, shouldn't that be enough? If I do need seam sealer, can I put it on a little more sparingly or did Porsche have a reason for goop'ing that crap everywhere. I only had one slight perforation in that back passenger side corner. Everything else cleaned up pretty nicely. I have to do some final sanding and that I am going to put in the POR-15. By the way, if anyone ever asks you if you want Schutz (rubberized undercoat) sprayed in your trunk walk, no run, away!!! I thought this woudl be a good idea and it did look awesome for the first two weeks. But since this stuff is rubbery it gets even softer when it is hot and if you have anything in your trunk it will stain it with a black mark that can never ever be removed. Besides that, if you ever want to remove it it will be the messiest job you ever do. The stuff just gums up with a wire wheel. You have to use a stripper to scrape it out and then more stripper to get it to dry hard so it will powder when you wire wheel it and then more stripper to get the spots that have decided they like their home. NIGHTMARE. Once it gets POR-15ed though I am betting that it will look sweet. That is pretty long winded but hopefully you guys can give me your opinion on the seam sealer.
JB
Here is a pic of the trunk right before I do the final sanding.

[gint]

Nice job on the trunk. That had to be a boatload of work. I dunno. I'd probably use seam sealer of some sort, but much less. Ant then regular paint of some type. As for the POR15, I've never heard from anyone who tried to *remove* it. Just a thought. Epoxy (like?) paint could be a major PITA if you ever want to get it out.

Anyone with real world POR15 removal experience?

[Bruce Allert]

Has anyone ever thought of having ARMA COAT sprayed on. It's the truck bed liner. I have it in the bed of my truck and that stuff is tough. Looks nice too. Comes in colors with a Hamerite texture.
It can be removed too.
bruce

[rich]

DSP, It sounds like you had 3M brand Body Schutz sprayed in your trunk. It's sprayable tar. It stays soft and tacky. When it gets hot it smells like fuel oil. That's supposed to be used under the car! You could have used Rocker schutz. It's rubber like the seam sealer you removed an it dries. You can tint it or paint it. I like the bed liner stuff if you don't mind the added weight. The guy's that spray it around here are a little spendy. I hear NAPA has some that you can apply yourself. It doesn't have the sand finish like some of the off the shelf brands you see. I haven't used it myself.

[John2kx]

JB,

Your pic gave flashbacks of the several weeks I spent on my rear trunk. I removed all seam sealer, painted entire trunk with Por 15 and then chassis coat. Turned out nice. I purchased the Por 15 trunk restoration kit which came with the "silver" colored first coat.

I feel the Por 15 performs the same duty as the original seam sealer. Only time will tell. IMHO, the absence of seam sealer gives a much cleaner appearance.

BTW, the stock seam sealer is not bullet proof. I've seen rust working its way through that stuff on several cars.

I thought about one of the truck bed type coatings but wanted to stay with the stock smooth appearance. The truck bed stuff does have the advantage of not requiring as much prep prior to application. You have many nooks and crannys to smooth out prior to applying the Por 15 paint to achieve a smooth finish.

The Por 15 stuff is advertised as "brush on". I'd shoot with gun for a better finish if doing this again.

John

[Tom Perso]

3M makes a body seam sealer, it comes in a caulk tube. Apply it with a regular 'ol caulk gun.

I used it on my VW when I replaced the floor pans. It applies nice, you can smooth it with your finger, and then paint over the top of it.

Neat stuff.

Later,
Tom

[ruddyboys]

Now thats a clean trunk. When I go to refinish mine I hope I can get it that clean. I was also wondering what are the Large and two small circle with square indents on the are for.

[DSPTurtle]

I also wondered why they put those three circle cutouts in there...no clue. As far as rust under the seam sealer, yes I did find some of that. I kinda laughed when I saw it since that is supposed to be the whole reason for gooping that stuff in there!!! Oh well, I think I will try to go with just the POR-15 plan and see how it goes. John, you are not kidding about how much work that was!!! Next is the cabin and then I will attack the front trunk. I like the smooth look compared to the hammerite finish plus since I am trying to make this a race car I figure the smooth finish will make for ease of cleaning. Anything else I should do in here before I paint away. I wish I could shoot the POR-15 but I have no gun. Luckily this stuff brushes on pretty well
JB

[VARam1500]

I think DD said (or speculated) in a post once about those holes being for processing of the bodies at Karmann. They aren't anything functional for the car, but were probably just to facilitate manufacturing at the factory. There are a couple of them in the floorboard, too.

--Case...

[Rich Hilgersom]

Use Corroless instead.

Its a real paintable primer that can be sanded (IE: it comes off if you want it).
Its sold at eastwood as "Rust Encapsulator".

I have put this on some rusted parking posts and painted them with some exterior latex paint. 3 years later there are no bubbles of any kind in the paint.

I also have it on 95% of the 914 but its not out yet...;-(

-Rich Hilgersom

[Rot 911]

I may not have a 914, but I have extensive use with POR-15! If you decide to use it don't ever plan on removing it! I compare the surface of POR15 to ceramic. It is one ***** to try and sand and forget using any kind of paint remover/solvent on it. That stuff is as tough as they advertise it. I used it on a gas tank on my Sprite two years ago and it still looks like I just painted it on yesterday. I've seen car frames painted with the stuff that after years of use still look new. I would recommed it highly. The only down side is that it is a gloss coat and you have limited colors. Oh, and I would not recommend spraying POR15 due to the difficulty in trying to clean anything the overspray landed on. And wear rubber gloves! If you get it on your skin the only way it comes off is when it wears off days or even weeks later. Don't ask me how I know. The suggestion for the truck bed liner is a good one too. You can now get it in spray cans at any autoparts place and it leaves a nice hard plastic coat.

[J P Stein]

I've never been able to figure out if that seam sealer is there to keep water from seeping into the trunk or keep it from seeping out. The exterior of many of the lap seams are exposed to the elements, so those areas are just as important (sealing wise), if not more so, than the interior.

I just seam welded everything in sight....both sides. Only took a week or 2...overhead welding....numerous small blazes on my person.......ow,ow,ow.

As to the interior coating.
I would use an etching primer and top coat the color of your choice......then keep that thing out of the rain.

[ein 6er]

J.B.!!

MAN!! you've been busy!!!

after the por-15, there is probably no need to reapply the seam sealer but you need to think about the underside of the seam too. like Mr. Stein says, the exterior of the seam is as/more important as the interior!!

if those plugs are removable like the ones in the floor pan ... i'd remove them and clean all of the sealer out around them too. i removed the one in my floor pan and painted it separatly then used the seam sealer to seal it back up. that way you know it's all fresh sealer in there.

being it's a race car the finish of the paint in the trunk may not be a big issue to you. i painted the front suspension splash pan with por-15 black, i don't know if it was the heat or the humidity here when i did it (2-3 months ago), or if i applied it too thick, but the the finish was real inconsistant in texture and gloss. but now that it's cooled down a little you may not have that problem.

i ordered some of the "por putty" and the "power mesh" but never used it. if you need to use any of it you are welcome to it. i also have some wurth brushable seam sealer and some wurth undercoat leftover that you can use so you don't have to buy a whole quart.

if i can help, let me know!!

good luck!!

doug

[jonwatts]

Can we hear some people's favorite methods for removing the seam sealer? Propane torch just makes it gooey like a toasted marshmellow.

thx,

Jon

[Zeke]

Two comments: Hammerite makes a smooth finish as well as the *hammered* look. And you can use polyurethane caulk (commonly used as window caulk and available everywhere) on any area before painting with most paints. The caulk can be spread into the seams so thin that you may not notice it after paint. Might stop a couple of squeaks or rattles. (I know, race cars don't need to be de-squeaked).

[John2kx]

This is what I used to remove 80% of paint/sealer in my trunk. I'll take some pics this weekend of trunk in good daylight to show finish of Por 15 using the brush on metod.

John

[gint]

John that looks pretty good. I'd really like to see some pics with better light.

[rich]

One method i've used for removing the bulk of the seam sealer is a razor sharp air chisel, low low pressure, careful bumping action. It doesn't get it all, but it will reduce the amount of eraser shavings from the industrial wire cup. You have to clean up all that stuff, or pick it out of your hair and eyes. It's alot easier to toss a few rubber strips in the trash. Although I only remove what's needed to repair rust or collsion damage. I found most customers wanted the seams to look stock. I know it's not what your after but the real trick is duplicating the factory appearence.

[Kenny Powell]

John, that looks fantastic! what's the technique of application?

[John2kx]

No trick to application of Por 15.......just brushed it on. I do recommend buying a good brush and not following the instructions which say to use el cheapo......PITA picking the pieces out of paint. Just like any other paint work, 90% is in the prep. and getting all the seal sealer and paint removed is alot of work.

My car is on jack stands in shop right now. I'll take better pics Friday and post here.

John