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Old trailer, new to me, has quite a bit of surface rust on the axle and a few large spots of rust on the bed and the end panel. From reading up on erde 101 it is galvanised steel. (Not sure if that’s the axle as well)
What are the best products to restore? Ideally I would like the rust completely removed and potentially respray the areas so it looks nice.
Trailer cost £100 so far trying not to spend lots, looks like I’m probably going to need to replace the wheels as well (seem fine but a lot of rust on the rims)
Suggestions?
If it's surface rust, sand it off (wet n dry or some sort of powered sander), treat it with some sort of rust remedy solution, and then prime and paint it.
For a functional trailer without spending lots, wire brush and 2 coats of Hammerite "Direct to metal" will be fine. Just brush, no need to spray. You can try some "rust conversion" primer first if you like, but I just used Hammerite. That's what I did. Trailer has been out in the rain for 9 years, rust starting to show in a few places but still sound.
Get it to bare metal where its rusty and then use steel wheel silver paint if on a budget.
Factor in a set of wheel bearings on those small Erde hubs - can diy if you are handy.
Tyres will likely be shot if they have been left in the sun.
Without pics it's hard to tell.
But rub down. And use cold galv spray paint.
Aqua-steel is a good rust converter. A quick brush over with a wire brush to get rid of the loose surface rust and then just paint it on, let it go a bit purple and wash it off. Leave it to dry and then paint it with something like Hammerite.
This was covered in surface rust and rusted right through in places. Cleaned up well enough to weld to but I wouldn't try welding galvanised steel.
Shouldn't weld glav, though if you ask anyone who welds we all have.
Pics would be great
photos taken now how to work out how to post them on this site once all the bloody ads stop blocking my screen
Postimg.cc is what I use
sigh
photos make it look a lot worse!
tyres seem in good condition, no cracking but concerned about the rust
Most in the trailer world would describe that as mint! 🙂
Rub down and Hammerite as suggested already. Beauty about that is you can tip it over for easy access.
Hammerite do a direct to rust and a direct to galvanised paint. Which one do I need if it’s rusty galvanised steel?!
I think I have a wire wheel for the angle grinder, overkill?
Flapper disk on the grinder is good for cleaning rust.
I think I'd leave the wheel rims, sand, rust treatment and paint the axle and side, more sure on the base, it doesn't look bad, but while doing the other bits then maybe.... N'ah, is leave the base for now
You need the paint for galvanized or it'll flake of pretty quickly.
I'd go for Direct To Rust as it has inhibitors in it, a basic rub down and paint will be fine.
Most in the trailer world would describe that as mint! 🙂
Looks to be in a similar state to the little one I bought a few years ago ie normal. As for the tyres check the date stamp on them. If they're over 10 years old then change them regardless. Also look out for deals on pairs of tyres and rims, managed to pick up a pair for mine for less than two tyres and the rims look 10x better than any effort I could manage.
Plan is to modify it into a steel frame with wood slats, make it all arty and use it for camping trips but right now it's used for garden stuff at my parent's house so holding off on that for a while.
Hammerite do a direct to rust and a direct to galvanised paint. Which one do I need if it’s rusty galvanised steel?!
I think I have a wire wheel for the angle grinder, overkill?
Both will probably work, I'd go with the galvanized one.
As above though, that it not an amount of rust to be worried about 😂
I think I have a wire wheel for the angle grinder, overkill?
That or a paint remover pad or flap wheel on it to get the loose rust off before painting. I find wirebrush attachments a bit rubbish, after a very short time all the wires are bent, just use a manual one to get into any nooks and crannies.
But I wouldn't bother, that's just a bit of surface rust because someone's parked it in long grass. My trailer for tip runs is FAR worse!
In a similar situation but the leaf spring bushings have gone on one side. Can I replace just the bushing or does the whole unit need changed?
Light sanding with wire wheel attachment on an angle grinder should sort that in no time. This will get into the nooks and crannies of the wheels as well.
Primer with red oxide and some hammerite or other silver spray to make it look tidy. Job done.
As said looks like there some galvanising on there. Just paint over or treat just the rusted area. Galv is worn enough to allow primer to stick to it. Could always cut a sheet of ply to line the base of the trailer as a sacrificial layer to protect the bed and prevent paint being scraped off
In a similar situation but the leaf spring bushings have gone on one side. Can I replace just the bushing or does the whole unit need changed?
Depends what spare parts are available?
Usually one end (the fixed end) is a metalastic type bushing (a fairly solid looking cylinder of metal and rubber) which does the job of holding the spring, trailer and axle together with minimal flex. The other end has the shackle and two sets of rubber/urethane bushings which do a better job of absorbing vibrations and allow the whole thing to flex because nothings aligned perfectly.
Good call on tyre age. the spare is 2016. I can't work out the date on the others. the little oval where 4 digits are has 34505 and 35525 on the other. Duro tyres if that means anything. the wheels are stamped 09 95 so at a guess that's the age of the trailer. tyres surely can't be originals can they?