OK, that´s the point where I have to say something....

My frame was sandblasted.
After that the frame looked really nice and clean, but the sandparticles were unable to take all the dirt, debris and rust out of the inside of the frame.
I´m pretty sure that every sandblasted frame has rusty places inside the framerails.
I did not powedercoat the frame because of this reason.
Powdercoating gives a nice finish and lasts ultrastrong, but it won´t seal up rust at the inside of the frame.
The metal is rusting underneath the powdercoating.

So I looked around in search of the best rust preventing and converting substance that is available.
What I found, is a penetrating, very thin oil, that can be mixed up with paint.
Because the frame was rusting again immediately after sandblasting (it took only two days until surface rust started!!) I sprayed the whle frame with this oil. The dra surface of the frame sucked up the oil and after a two or three coatings of it, I had a sticky frame surface due to the oil treatment.
Now I could have used a primer or something else, but I decided to go the way the instructions said, although I had to use normal automotive paint and not epoxy based one. The trick is to mix the paint with the oil again and when you spray the paint oil mix on the sticky surface again you end up with a shining paintcoat, that has very good contact to the bare metal.
The finished product is a paint, which is not as hard as an epoxy based paint, it feels more like powdercoating, but I don´t think it´s that solid.

My personal opinion is that powdercoating is very good, if you have the chance to reach the rusted areas inside the frame before you do this.
The best way for restoring a frame is laying it into differnt chemical bathes to get rid off the rust and then galvanize it with zinc.

The normal epoxy primer is a very reliable way to protect your frame too.

Sometimes I start thinking if I made a fault or not :rolleyes:
Time will tell...

 

Markus makes a great point, of which I'll go off on a bit of a tangent.

Powdercoating is akin to plastic coating. If the underlying metal isn't totally free of rust it will rust beneath the powdercoat (think about putting bondo over a rust hole in your old camaro). Most time sandblasting will do a good job of stripping away old rust but it's not a given. Rust is nasty stuff and once oxidation starts its tough to kill it. I'd hate to go through the effort and find rust bubbles popping up down the road.

I'm not an expert in powdercoating and how the electrolytic process might be limited, but sandblasting with a quick wipe-down with metal etch would be a good idea (if it would work). The metal etch will nullify the oxidation and seal the metal. Then the powdercoat would provide an armour coat of protection. Needing to go thru these gyrations starts to make POR or epoxy paint a good alternative.

If you're frame is very rusty, of course more effort should be expended to address rust issues to keep the existing structure from losing any more material/strength. If you can spray any rust preventative inside it's good insurance for minimal cost/effort. Eastwood's corroless is a decent product.

Both my cars had VERY solid frames. In fact the convertible still had most of the original semi-gloss black from the factory. That's after 31 years and 133Kmi!. After sandblasting it looked like a brand new frame with ZERO rust pitting. Obviously they're not all like that. However, I still contend that unless you're in a VERY highly corrosive environment (and use your car there frequently) most of this isn't neccessary. A good primer and a decent paint should be more than enough protection, especially with today's materials.

 

I plan to remove the body from mine soon (within the next year) and I will be doing it alone as well. I am going to buy a standard body sling from Zip, Eckler's, etc. I am then going to remove the interior (I am completely restoring the car so it has to come out anyway) and doors. Since I have a convertible, I will have to support the door opening. I am then going to lift the body with a standard engine hoist with the boom extended to it's maximum length. I don't remember who it is but there is a fellow forum member who has done this and has pictures. Maybe he will respond to this thread. It is definately a doable job alone but you have to take your time and be very careful but that applies no matter how you decide to lift the body.

dl

 

Sorry, I should have explained a bit better (didn't want to end up with an essay instead of a post). The powder coaters I used would, if you asked nicely, use special nozzles on the end of tubes to get the powder right up inside of frames. The shotblasters had previously chemically dipped the frame to remove oil,grease,tar,etc before blasting (otherwise the shot would just stick to the gunge rather than remove it). After shotblasting the frame would be totally rust free (assuming it's done properly) & would immediately be powdercoated. The powder is electrostatically applied to the metal ie. it's held to the metal by static electricity (like a balloon will stick to a wall) before being baked on. Without the electric charge the powder would just fall off onto the floor. On any frame I always spray the inside with a good coating of an underseal (such as Waxoyl) after the powder coating has been done (if I can't see it then I assume that the paint couldn't either). My logic being that the outside of the frame is going to get hit by road debris at high speed whereas the inside isn't, so a tough finish on the outside & a layer of thick gunge on the inside will be OK.
I have previously had rusty metal powdercoated & it worked just fine. As long as there is no grease/wax/oil on it, the powdercoat covers the rust (if you're using a coaters who don't try to maximize profit by using as little powder as possible).
A lot of people get confused between plastic coat & powder coat & some places tell people that they will powder coat when they plastic coat instead. Apparently plastic coat sweats ie it lets water through which then rots the metal underneath. Never had any experience of it, but having heard that advice from several different people I didn't want to try it.
I'm not saying that other methods of treatment are no good, it's just that after over 20 years of trying different paints, plating, sealers, etc, I've found that powdercoat seems to be the most durable & longest lasting of easily available finishes. Although, like paintshops, some places are good at powdercoating & others aren't.
That's why I'm currently painting parts of my frame with POR15!! :confused: :crazy:
:cheers:

 

You're on the right path. you'll be taxing that engine cherry picker so be careful. Its always good to have a couple friends around just to wiggle stuck things loose and to watch for interferance and clearances. make sure you have the gas tank out. Its tough to get the body high enough to clear the tank when its still installed.

I did it once with just my wife. I did it the other way around. I have a 4-post lift, so I raised the car up, attached the straps to the body and to a rafter in the ceiling, then I lowered the chassis out underneath.

BTW, I have custom fabricated C3 door braces. They're just triangular metal braces that tie the door hinge points to the latch brace. I never used them because I left my doors installed, but if you plan to pull 'em you'll need somthing like them. Let me know if you'd be interested in them.