Rustproofing. Krown, cosmoline, something else?

So ive purchased a nice late model pickup and Ohio loves to eat vehicles. I want to avoid that. A krown chain has opened nearby recently, i was going to go with that but i watched a youtube video doing side by side comparisons of undercoatings and the krown didnt have very good results. Now this was him using spray cans, i dont know if that is the same product you get from the installers. One thing that performed very well was cosmoline. The up side is it seems to work great and doesnt wash off so it doesnt need redone every year, the down side is i have to do it myself and it looks like a pain, and wouldnt be able to get inside rocker panels and such. 

So does anybody have any firsthand experience with these, or anything else similar and can vouch for them? I really dont want to have a rusty ugly truck in three years.

Thanks

I used NHOU oil undercoating when I brought a 98 Ram up to mass from FL in April 2021. My kid took over the truck, so I haven't been under it too much, but the last time I check it still looked clean a rust free underneath  

I had it professionally applied in Nov 2021, but it probably should be redone again this year to recoat any that washed off and  make sure the parts he replaced after an accident are protected. 

Check out the youtube videos by Repair Geek about Surface Shield and Fluid Film. I am planning on using Surface Shield on my truck, it would have to be done yourself but the results look good. 

Fluid film is for sale by the case on amazon.  Hose that thing good and use the hoses to get inside the week holes and any internal frame/chassis openings.

Interestingly, the dealership offered rustproofing undercoating as an option when I bought my maverick. 

They wanted about $800 for it and it wasnt a reapply every year deal, it was one and done. 

Looked like it was similar to cosmoline. 

As a comparision, getting bedliner from them with a lifetime warranty was $500.

Krown works but will swell rubber components.

I use Krown, but that's mainly because they're the only game in town, until I get a garage with a lift and can do it myself.  I've been pleased

Big fan of Fluid Film based on the results I saw on my Land Cruiser.  

Last 2 winters I was driving a work truck so YOLO. 

Waxoyl was the thing in the UK , and they have a lot of rain , 

But is there anything that will neutralize the salt ?

Anyone know what the German "Waxoyl"  is

I've used Fluid Film for many years with decent success. I still think it's the best thing for the "nooks and crannies", but for surfaces, I've started using CRC Heavy Duty Corrosion Inhibitor, because it sticks and stays better.

Relevant Project Farm video:

I also like this video for comparison of products. 

This type of place is popular up here in NH. We are in the rust belt but up here the buckle has disolved away.

https://nhoilundercoating.com/

I've been using Fluid Film on my Power Wagon since I got it. It hasn't gotten rustier, and I do drive it in the winter from time to time. Main reason I chose this stuff is based on availability; I can get it at most auto parts places and home improvement stores. And it works! 

I use Fluid Film down here in SW Ohio, and my '14 Accord underside looks great after many years of year round use.

Surface Shield is the new stuff from P'Blaster. I have used it and Fluid Film - FF is a bit thinner, and early reports suggest SS is more durable. I'm using up my stock of FF on stuff like the inside of rocker panels and such (I have the long hose with 360deg nozzle adapter to get in there), and sticking with SS for the more exposed bits like subframes and such. SS can be had at Home Depot, which is convenient.

EvanB said:

Check out the youtube videos by Repair Geek about Surface Shield and Fluid Film. I am planning on using Surface Shield on my truck, it would have to be done yourself but the results look good. 

It was actually his videos that got me started down this rabbit hole.

Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) said:

I've used Fluid Film for many years with decent success. I still think it's the best thing for the "nooks and crannies", but for surfaces, I've started using CRC Heavy Duty Corrosion Inhibitor, because it sticks and stays better.

The CRC is cosmoline, right? This sounds like a decent way to do it. The reason I was leaning towards the cosmoline is because it "cures hard" or at least harder than lanolin, and I can get it in black which makes everything look like it has a fresh coat of flat black paint. 

gearheadmb said:

Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) said:

I've used Fluid Film for many years with decent success. I still think it's the best thing for the "nooks and crannies", but for surfaces, I've started using CRC Heavy Duty Corrosion Inhibitor, because it sticks and stays better.

The CRC is cosmoline, right? This sounds like a decent way to do it. The reason I was leaning towards the cosmoline is because it "cures hard" or at least harder than lanolin, and I can get it in black which makes everything look like it has a fresh coat of flat black paint. 

I think so, yes. At least, it dries to look a lot like cosmoline.

I am not from the rust belt so this a legitimate question. Why not just paint everything with spray bombs? Seems like cold galvanizing would be way more durable than oil film?  Inquiring minds and all that jazz. 
 

https://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/consumer-brands/stops-rust/cold-galvanizing-compound-spray

I had a 2005 Toyota Tundra that finally sold with 274,000 miles and not a single speck of rust anywhere. Here in northeast PA, we are in the heart of the "rust belt" due to the excessive use of brine and road salts. My regiment was a liberal coating of Fluid Film in the rocker panels and doors every fall. I would pop out every plastic plug that I could find and spray the heck out of the inside of the cavities. Also, I went to Lowe's and bought an under carriage pressure washing attachment and used it throughout the winter whenever the weather rose above 32* to remove the salt coating from under the cars. I believe that the combination of those 2 kept the bottom side of that truck and my RAM in such nice shape. I've been using this same routine for a decade and have no plans to change it any time soon.

Get thee a five gallon bucket of Fluid Film and an electric paint sprayer.  Electric is key because it shoots the stuff without aerosolizing it.

You will also need a way of mixing it first, a roofing tar mixing attachment on a heavy duty drill works well.  The bucket will have settled out and contain a thick layer of wax under a layer of some sort of solvent.  That wax is lanolin, harvested from sheep.  If you don't want to breathe sheep butt, use an electric sprayer.

I have a $40/month membership with a local car wash.  The break even point is three car washes per month.  The membership is good for ten.  It includes a broad spectrum underbody spray.  During the winter months I hit the car wash every three days.  This mostly makes me feel better and gives me an excuse to grab a Big Mac from the McDonald's next door before I go to the wash.

tester (Forum Supporter) said:

I am not from the rust belt so this a legitimate question. Why not just paint everything with spray bombs? Seems like cold galvanizing would be way more durable than oil film?  Inquiring minds and all that jazz. 
 

https://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/consumer-brands/stops-rust/cold-galvanizing-compound-spray

It is amazing what rusts.  I have had to air chisel Honda D17 intake manifold nuts because they were too small to take a 3/8"-10mm twistoff socket.  My Volvo has amazing rust proofing but last year I had to replace the suspension control module - which is mounted in the dashboard - because the case rusted out and the circuit board corroded all to hell.

This post interests me. Vando Calrissian has been sitting a while prior to my getting it. I want to knock as much surface rust from everywhere then apply a converter and protectant. Would a water/sand blaster be a good way to get the loose crud off?

What electric sprayer do you recommend? Like the Ryobi cordless? Paint or general purpose sprayer?

I honestly don't remember, I'd like to say I was using the Sears house brand paint sprayer.  Had a one quart cup, no hose.  Da Boss had bought it at Goodwill for $cheap to use specifically for Fluid Film application and the art on the box made it seem like it was about twenty years old.

I used it, thought it was kinda loud, but it worked okay.  It shot the product out in a kind of staccato watergun jet, in a cone shape that was about 3" at 2 feet.  There were wider nozzles available but I was not interested in rapidly coating a flat surface, I wanted to jet the product in to narrow crevices and such.  Think about trying to spray something into the gap between a frame and body, or inside a bumper behind the bumper bracket, stuff like that. 

One of the other guys said berk that noise (literally) and used an air powered paint sprayer, and immediately turned the back bay area of the shop into an oil fog nightmare.  Probably half of the product stayed suspended in the air instead of being shot at the truck.

One gallon is probably enough per application, but the more you have, the less stingy you will be, and rustproofing is not a place to figure out that you didn't do it thoroughly enough.

After lots of reading and videos I think I'm gonna go  with the Krown, mostly because there is a local place that puts it on, and I dont want to have to mess with it.