Weathersealing chassis/body seams?

[Alaskossie]

I will be assembling a new Caterham Classic shortly. What is the current advice on the best caulking material to seal the body panel interfacewith the chassis (both on the underside and in the footwells)?

 

Or is this not routinely done on a new build? Having access to nearly all parts of the body and chassis at build time seems to make this a do-it-now-or-forget-about-it chore.

 

I'd like to prevent moisture from hastening reaction between chassis and ali skin, if possible.

 

Tom Meacham

 

 

Alaskossie

[k80rum]

Hi Tom,

 

Duralac is supposed to be pretty good. It's the trade name for zinc chromate paste used, used to inhibit bimetallic corrosion between dissimilar metals. It's a proven product from the aeronautical industry which is now used in marine environments where dissimilar metals touch - stainless steel screws in spars and suchlike.

 

I've not used it, but intend to during my rebuild. If you Google the word Duralac, you should find somewhere online that sells it (most likely a Chandlery) It comes in different sizes and ranges from a tenner up to about 30 pounds depending on the amount you buy

 

🙅🏻‍♂️ Be really careful to protect yourself if you use it though - it's been linked to cancer I plan on wearing a respirator/mask and gloves.

 

 

Best of luck - during a build is definitely the best time to improve protection from the elements. Also spray some Dinitrol cavity wax or Waxoyl between the outer skins and the footwells while you're at it, along with the inside of any other bare panels you can. It may be worth (if you're feeling brave) drill out the rivnuts in the side panels where the rear wings attach, and replace them with rubber rawl-nuts. I've found that after 8 years, the corrosion on the rivnuts has been so bad in places that I've got bubbling paint around quite a few of them (the bottom offside one was so bad that drilling the rivnut out caused a small amount of the surrounding panel to disintegrate 😳) I'm fitting rawlnuts as a matter of course during re-assembley

 

Best of luck with it, i'm sure this preventative work will pay dividends in the years to come.

 

All the best,

 

 

Darren E

 

With an all-new website

K80RUM Superlight R #54

 

 

 

Edited by - k80rum on 24 Mar 2007 07:11:05

[Paul Formston]

Hi Alaskossie I sealed all the seams with p.r.c (thiocol ) then painted all alloy panels underneath with ecth primer, I think Hammerite do a primer for alloy then I used silver smoothrite Regards Paul