Originally Posted by Railrust
Originally Posted by JTK
Originally Posted by Railrust
I like fluid film, but I don't exactly love it. Not sure how woolwax is, but fluid film does tend to wash away...I don't consider it a full year application, it needs to be done twice a year in my opinion.
But it's been good to me as long as I reapply it twice a year.
It's been maybe 5 weeks since I woolwaxed my Ram and like you say, i can see where areas that get directly blasted by water/mist would wear away in a matter of months or less. Could there still be some magical zinc or whatever left behind like Krown claims? I have no idea.
The way I think about it, it's the stagnant areas that will sneak up on you and rust, so that's were these fluid/grease like coatings work their magic the best.
The nice thing about owning the spray gun kit is you can hit what ever areas you want as often as you want. I store it all in a clean 5gal bucket with a lid so it's easy to grab when I need it. I zip lock bag the different wands. The stuff doesn't dry out and clog the works which is nice.
What I'd like to do is buy some cosmoline and just touch up a few "heavy traffic areas" on my frame...that stuff goes on wet and dries into a pretty durable wax. It's pretty expensive though...and it won't creep into all tight spots like a fluid film would.
The difference between FF and Cosomline (I use RP-342) is night and day. Gone is the smell, the mess, and the constant maintenance required using FF or oil. After a couple of coats you're pretty much good for years. I'm in the 4th winter with RP-342 covering the Escalade undercarraige, and the only thing I'm doing at this point is touching up tiny spots I missed or required additional coats. It does get a little tacky, creep and self heal in hot summer weather. Gets hard in the winter months. Which means the sand and soot won't build up, water and snow won't wash it off, salt won't penetrate. Which is good because you can see the results. You can see if the rust is bleeding through or active. Its not hidden under black soot or dirt. Which is what happened to me 2 weeks ago. The first time I've ever lost the brakes while driving in the Classic in my sig which has been oiled for its entire life. I bought it because of that. It looked great. But... Under the soot so thick it looked like a bees nest was rusted rear brake lines in back. I could not see it. The oil was moving around, but the buildup of dirt had absorbed the oil, allowing rust underneath.
Its not that expensive if you shop around. I buy a 9 pack of RP-342 12oz cans for $100 online. Thats $11 a can. The 11.75 FF cans you get at lowes are $10 ea. I've never had a dud can. I never seem to get every last drop out of a FF can.
Its not really a good idea to combine the Cosmoline or any wax with oil. it dilutes the strength and hampers Cosmolines ability to creep into the rust layers. You may get a chip or 2 if the oil is built up with dirt. Which is unfortunate because once you commit to oil its not easy to get the undercarriage clean. I'm having that struggle with the Classic in my signature. My Escalade undercarriage is beautiful now. Stays clean all winter. No additional rust. I just treated the Altima in my sig the other day. It looks great. Preserved outside under snow waiting to be used like a old WW2 rifle lol. We will see in the long run, maybe its more wishful thinking. But so far, its amazing.