As a chassis will generally take most of us a good while to complete, surface rust will have formed on the tubes. Presumably this means that rust will also form inside the tube assuming the ends aren't boxed in immediately. Does anyone think this will cause an issue in years to come or will it not matter once all the holes are filled and air can't circulate? I'd spray waxoil or equiv into the tubes but it's the initial rusting during fabrication that I'm thinking about.

Am I worrying without need?

[Edited on 31/8/2005 by andyd]

To be honest I agree, it's something I have thought about many times. I am "getting around" to filling the chassis tubes with wax oil but as you say I can see it becoming a problem in a few years time, I can't imagine having to strip the car down to start replacing chassis tubes and how much of a job it will be!!

Cheers Mark

The tubing's atleast twice as thick as your average car and they last for years- even where paint is chipped etc.

Once the tube is sealed all that can happen is the moisture is turned to rust- once the moisture has gone (ie surface rust) then there is nothing more to turn into rust.

So there really is nothing to worry about.

At the end of the day, how long do you really think you'll have this chassis? 10 years from now you still think you'll be running around in it? Most people seem to sell them in a few years anyway!

HTH,
James

if you were really worried about rust, you could consider using stainless steel, though the chassis may need modifying a little.

I guess I'm not that worried about it. It was just a thought that came to me when browsing some pictures of other peoples chassis being built. I suppose one answer would be weld it all up as soon as possible before rust sets in and make sure to box in any exposed ends to seal them again before the rust takes hold. I can always grind off anything later on if I need access. Then when it's all together, drill out or grind off and fill the tubes with waxoil then seal back up. Like James says, I'm sure the rust potential is far less than some baked bean can cars on the road today.

You could consider hot dip galvinizing the chasis once it's complete then you'd have no worries at all . But it is a bit costly and I think it would make the chasis a bit heavier AND you would have to fill it full of holes to stop it from exploding in the hot tank which would probably weaken it too . So I would say let it be it'll add some character to it and also give you a reason for not taking your time during the build( "Arhh it's rusting, Better build it quicker".
Mike

quote:

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Originally posted by quattromike
You could consider hot dip galvinizing the chasis once it's complete then you'd have no worries at all . But it is a bit costly and I think it would make the chasis a bit heavier AND you would have to fill it full of holes to stop it from exploding in the hot tank which would probably weaken it too . So I would say let it be it'll add some character to it and also give you a reason for not taking your time during the build( "Arhh it's rusting, Better build it quicker".
Mike

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