I was wondering the other day as I patched rust on my beater pickup what the difference is between seam sealer as applied at the factory and ordinary caulk like you would get at the hardware store.
I'm running "siliconized acrylic" caulk that's 99 cents a tube and presumably a grade worse than the pure silicone that's two or three times the price. I'm patching a rust hole on the lowest part of the b-pillar where it meets the rocker panel on my 94 sonoma: a common spot for a hole. I want to keep water out and also need to seal up any holes exhaust could conceivably enter the passenger compartment in order to pass state inspection.
My stick welder doesn't do sheet metal so I'm drilling holes and using pop rivets. If I were to use body filler I'd have to dimple the rivet heads inward which is complicated and requires lots of mud. When I use that much mud it bubbles, cracks, and falls out. Plus I simply lack the patience.
So my new plant that I enacted on my truck is to simply apply caulk over the rear of the patch panel that applies over the hole and has an inch or two of overlap over good metal. I figure it's better at keeping abrasive spraying water out and doesn't absorb liquid like bondo. Plus the patch panel is already flat and shiny so I don't need to sand it. Just quickly smooth out the "ooze" on the panel line, dry, paint, and I'm done.
Wondering what a hack I am as I don't hear of this technique much. Only has to last a couple years as the frame itself is also getting rusty.
I'm running "siliconized acrylic" caulk that's 99 cents a tube and presumably a grade worse than the pure silicone that's two or three times the price. I'm patching a rust hole on the lowest part of the b-pillar where it meets the rocker panel on my 94 sonoma: a common spot for a hole. I want to keep water out and also need to seal up any holes exhaust could conceivably enter the passenger compartment in order to pass state inspection.
My stick welder doesn't do sheet metal so I'm drilling holes and using pop rivets. If I were to use body filler I'd have to dimple the rivet heads inward which is complicated and requires lots of mud. When I use that much mud it bubbles, cracks, and falls out. Plus I simply lack the patience.
So my new plant that I enacted on my truck is to simply apply caulk over the rear of the patch panel that applies over the hole and has an inch or two of overlap over good metal. I figure it's better at keeping abrasive spraying water out and doesn't absorb liquid like bondo. Plus the patch panel is already flat and shiny so I don't need to sand it. Just quickly smooth out the "ooze" on the panel line, dry, paint, and I'm done.
Wondering what a hack I am as I don't hear of this technique much. Only has to last a couple years as the frame itself is also getting rusty.