Rust Scab Repair

[tom77]

Hi Bodywork experts,

I noticed this scab on the tailgate of my 2008 VW california.

The rest of the van is in good shape - no obvious rust anywhere, so presuming this is a stone chip that has been left to fester.

I would like to tackle this myself - I have no previous experience doing badywork.

Clearly, I'm not aiming for an invisible repair but would like to arrest the rot and leave it somewhat presentable. Longer term, I'll probably wait until there are a few more cosmetic issues to address and let a professional make it pretty again.

So how would you go about repairing this? If you can include step by step stages, plus any recommended brands/products, I'd be much obliged.

Many thanks in advance...

[Belle427]

I usually gently scrape all the loose rust off with a small pointy dremel grinding bit,making sure I take a little bit of the paint edge away too as the rust will have crept underneath.
Apply 2 coats of Bilt hamber hydrate 80, and then next day topcoat.
All better off carried out in the summer.

[paintman]

Single sided razor blade, use the corners to carefully scrape back to clean metal keeping the area as small as possible.
Touch-up kit in the appropriate colour.
Use a straightened out paper clip to apply the various materials - much easier to keep it in the area than the 3" paintbrush supplied with the kits!
You're not going to get invisibility but take the eye off it & seal it.

[tom77]

Thanks for your input guys - I'll post the results of my attempt here.