Advice sought re bodywork

[jnuttall@julian.uwo.ca]

Hi list:

To the many on the list in rust prone areas of the world, fighting 
rust may be the biggest challenge to the Jag owner. I am prepared to 
put a considerable effort into this struggle in trying to restore my 
1977 XJ-S. I am close to having the body stripped to a shell. I have 
started working on the rearmost two feet of the car, the only part 
where the exterior panels show signs of rust. (There are other areas 
with significant rust damage, particularly near the jacking points.) 
I have removed the rusted rear lower quarter panels and rear valence, 
and I am hopeful about repairing them. 

I have found that other parts, such as the components forming the 
rear light compartment look OK but that there is rust between the 
flanges and under the sealant in the angles. Also surface rust can be 
seen inside some of the box sections.

I would much appreciate advice on how I might proceed. There are over 
400 pieces making up the body shell.  It is feasible to repair or 
replace the parts with significant rust but I am not going to pull 
the whole thing apart to clean the flanges. I can get the shell 
sandblasted or shot blasted (whatever that means). There is also a 
place that will dip the shell in some chemical and another which uses 
baking soda (how?). I have no idea about the costs of these 
alternatives.

Do any members of the list have experience of these approaches, 
particularly chemical dipping? Would that method remove rust between 
flanges and elsewhere, and could the chemical be effectively 
neutralized so that it would not keep eating away the metal? What is 
the next step after neutralizing? Does anyone know of a good 
reference on this topic?

Many thanks.

John Nuttall

jnuttall@julian.uwo.ca

1977 XJ-S
1979 XJ-S (parts)

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