Exhaust pipe rust prevention?

[Larry C.]

Any thoughts/suggestions on preventing surface rust on ordinary carbon steel exhaust pipe tubing? Factory coating of the C-1 exhaust system burned off pretty quickly I would assume. Will 1200 degree black paint hold up for any length of time?

Acquired NOS exhaust pipes for C-1 and would like to keep them looking like new as long as possible. May not be possible, I guess, short of having the exhaust aluminized.

[Bill M.]

Re: Exhaust pipe rust prevention?

Any thoughts/suggestions on preventing surface rust on ordinary carbon steel exhaust pipe tubing? Factory coating of the C-1 exhaust system burned off pretty quickly I would assume. Will 1200 degree black paint hold up for any length of time?

Acquired NOS exhaust pipes for C-1 and would like to keep them looking like new as long as possible. May not be possible, I guess, short of having the exhaust aluminized.

I painted the plain carbon steel part of my sidepipes 30 years ago with high-temp black paint. They still look OK. Can't say the same for the cast iron manifolds painted with the same stuff. They've gotten rusty.

[Larry C.]

Re: Exhaust pipe rust prevention?

Bill,

Thanks, you confirmed where I was leaning on using the high-temp black paint.

[Bob S.]

Re: Exhaust pipe rust prevention?

Has anyone tried a ceramic coating?? I Googled "ceramic coating colors" and came up with a source claiming to provide a "cast iron gray finish". It may be overkill, but that seems like a viable option, although I don't know how it would fare in judging.....

Bob

[Gary B.]

Re: Exhaust pipe rust prevention?

I brushed my Exhaust manifolds with a product by "NYBCO" called NEUTRA RUST . It is a watery white liquid. It was distributed by "Bernard Marks Company" in Toronto. I think I originally got it at a Home Hardware.

It gave a natural finish that has lasted about 15 years.

If anyone finds this product please let me know as I would like to buy some more.

Here is the only link I found. http://www.neutrarustuk.com/10325/info.php?p=2&pno=0

[Paul J.]

Re: Exhaust pipe rust prevention?

Larry:

Bob has a good idea. A couple of years ago I worked with a company called High Performance Coatings, who coat exhaust systems and metal parts for trucks, race cars, and show cars. I think that it's a ceramic coating but I'm not sure. They're very confident about thier product but I think that it's also expensive. They have locations in Utah, Arizona, Oklahoma, and Greensboro, North Carolina.

www.hpcoatings.com

I know that there are also other coating companies out there like AMR but I'm not as familiar with them.

Paul

[Joe T.]

Re: Exhaust pipe rust prevention?

I've had good luck with VHT Satin Clear "Flameproof" paint.

It is designed for header applications. The manufacturer recommends a curing process that includes at least two "cure" cycles that require maintaining operating temperatures for a period of time and allowing complete cool-down between cure cycles.

Don't apply it too heavily; it will discolor/yellow if it's too thick.

I've used it with good success on exhaust weld joints and to protect NOS pipes.

Edit: I forgot to mention, it is also available in black and other colors.