I'm going to remove as much rust as possible and then treat it with a rust converter and then rust paint/undercoating. I think that it will be better then doing nothing. Thanks for the input.

 

well i don't have a sand blaster and dont intend to get one lol... so i guess i would just have to use a grinder? And really i would only have like 5 hours till it starts to rust?

 

To do mine I did it in 3 sections for couple reasons.
Takes a lot of time to get it clean enough & ready.
The spot/flash rust starts quickly so if you have too large an area exposed need time to seal it.
POR15 will dry/harden pretty quick so about 1.5hrs after you pour into a seperate container it wont be usuable. Dont pour too much at once for that reason.

Best to get a quart of POR15 as well as a few pint sized empty cans so you can divide it up into seperate amounts.
When pouring into seperate cans DO NOT get any paint on the lip or you may not get the cans open again.
This stuff is strong. One can I screwed up & had to cut a hole in the lid to get the paint out lol

I used a Richards 7-1 scrapper tool (my fav muliti purpose tool)
Wire brush with metal scrapper on the end
Got the big stuff & main areas with those.

Next
3M paint remover wheels, 4 or 5
4" wire wheels, maybe 4 or 5
Both types of wheels are used on a drill
The 3m wheels are not flexible at all so used them on the open areas to get to bare metal.
The wire wheels are good for corners & such.
After that
About 10 large cans of brake cleaner, not the best to use due to fumes.
Got all the crap in corners & stuff as well as wiping down the main flat surfaces nice & clean

Once I finished cleaning up a section next day I would give it a fast going over with the 220grit paper & fresh wire wheel to get any surface rust.
I want my under hood area to be almost show quality so went further there.
I grinded/sanded down the overwelds & knocked off any weld splatters to get things real smooth looking.

Then used POR15 Metal ready, its a zinc/oxide wash that both etches the metal & gives rust protection.
Wash the excess off after 15min with fresh clean water & then dry it.

.

POR15 has really bad fumes. MUST HAVE GOOD MASK!!!
Best mask you can afford, preferably that goes over full head.
I used a decent one but only nose/mouth. Even with the garage main & side door open I could only handle the fumes about 1.5hrs (open paints lifespan).
Eyes would be watering/stinging by then, tends to give headaches cause its hard to move
around & keep perfect seal on the mask
.
Used a roller to apply the POR15 for as much of the large flat areas as I could and brush to get all the nooks & crannies

Have to give 2 coats with the POR15. Be sure to let each coat dry fully.

Repeated that for each section.
I had motor/trans & crossmember, fuel system & wiring harness out as well as lifted the bed off to do this.
I did not lift the cab though so the top of the rails are not done in that area.

 

Couple pics









Started the back section with the bed on at first.
Wasted too much time so I yanked it & it went much faster.

 

thanks for all the info! and unfortunately my truck has seen lots of salty roads so if i am going to do this i have to do the whole chassis. sucks but i plan on putting some money into the motor on this truck and if so i want it to look at least decent outside. Not even sure if i am going to go ahead with this since there is so much but i guess i could do it a little at a time. BTW how much work is it to take off the bed? was thinking about that as well...

 

You can literally have the bed off in a few minutes.
Remove 6 bolts holding the bed to the frame
Disconnect the electrical to tail lights/license plate
Disconnect the ground strap on the front passenger side
Off she comes

 

oh easier then i thought lol. So how long do you think it would take to do the whole chassis, front to back, paint and all? I was talking to my dad about it and he thinks its a big project. I don't mind puttin' in a few hours to make a nice truck out of it, after all the truck was a freebie lol

 

Dads right, its a pretty big job especially if shes crusty/rusty.
My Indy is in mint shape, winter stored & pulled wiper mtr/linkage in 01 so shes afraid of rain too

 

i noticed the your indy was mint, it's a very nice truck indeed. My truck is pretty rusty but its mostly confined to the chassis (floors are still good and what not). To be honest i would rather sell the thing and buy something worth putting my money into if i can't do this... Maybe an old car or something. Problem is i really like this truck and would like to be able to drive it and i think this would be something good for me to do on weekends for a while.

 

Yeah its best to stop the rust before it gets too far gone.
Will look better & may catch something else in need or attention.

If not too many miles, is ok mechanically & body isnt too bad maybe a good choice to restore.
Do one section now, maybe another in spring & the last in fall so it doesnt seem as much work