Painting Rails

Thomson.

Thomson.

Active member
Me and my buddy picked up some yellow rails that you'd find in parking lot or something like that, I'm not necessarily sure what material they are, but I think steel. We slid them about 2 years ago or so, and haven't slid them since, but we pulled them out again today to re-setup them up and stuff. The tops are all rusty and the paint is chick, so I was wondering, what steps should I take to make this rail nice and slick? Should I sand, then paint then wax? If so, what kind of paint? Thanks.
 
man i would just sand and then wax. the paint will probly come off anyway. so if i were u i would just sand the shit out of it then wax like crzy.
 
Alright sounds good, thanks for the suggestions. If I can't get a hold of a power-sander or anything of that sort what should I do? And how can I determine if this rail is steel or aluminum? Aluminum doesn't rust correct?
 
you could just sand them down to the metal, then coat them with this brush on galvanizing stuff to keep them from rusting. From what i've heard from some people i work with you can get it or at least order some from any hardware store or machine shop type place.
 
I have a couple steel rails in my backyard. What I do every year is:

1. In the fall I use a belt sander and take all of the rust off and make it nice and smooth

2. Put some rust paint over what I sanded. I used tremclad rust paint. The paint will get scraped off the first time you slide it but it keeps the rail from rusting before the snow falls.

3. Optional: After every couple of sessions use a rag and put some oil all over the top of the rail. This keeps it smooth and keeps it from rusting inbetween sessions. If you don't want to get oil on your clothes don't do this. Wax doesn't work when it's cold out because the wax stays hard and doesn't smear like it does when it's warm.
 
I work for a resort, managing a terrain park. I know commercial rails are a bit different than your backyard setup, but here's what we're doing...

-Use a wire wheel on an angle grinder to get off the rust.

-use a grinding wheel on an angle grinder to get off deep rust and any burrs

-use a paint such as Rustoleum to paint entire rail. Pant won't make the rail any more sticky, and will protect rail from developing rust.

Obviously, we're a bit different because the rails will get used daily, and we don't have to worry much about rust forming during the season.
 
file/sand/wire brush it down, wipe it down, paint it. when ever mine gets a little sticky, i usually just rub it down with some oil, which like said above, keeps it nice and slippery and the ice doesn't build up on it over night/ when it snows. you probably don't have to paint it but it wouldn't hurt. good luck man
 
Here's the full answer about aluminum, just copied from a website. I can't help you with anything else though.

Aluminum corrodes but it does not rust. Rust refers only to iron and steel corrosion.

Aluminum is actually very prone to corrosion. However, aluminum

corrosion is aluminum oxide, a very hard material that actually

protects the aluminum from further corrosion. Aluminum oxide corrosion

also looks a lot more like aluminum, so it isn't as easy to notice as

rusted iron.

When iron corrodes the color changes and it actually expands. This

expanding and color change can produce large red flakes that we all

know as rust. Unlike aluminum oxide, the expanding and flaking off of

rust exposes new metal to further rusting. This why it is so important

to provide a barrier so rust doesn't start.

 
I first read your reply, except for your first sentence, and thought...this guy really knows his shit. I'm impressed....

And then I read the first sentence.....hahaha
 
I know it definitely isn't aluminum because I took a magnet to it, and there was an attraction. I'm not sure how I didn't think of that before I asked but whatever. My brother has an air compressor and these little like sand paper pad things that go onto the gun, and it is like a super nasty sander, so I think I'm gonna have him run that along the top surface to get it smooth and then purchase some Rustoleum (sp?) paint. Thanks for all the help guys! I'll prolly post pics when I'm finished because this shit has some potential.
 
Here's what we use. Pretty sure you can pick it up at any hardware store.

1225851825rustoleum.jpg

 
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