2021 test9 productsShop Chemicals & Lubricants
Which Rust Converter Brand Wins?
We compared 9 rust converter options head to head. POR-15 came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video. Shoppers cross-shopping rust oleum rust reformer, rustoleum rust converter and rust oleum stops rust protective enamel land here for the head to head that settles it.
Winner
POR-15
Price shown in test: $33 for 16 oz, $2.06 per ounce, the most expensive product tested
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Runner-up
Eastwood
Price shown in test: $30 for 15 oz, $2 per ounce
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Budget pick
Rust-Oleum Rust Reformer
Price shown in test: $5 for 10.25 oz, 49 cents per ounce
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Scroll sideways to see all measurements. Products are listed in the order they finished.
| Product | 60 day rust resistance on panels exposed to hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, and salt plus outdoor weathering | Rock chip resistance, .177 caliber steel ball at about 200 mph | Scratch resistance, weighted screw dragged across the panel | Pressure washer adhesion at 2,500 psi | 60 day rust resistance test | Rock chip resistance | Scratch resistance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1POR-15$33 for 16 oz, $2.06 per ounce, the most expensive product tested | 1st place, very little rust popping through on the two treated panels and no visible corrosion on the untreated panel beyond slight paint fade | no chip and no exposed metal beneath the impact area, the only product to fully resist penetration | left a scratch but the screw was unable to cut all the way through the coating | 1st place, no visible damage | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 2Eastwood Rust Encapsulator$30 for 15 oz, $2 per ounce | not tested | not tested | not tested | 3rd place, only three small areas where product came off the metal | 2nd place, only a very small amount of rust popping through the two treated panels, though the coating peeled slightly at the panel edge which the presenter attributes to his own thin application there | 3.17 mm chip, a slightly larger damage area than average | the scratch width appeared more narrow than most other brands, implying good performance though no exact measurement was given |
| 3Rust-Oleum Rust Reformer$5 for 10.25 oz, 49 cents per ounce | not tested | not tested | not tested | 4th place, a small area came off but most of the panel stayed intact, much better than Rust-Oleum 2X | 3rd place, nearly tied with Rust-Oleum 2X but finished just ahead of it | 4.18 mm chip, the largest damage area of any product tested | the screw went down to the metal but the paint did not chip and the coating around the scratch remained intact |
| 4Rust-Oleum 2X$4 for 12 oz, 33 cents per ounce, the least expensive product tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | poor, the pressure washer removed most of the paint | 4th place, quite a bit of rusting visible under the paint on the two treated panels though the untreated panel had very little oxidation; presenter notes surprise that the cheapest product beat five other brands | 2.84 mm chip | quite a bit of damage, a lot of paint chipping along with the scratch |
| 5Permatex Rust Treatment$10 for 10.25 oz, 98 cents per ounce | not tested | not tested | not tested | poor, hard to tell where the pressure washer even passed because most of the surface looked bare afterward | 5th place, did quite a bit better than other brands on the untreated panel but the middle and treated panels experienced quite a bit of rust | 2.8 mm chip | there did not seem to be much coating to begin with and the screw went all the way down to the metal |
| 6VHT Rust Converter$14 for 10.25 oz, $1.37 per ounce | not tested | not tested | not tested | poor, the entire panel looked rusty afterward making it hard to tell where the pressure washer even passed | 6th place, all three panels experienced quite a bit of rust, especially the untreated panel | 2.2 mm chip, the second best result behind POR-15 | performed about the same as Permatex, screw went all the way down to the metal |
| 7Plastikote Rust Converter$16 for 8 oz, $2 per ounce | not tested | not tested | not tested | 2nd place, held up very well with only slightly more fading where the pressure washer passed | 7th place, appearance very similar to Gempler's, barely finished ahead of it, quite a bit of rust especially on the two treated panels | 2.91 mm chip, nearly identical to Gempler's 2.98 mm | the screw cut all the way through the coating down to the metal, but the coating did not chip or fragment around the scratch |
| 8Gempler's Aerosol Rust Converter$18 for 13 oz, $1.38 per ounce | not tested | not tested | not tested | poor, the pressure washer removed the product and knocked loose some of the underlying rust | 8th place, quite a bit of rust especially on the two treated panels, and even the untreated panel had noticeable rust | 2.98 mm chip, about the same as Rust-Oleum 2X | screw cut all the way through the coating down to the metal |
| 9Rust Kutter$17 for 32 oz, 53 cents per ounce | not tested | not tested | not tested | worst of all products, the pressure washer completely removed it from the panel | 9th place, the worst of all products, quite a bit of rust formed on all three panels including the one not exposed to corrosive agents | 3.74 mm chip, about as large as the Rust Reformer's | performed similarly to Rust-Oleum Rust Reformer, did not fracture around the scratch area |
How it was tested
- 60 day accelerated rust resistance, panels treated with hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, and salt five times plus continuous outdoor weathering, compared against an untreated control panel per brand
- rock chip resistance using a .177 caliber steel ball fired at about 200 mph, chip diameter measured in mm
- scratch resistance using a weighted screw (about 1.5 lb) dragged across the panel
- coating adhesion under a 2,500 psi / 169 bar pressure washer
“POR-15 definitely seems by far the best product”
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