Cleaning ground (Earth) points as I go.

After cleaning to bare metal (with rotary bonding brush), what is used to treat the bare metal before attaching ground lug and screw?

On aluminum bodied aircraft we used alodine.

I use Copper Kote a graphite based anti size at work any such product should work.

What did Volvo Do?

So far, your grounds have lasted a long time.

My pet peeve is the grounds that one may not even notice.

The license plate light on my 544 is instructive - there is no ground wire!

There is a small metal clip on the light socket that must ground to the bumperette,
the bumperette must ground with the bumper,
the bumper must ground with the bumper bracket,
the bumper bracket must ground with the body,
and the body must ground with the battery.

Get the picture?

After I clean a ground and I have time, I like to prime and paint around the minimum size bare area that will do the job. I am considering adding a little dielectric grease to the bare spot.
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'96 855R,'64 PV544 driver, '67 P1800 basket case, '95 855, '95 854, the first three are mine, heh, heh, 485,000 miles put on 9 bricks

I just clean the rust, dab di-electric grease on the fitting and screw it down with a new rust free screw. The grease will keep off the rust.

As to the license plate lights, ditto for the wagon. So I just added a ground wire to the tailgate using one of the screws that hold the inside panel in place.

I also found that the ground straps on the battery and engine are getting a little old. Auto parts stores carry nice new ones.

Klaus
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My name is Klaus and I am a V ♂ lv ♂ holic

The only exception James was on a 1967 1800S I owned that had been recently painted before I bought it. It was my first exposure to Lucas, Princes of Darkness and was full of ground faults and fried wires. I found out, by tracing every darned circuit that ALL electrical body components needed to be grounded where they attached to the body. The P.O. removed everything to literally coat the body in a nice silver metallic paint. Argh!!!! Here's my current basket case
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Cam a.k.a. CVOLVO.COM

Walter;

Alodine is a (conductive) anti-corrosive surface conversion treatment typically used for aluminum...it is not suitable for steel AFAIK and I wouldn't recommend it here. I suggest you abrade away paint and/or rust at the chassis connection points to a shiny clean surface to assure a good electrical connection, and apply ACZP to encapsulate and protect the connections as you make them, including any adjacent bare metal which would otherwise be susceptible to corrosion again, then wipe away excess, leaving a surface film. This will give long-term protection and peace of mind!

Reference: http://www.sw-em.com/anti_corrosive_paste.htm

Cam; POR and any other anti-corrosive surface treatment like paint, is also non-conductive, so does not meet the requirements for electrical conductivity here.

Ron: Thanks for attempting to clarify Walter's question. I did not read that he was attempting to apply a conductive paste, but I was unaware of the properties of Alodine. If you're more interested in performing a restoration, then clearly the bolt threads and bolt/screw's head are adequate to create the ground. In this part of Canada, metal forms iron oxide especially when exposed to winter salt that tends to form corrosion that can isolate a grounding connection. From my experience, encapsulating the rust (with POR-15), a cleaned grounding lug and a new bolt/screw should be more than adequate.
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Cam a.k.a. CVOLVO.COM

In CA - Canada, I'd use POR-15 metal clean, metal prep then coat with the POR-15 paint to ensure no further rust. I recall, the POR-15 paint can be painted over if you wish to match the body color. Eastwood sells the complete line of POR-15 products or you can buy directly from POR-15.
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Cam a.k.a. CVOLVO.COM

Thanks all.

We used alodine on aluminum aircraft (F-15s, A-10s, Cessna 172s etc).
Volvos are steel.

Was wondering if something similar is used on steel car bodies to be conductive, yet prevent corrosion.

Zinc phosphate etc?

Dielectric grease…is it conductive or a sealant or both?
i.e. can you put it ON wires and terminals or just over lug/screw head after attached?

I’ve used POR 15 products on 122 battery trays (works GREAT with fiberglass matting to repair battery acid damage), exhaust manifolds and ’64 Airstream trailer frame (also worked great). It takes moisture from the environment, sealing out oxygen and is hard as nails. Also impossible to remove from skin.

Sealing OVER grounds with POR15 might help after initial ground prep.

Dielectric means that it does not conduct electricity - it is intended to surround the contact areas and keep air and water out.
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'96 855R,'64 PV544 driver, '67 P1800 basket case, '95 855, '95 854, the first three are mine, heh, heh, 485,000 miles put on 9 bricks