"Movil" and "Feran" - "legends" of the Soviet anticorrosive

Fighting corrosion is a pressing problem for motorists living in regions with harsh climates and where strong temperature fluctuations are common. City dwellers with their streets sprinkled with anti-icing reagents are also well aware of this "problem". It is clear that global and Russian marketing is not sleeping and is actively filling the market niche with "super-preparations" of the "treat and forget" type. However, the fight against rust was also actively conducted in Soviet times and was quite successful in terms of creating the appropriate products. Another thing is that they were produced in relatively small batches and it was not so easy to "get" them.

The process of rust formation and bodywork

In Soviet times, there were almost no real ways to stop the onset of corrosion. Tales circulated among the people about funds allegedly obtained from secret military laboratories. Even occasionally commercially available products such as "Movil" or "cannon fat" were often attributed properties that they did not possess.


The composition of any anticorrosive in the USSR was a filler made from petroleum products (most) and an inhibitor. All this really works, one might say, ideally, but only on one condition: if the car is at a standstill. In this case, the inhibitor reliably isolates the metal from atmospheric action. When the car starts to move, stones, sand fly onto the anticorrosive layer, the body is subjected to shaking and vibrations. The product layer gets damaged and moisture gets to the body. At the same time, corrosion proceeds at an accelerated pace, since water does not really evaporate between the remaining anticorrosive and metal.


Rust control will be more successful if the steel is polished to a mirror finish. However, a car with a solid mileage is so unrealistic to clean. All the same, there are secluded corners where rust will remain and begin its victorious march. More or less real results can be achieved using a powerful sandblaster in a special chamber. Of course, this is not the case for an ordinary car owner.

"Movil"

The popularity of the drug is evidenced by the fact that for a long time (already in Russia) they called any anti-corrosion agents. This is reminiscent of the story of "Tosol", which someone still calls any antifreeze. But everything is simple: we are talking about the abbreviated name of the trademark - "Technology of Organic Synthesis". Well, for a better sound, someone added “ol” at the end. The same is with Movil, which was created by specialists from the Research Institute of Chemistry from Moscow (Mo) and Vilnius (Vil).



However, the Soviet "miracle" did not quite live up to expectations. It quickly became clear: the tool was well suited for processing open areas of the body - doorways, spars, bottoms. However, in the arches, which constantly "bombarded" the wheels with stones and sand, the drug did not hold up well.


It was actively washed out with moisture mixed with salt. It is worth noting: fender liner, which we see today, did not exist then. According to modern manufacturers, the composition they sell with the same name includes the same ingredients as in the past. Then "Movil" was produced from:

✅ drying oil that forms a film
✅ artificial wax, known as "ceresin"
✅ petrolatum (a hydrocarbon product from petroleum)
✅ white spirit, which played the role of a solvent
✅ inhibitors of foreign production

There could be some other minor additions. In order not to bother with tricky names, Movil can be described as a paraffin candle dissolved in gasoline, where drying oil is added so that all this does not drain from the metal surface. When the product is applied to the body, the solvent evaporates and a semi-dry crust is formed.

How and where to apply "Movil"

There are quite a lot of manufacturers today: some follow the traditional formula of the Soviet era, others add something, change the proportions. But one thing is clear: it is recommended to use this type of anticorrosive only for closed cavities of the car body, as well as for processing joints, welds. The bottoms and wheel arches today are coated with other means - mastics, which have elasticity and resistance to mechanical stress. It’s just that in the days of the USSR, motorists had no choice and they smeared everything with Movil. Alas: many are trying to do it today!

"Feran"

History is silent on the meaning of the name. Most likely, it is connected with the Latin word "ferrum", i.e. "iron". Anticorrosion was developed in the USSR in 1984 by Soyuzbytkhim, or rather its Design Bureau from Vilnius. The product was not as popular as Movil, however, it was mentioned in the magazine "Za Rulem" (November 1984). Not only specialized chemical industry organizations were engaged in the production of anticorrosion, but also defense industry enterprises: for example, the Biysk Oleum Plant.



The composition is applied directly to the rust - it is only necessary to remove loose “terry” layers. The only requirement is that the surface to be treated must be dry! What happens in the process of applying Feran to the metal? Thanks to the inhibitors, the rust impregnated with them loses its chemical activity and turns into a kind of mechanical filler, which increases the strength of the formed crust.


If the wheel arch was treated with such a composition, a chemical “wing liner” was obtained that was resistant to salts and mechanical stress. He is no longer so afraid of anti-icing reagents, pebbles, sand. But for hardening, it is recommended to close the crust with bituminous mastic from above.


And if the painted area of ​​\uXNUMXb\uXNUMXbthe body begins to rust, Feran is applied to the problem area, playing the role of a primer that can be painted over with the regular color of the car. True, there is a caveat: the product is black and therefore can cause darkening of a light paintwork. In any case, the composition is applied with a brush and requires drying for an hour.

inspection

According to a user who managed to get a Soviet sample of Feran, 32 (!) years after the discovery of the packaged product, he did not lose his qualities, despite the warning label about a 1-year shelf life. Conducted an experiment to test the Soviet product. Two strips of rusted steel 0,3 mm thick were placed on magnets in the wheel arches. One was treated with Feran, the other was not. Six months later, in the spring, the protected plate remained in its original form: the cut showed that the rust had turned black, apparently having reacted with inhibitors. The second strip received through corrosion holes.

Conclusions

The trade mark "Feran" today is no longer seen, and what is produced today under the name "Movil" is not known under normal conditions. It remains only to hope for the conscience of manufacturers (which is highly discouraged), user reviews (only if they are your good friends) and the “poke method”. But I want to believe that there are still companies that not only use Soviet recipes, but also improve them.