It will remove the rust. That was the topic of the post was it not? His location makes no difference.

 

Some good discussion on this, thank you all for contributing.

here is some quick status update…. Cleaned up the rust with a wire brush, removed all other dirt and dust, covered surroundings with a newspaper and painters tape, and sprayed with Automotive Rustoleum.

here are some pictures, let’s see how long it lasts




Original rust


Wire brushes

After using wire brush

After spraying Rustoleum




I’m located in WA - Seattle area, so we get some snow, but it doesn’t last for too long. There is much more snow in the mountains though when going skiing or going to a cabin, so we do get some salt applied ok roads I believe, especially in eastern Washington. It’s lesser chance of getting rust here, but I still wash the car underneath after trips on snowy roads to keep the rust to minimum. This hitch rust is likely due to water and grime, salt or other stuff collecting and sitting there for longer periods, and has been slowly increasing since I got the car, so finally got it addressed before it got out of hand.

 

Also the rust got cleaned up really well after the wire brush, so it was superficial (more cosmetic).

 

Not saying what you did was right or wrong, or will or won't last, and I don't know what specific paint you used, but typically you will want to use a rust converter or good primer first before paint. Although you might not "see" the rust, it could still be there and give you problems again. Rust-Oleum does make a product called Rust Reformer which gets great reviews. For future reference you may want to try something like that first, or there are multiple brush on options as well. With that being said it looks great and nice work.

 

Thanks for additional suggestion, for sure, this will be useful to do, especially for anyone who is planning on doing the same thing.
It's also best to sand it down a bit after the wire brush and put primer on top, and then apply the Rustoleum paint, or as mentioned use the Rust Reformer (seems like it doesn't even require sanding all the way down etc). Also make sure to pick the right color (gloss, non-gloss matte etc)
Since it's a hitch, I wasn't too worried about it, but these extra steps will definitely make it a better. Will try to use the Rust Reformer next time (with all additional steps) if rust appears again.