I used to crawl under my old Ranger and go to town with the black paint. Axel, differential cover, springs, drive shaft...
Never had a problem with it and it always looked nice and clean.
My F150 still looks good underneath, but when the time comes I'll be under there with the paint again. I already did my rear wheel wells and it came out great!

 

Paint or POR15??

 

Paint. Whatever was lying around the garage in flat black. Usually some Krylon.
For my rear wheel wells I used Rustoleum semi-gloss black that I had in the garage. I figured if it came out bad I could go get the rubberized paint, but it came out great and I haven't had any problems with chipping or anything.

 

What about painting the rear-end? What can I use to clean up some of the dirt-grime thats built up on it and what would be better Krylon or POR 15 and where can you get it?

 

I guess I'm lucky, my 2006 5.4 supercab with the 133" wheelbase has an aluminum Alcoa driveshaft. Just out of curiousity anyone know which models use an aluminum driveshaft and which use a steel driveshaft.

 

take a look at "Zero Rust". cheaper than POR and comes in many colors plus spray cans. i used it on a trailer and seems to hold up .

 

to be honest, i really wouldnt worry about trying to get the "correct" paint to paint your driveshaft. pick up a can of black rustoleum spary for about $5 and give it a quick coat or two. it should last quite a while. if it doesnt, then give it another coat you can prolly get at least 3-4 coats out of a single can...

 

I repainted the ENTIRE underbody of my F150 in about 3 hours and 10 cans of Rustoleum Industrial Grade Rust Proofing Paint in High Gloss Black.

Man... it looks sharp! What's really cool is that what ever is in that paint, all I need is a garden hose and a simple spray nozzle and salt, sand, and dirt just washes right off and comes out to the nice shiny black again... without the tireshine, WD-40, etc.

Amazing stuff......

 

FYI, if you do use POR-15 make sure you wear protective gloves. It is a bear to get off your hands/skin. You'll have it on your hands for quite a while.

Guess how I know???

 

x2 even with that Rustoleum I used. Stayed on my hands for 3 weeks even using Lava soap as much as I could to get my skin to exfoliate within those 3 weeks. When I give it a 2nd coat this summer, you bet I will wear gloves.

 

I have an 05 Screw and have the 1 piece aluminum DS and that sucka is still shiny with 21k on it