A rock from the road scraped my car's hood a while ago. I have not gotten around to fixing it until now. The paint was completely scraped away down to the bare metal.
My first thought is to take a Dremel and sand away the rust and apply some primer and then top coat.
Is there a better way to remove the small amount of rust that has come up and protect the metal/paint going forward?
This Automotive Touch Up Video demonstrates how you can take care of scratches in your paint. In addition, I've had good luck with Napa's Rust Permatex Treatment. It turns rust into a gray primer, which might look a little ugly but not as much as a rusted-out car.
You could use the Napa Rust Treatment to get rid of the rust and then try the techniques in the video to apply paint to your hood.
You definitely want to clean out the rust if its not terribly invasive.
Go to your local art supply store and get the finest paintbrush you can find
If getting it protected is "good enough", fill it in with primer.
If you want to restore it cosmetically, then fill it in with touch up paint, matched from the dealer. Then have your local auto detailer blend that portion back with the original paint. It should look pretty good.
