I have used this Zinsser paint for other things, including metal with rust visible (but not loose). For my purposes, it worked very well.
The company said (via Screwfix):
Hello
Thank you for your recent enquiry.
Zinsser AllCoat Exterior water based satin paint is suitable to be used directly onto the cast iron gutters (exterior of these only) and downpipes, with no primer required.
Two coats of the AllCoat Exterior paint will be required to be applied by brush or roller at a coverage rate of approximately 10m2/litre, when the air and substrate temperature is 10oC and rising. The second coat of AllCoat may be applied after approximately 1 hour in normal drying conditons.
We recommend to ensure the surface to be painted is clean, dry, sound and free from any surface contamination such as dirt, oils, grease, mould, mildew, rust, loose or flaking paint etc that are likely to affect the performance of any subsequent coats of paint; to ensure this we advise the following prior to painting, clean down with hot soapy water, rinse with warm water and when dry have a good wipe over with methylated spirits to promote good adhesion.
I hope this helps.
https://www.screwfix.com/p/zinsser-all-coat-exterior-paint-black-1ltr/8716g