Matia Posted July 4, 2003 Report Share Posted July 4, 2003 Ok so I've got this cheap strat... and clever old me tried chemical stripping it... basically this sucks!!!!! The chemical is called Citrusstripper and its hard to work with... dosent really penetrate at all and makes one hell of a mess!!!!! Has anyone used any types of chemical stripper that actually do work??? If so can you please let me know the brands!!!!!! Also is there any particular theory of doing this? I swear next time I'm just going the traditional sanding route... oh well had to try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott D. Posted July 4, 2003 Report Share Posted July 4, 2003 Actually.. I dont think your going to be able to get the factory finish off with a chemical, they are a VERY tough epoxy paint... What I use for guitars that have been refinished, and had SOME luck with factory finished guitars, is this stuff called READY STRIP- PREMIUM STRIPPER , its in an aluminum and orange aerosol can... U can get it at Wal-Mart for 3 bucks, and its some powerful stuff. its by the stains and wood fillers.. It doesnt smell too bad (DONT SMELL IT) and its VERY powerful, but wear gloves it WILL burn you.... Hope it helps... I would recomend spending 39.99 at sears and getting a good orbital sander. I have one that works great... You may think you will only need it once, but it comes in handy -Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGM Guitars Posted July 4, 2003 Report Share Posted July 4, 2003 Chemical strippers work fine on anything IF you use the right stripper. Get an industrial one, there is one sold through NAPA (don't know if it's available in Europe) but it's called aircraft remover. It EXCEEDS military standards. We used this in the full scale airplane shop I was in for a while where we sprayed some of the toughest epoxy and poly urethane paints you will ever see. Cut through it in seconds, however, when you use it, do it WELL ventilated away from anything you DON'T want to strip, the fumes from it are enough to damage paint. It's water soluble, so you can clean up with water, but, DO NOT get it on skin, OWWIE OWWIE OWWIE!!!!!!! oh yeah, if you are buying a stripper, get alot, you don't want to just brush a light coat on, get alot of the stuff on there, you can reuse it, don't worry. don't waste your time with aerosol strippers, some people claim easy off oven cleaner works, It does work with enamels, but I doubt it would touch component paints. When I use a stripper (usually only on the inside of horns and in cavities if I need to strip there for some reason) I pour the **** on and leave it sit a good 10 minutes, then just rinse it away with water, paint and all. Yes the body will be wet, but you need to clean it of the stripper anyway, just don't submerge it and leave it dry for a good week before you try to sand and paint it afterwards. This is exactly why I don't like chemical strippers though, we spend so much time trying to get a dry piece of wood, why add moisture again, however, drying wood isn't just about removing all water moisture either, that dissappears fairly quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodfixer Posted July 5, 2003 Report Share Posted July 5, 2003 Home depot sells a epoxy/aircraft stripper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted July 9, 2003 Report Share Posted July 9, 2003 this might sound kinda nuts cause i'm a newb but couldn't you just (if it's a non carved guitar) run it through a planer? then just do the arm rest, chest cut, and sides with sandpaper? i mean even if you are using a chemical stripper it cuts the work more then in half and if you're carefull and take your time you could do it very easily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGM Guitars Posted July 9, 2003 Report Share Posted July 9, 2003 I wouldn't run it through a planer just because the paint is very hard and would be hard on the cutter, but I've done that with a thickness sander and then yes, just do all the edges and contours. What it REALLY does is show you how poorly sanded most guitar bodies are from the factory :S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matia Posted July 9, 2003 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2003 Thanks again for all the advice guys! LGM I found a cool product usually used in aircraft stipping called Nitromorse.. it kicks ass! However I just decided to go buy a new orbital and attack it the normal way on the back and front. But the Nitro kicked ass on the sides and heels and removed all the paint down to wood within about 20 mins! Well happy! Having already learned the perils of using a planer I'd say yeah try it once... but once is all you'll want to do! Cheers all. I'll post some pics when its done! Lee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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