[Steelspine]

I'm removing the finish from my car and would like to know how others have done it. I have been alternating between using aerosol paint stripper and abrasive wheels on a drill, the roof is almost completely done and I have really only been dabbling in finish removal. There are a lot of layers of paint and primer on the roof, I count six so it takes multiple applications of the chemical to get to the metal. I would like to embark on this endeavor more seriously and want to get some ideas on the most efficient method with the best results.

Another question. I started this because the paint on the roof had failed in a number of placed and had flaked off to the bare metal. Now that the roof is mostly bare metal I am addressing the surface rust. I have removed it with abrasives and get it to the point where there is just a black mark where the rust used to be. Is this sufficient? Of course the whole car will be washed with metal wash etc, I just want to make sure I address the root problem of the surface rust.

Thanks,

Pete

[BobNovas]

You can get an angle grinder for under $100 and put a wire wheel on it that will do the job, though it might be too aggressive.

[Trak Ratt]

There’s a place in Manassas (I think it’s American Stripping) that routinely does “collector cars”. It’s been awhile but they estimated $600 for our “other” 356, with us removing everything that wasn’t to get stripped. Saw an XKE that was very nicely done by them. They also offer a “sealer/undercoat” that look real good on the Jag.

Bob’s obviously never stripped a car using a “grinder” or he would have added after his comment

[Alan Herod]

Not quite the resposnses that I expected to see, but this is a family friendly environment. I take it from the responses from others who may be more familiar with your car, that it is not a galvanized shell and has been painted several times.

[Jazzbass]

I know this girl named Amber down in Virginia Beach...

Pete - I'm not familiar with the type of car you have. What are you working on?

[Vicegrip]

Caution. Opinion to follow...

The spray can stripper is the not a $ saving way to go or good for large areas. Try the thick citrus based strippers they might work on auto paint. You can get them from Home Depot. They are easy to use and don't stink. They are SLOW to work, you glob it on and come back later, like the next day kind of later. The good part is they dont hurt you or anything else. You can wash it off with a hose or wipe it up with newspaper then final wash with a rag. I use it on rims and it rocks!

Don't even bother with drill based stuff. Life is too short. You can get all kinds of wire, grinding and cutting wheels as well as sanding disks for angle grinders. I think every shop should have at least one. They run $20 for the cheapo H.F. on sale kind and $50 to $70 at home Depot. Spend the $70. Get a DeWalt and it will pay for itself many times over. I have 3 in vairous states of abuse. Knotted rope wire wheels are the most agressive of the wire wheels and will cut through most any coating. Disk for wide areas and the cup type for the corners. Protect yourself if you use an angle grinder with a wire wheel! They sling off wires from time to time more so when they get old and the wires will stick into you or anything/anyone around.
I freaked Teresa out when I came in from the shop with some sticking out of my ugly mug. I felt stuff hitting me but did not know that it was sticking too. Ask Bill Jay and Daytony the dear hunter about grinders...
For the most part a knotted rope type wire wheel will blast through the paint and any rust leaving a shiny finish, but might not leave the best surface finish and can remove the rust proofing zink.
Heat works too. You can use a heat gun and a good putty knife. Dull the sides of the putty knife to prevent them from gouging the metal. Heat the paint until soft and bubling a little and scrape it up. Test and use only enough to melt the paint, Use way too much heat and you might deform the metal. It will stink, make bad fumes and melt off any sound deadener on the opp side of the metal if present but requires no strippers and goes right to metal in one shot. You will still need to final finish to get up the last of it. I set up a fan to pull the gasses away from me while using heat guns.
"Sand blasting" with walnut shell is another way to remove paint without damging the underlying metal. Regular sand blasing can deform sheet metal.
Or, you can remove everything from the car (everything) and have the tub dipped.

[theasphaltgambler]

I'm not a big fan of chemical strippers. The residue that remains is very difficult to get out of the body seems and jonts. If you are doing a whole car you should really consider media blasting as the most effective in what you're trying to accomplish.

Chemical stipping will come back to haunt you after you've applied that $5K paint job

[William Miller]

Except for the nooks and crannies, a 5 or 6" random orbit sander with stick on paper will do a pretty quick job. You have your choice of numatic or electric. Air sanders are much lighter to work with which you'll appreciate after a few hours, but you need a decent sized compressor with a decent sized tank. This will get expensive quickly.

I have a chepo 5hp electric compressor I bought at Walmart, I also had an older compressor where the tank rusted through. I can hook the two compressors together and I have a old 50gal water heater in my garage attic to add to the storage capacity. With this setup I can run a die grinder continuously with a pretty good load. Air sander come in differen ratings. I actually have 2 because the fisrt one I bought used too much air. The second worked great on my set up.

For day to day stuff ( filling tires, blowing dust, parts sprayer, painting, nail guns, impact wrenches and even my small sandblaster. I don't ever need the second compressor. It's only needed when you need a lot of air continuously. If I had nothing I'd start again with something big. But in the situation I was in I bassically cobbled it all together including the new compressor for about $200. Again I had the extra compressor and water heater. You can find water heaters at the transfer station. Most water heaters end up at the dump because of the elements go bad and plumbers talk people into replacing the whole thing.

If you want to skip all this go to Home Depo, Lowes or Maybe Harbor freight and get an electric variable speed orbital sander probably $100-150?
Some have dust collection, but that's another hose that restricts your movement.
Bulk sticky back sandpaper comes on rolls. I think velcro is a nice idea, but may get expensive. Look up woodworking in the web and you'll find some good prices. Good prices on the sanders as well.

Sanding is dusty, but probably the quickest.

I'd get a few small packs of different grits till you find what works good for you. I just sanded my wheel centers and 220 cut pretty quick, but didn't get out of control or need to be sanded with finer grit before painting.
You'll probably end up with arround 80-100 grit which will cut a lot quicker.
Be careful on the corners.

Forgot to mention, everyones got their favorite ways to do stuff. Read it all and choose what you think is best for you.

Good luck and have fun!
I read somewhere that guys that do demolition for a living have the most satisfying jobs!

[Alan Herod]

I had to come back and check, but this thread has failed to live up to expectations.

Seriously, I like the air driven orbital sander, but that will surely remove the zinc if going to bare metal and that would not be a good idea. I personally like the way paint sticks to paint better than bare de-galvanized metal. I sure hate it when something with little spider webs pops up in the paint three years later.

[Jim Richards]

Originally Posted by Alan Herod

I had to come back and check, but this thread has failed to live up to expectations.

RL must not have spotted this thread yet. Either that or he saw the thread title and immediately left work for one of those...ahem...gentleman's clubs that he's always trying to talk us into going to.