I want to strip the paint from my 1962 Thunder Alley race car. It is fiber glass and has at least 3 heavy coats of paint. What would be the best way to get off the old paint? Could I blast it using walnuts or glass ? or is there a pint stripper that won"t hurt the fiber glass ? Then I could sand it off but it seems to be very thick.What grit should I use?
I was in the marine business for several years . I just used to use a paint stripper . Sure , walnut media blasting can be used , a little slower maybe ........... scrubba
Crazy as it sounds, I would use a Razor Blade-it will save lots of work (and Sandpaper)-heat is your friend-
I've used razor blades and paint stripper, separately and on the same car, both methods work. If you can the blade under the paint somewhere a good razor scraper used at a low angle will peel a lot of paint in a short period of time. Stripper also works if you pay attention...stick to smaller areas and watch it close...maybe strip off the paint in layers, instead of trying to get it all the way down to bare glass at one shot. I'd avoid letting it sit on the car for any longer than absolutely necessary.
I remember a '71 Corvette that a friend had walnut-blasted by a pro, several years ago. Some of it came-out OK, but most panels came-out so badly that we had to re-apply the jell coat. We never went that route again. A DA with 80 grit may take a day (or even more for MANY coats) to remove the paint, but with some experience, I got to where I can remove one layer of paint at a time. Ya gotta pay strict attention and keep the DA moving. Does not harm the jell coat if ya know when to stop. No chemicals to worry about coming back to haunt you, either. I'd never strip 'glass any other way, but what do I know? Good luck! DD
I watched an old guy at a body shop strip a whole Corvette in a matter of a few hours with a single edge razor blade. The surface of the body was very smooth afterward. If I hadn't seen it myself and someone told me that that was the way the body was stripped/prepped I'd have called him a liar.
- A chemical stripper that is safe for fiberglass. "Regular" stripper is not safe. - Carefully sand down with a DA sander Blast with plastic or baking soda media.
Adding heat to a composite can be bad. Exo-therm and de-lamination can occur if too much heat is applied. As far as a chemical stripper, personally I would avoid it like the plaque. The idea of putting a chemical that breaks down other chemicals anywhere near a chemically bonded laminate makes me leary. If it were me, I would just start sanding with some 80 grit on a DA.
We do alot of glass and found that if you go through the gelcoat layer with strippers it will stay in the mat. This will cause your new paint to let go and cause a bubble that will start your paint to peal. We always strip with 80 grit and reseal with a new coat of gel coat. Let that dry and then block wet sand out. Work up from 320 to 400. You will be surprised with the finish. If done right it will look like all you have to do is buff. Don't be afraid if you sand through, just spot coat with more gel coat. As long as you don't have any resin showing through you will be ready for primer. Remember gel coat is what stops the bad stuff from happing to your paint. So this is timely, so take your time and don't press too hard. Hemihenry "Car Crazy Fiberglass"
I dont like using paint stripper on Glass.. you have to wash it after.. if any of the fibres are away from the gel coat.. It will never dry out properly.. I agree with the Blades and sanding..
I'd buy a box of single edge razor blades and a long handled holder. Then I'd try to strip it by scraping off the paint. You may be surprised at how well it goes. I did my Avanti using that method but it took over 40 hours so it can be difficult. But it left me with a surface I could work with and no potential issues with residual chemicals popping up later. Mine was more difficult than usual as there was a lot of different paint and filler issues.
Razor blades and 80 or 120 grit sandpaper. That's how I did my fiberglass 29 roadster. If you use a chemical stripper and don't get it all off (and you won't) it will blister the paint when the sun starts to heat up the surface. It will also not dry to a nice hard surface, the stripper residue will cause the paint to stay soft and even get gummy. Be sure to give it a good gel coat when you're done sanding down to the fiberglass. Those early bodies didn't have gel coat so it's a good idea to do it, it acts like an epoxy sealer does on steel. I spent hours and hours sanding mine with 80 and a 3M rubber block, then I went to 240, primed it with a good hi fill primer, then blocked it with 320 before the base/clear was sprayed. The nice thing is you can wet sand everything which makes it easier. Two years later I have no paint issues at all. All it takes is time in the prep work. I did it all myself but now I know why a good paint job is expensive, I would not want to do it for a living, those guys earn every penny.
Listen too scrubba here. I did a second job at a marina one summer for extra cash, mostly what I did was strip hulls for new paint. from my experience this is good advice.
See post #7. Although I haven't done it on fiberglass I know people who have, which why I suggested it.
When I was a kid I used brake fluid to remove paint off of plastic model cars. It would not hurt the plastic at all. Not sure how it would do on fiberglass or automotive paint. Pry would be a mess on the whoel car but might be an idea for little nooks and crannys.
I did a little razor blade action today on my glass front end, it works but will take a long time. Once the blade dulls you can take it out and flip it over and it's good as new. It does take multiple layers off at once where sanding takes one layer at a time. It does take some getting used to on the angle of the blade and the amount of pressure to apply but I may stick with sanding.
Ya.. I dont think Brake Fluid would be a good choice.. if theres any gel cracks. that stuff would seep into the fibres.. and theres no way to remove it.. everything else takes time to do when building.. the body work is no different.. it is very time consuming..
What about it? Anyone? I visited with a guy who restored several corvettes and that is what used. Said it worked well. Neal
I used A-Z Soda Blasting in Justin Texas. They blasted my 35 Auburn Replica. Check them out on the web. They've done corvettes also.
Make it easy on yourself - get your own soda blaster from Eastwood and what you spend on it will be saved in the time it takes to do the job. At the end of it you also have your own soda blaster - win win situation.... www.eastwood.com/soda-blasters-two-tools-in-one-converts-between-soda-and-abrasive-blasting
The Jalopy Journal
