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  View original topic: Paint removal on gel coat
bugpowered Sun Jan 27, 2008 9:41 am

I recently found an older buggy and the tub has multiple layers of paint. Under it in areas I can see remnants of the original gel coat color. I would like to remove several layers to the gel coat to get a true sample of the original color. I am not trying to remove paint over the whole tub. It would be futile in this instance. If anyone has had success in doing this please impart the knowledge to me. Ultimately, I will sand with very fine grit if necessary, but I was just wondering if someone found an off the wall technique which works. Thank you in advance.

Mongo63 Sun Jan 27, 2008 9:51 am

I had my tub media blasted with baking soda.

bugpowered Sun Jan 27, 2008 9:53 am

the gel coat remained intact without issue? Were you able to just polish the gel coat and leave it be or did you have to take some more steps after getting it soda blasted?

RaythO Sun Jan 27, 2008 9:54 am

Do NOT use aviation stripper, it will take off the gel coat.

kustoms Sun Jan 27, 2008 10:19 am

Try an old razor blade in a scraper. You will be amazed at how clean, fast and efficient it is. The gel coat is harder then paint. Just be careful not to push down to hard. This may not work with all types of paint.

69empi/imp Sun Jan 27, 2008 10:57 am

I want to strip everything off my buggy and planned to use the aviation stripper. Will it damage the fiberglass? and is this the best way?

Letterman7 Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:10 am

Do Not use aviation stripper. Try Tom's suggestion first with the razor blade to see how easy it comes off. Media blasting might work, but you risk damaging the fiberglass if the guy blasting isn't careful. If the entire tub is painted, you've got a job ahead of you. In a small area, start with mild strippers first - there are some citrus based strippers out there that, if monitored carefully, won't damage the gel coat. Or try straight laquer thinner or acetone. Neither one will damage cured gelcoats (well...caveat: don't leave puddles for a long time in any area).

R

Dale M. Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:22 am

Be EXTREMELY careful of any "stripper" ( "eco friendly" strippers dont worK)... Most will soften gel coat then you have more problems to deal with .. media blasting is simplest way but most expensive... Mechanical stripping ( sanding - scraping) is labor intensive and very time consuming, but safest.

Solvent (not strippers) like lacquer thinner or acetone may or may not attack and soften paint..... You may try something like spraybcan carb cleaner, yes it will attack paint, and it probably will not attack gelcoat, but its expensive and needs to be worked in well ventilated area.... Just be real cautious with trial to see how paint/cleaner/gelcoat react...

Dale

RaythO Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:27 am

69empi/imp wrote: I want to strip everything off my buggy and planned to use the aviation stripper. Will it damage the fiberglass? and is this the best way?

I redid a baja in 93 that must have had 10 coats of paint on it the last being brush painted. I tried aviation stripper and it took the gel coat off to raw fiberglass. was a huge job to get it back ready for paint. it probably been cheaper and easier to replace the baja kit but I didn`t know better back then. I will NEVER use aviation stripper on fiberglass again

HeidelbergJohn4.0 Sun Jan 27, 2008 2:21 pm

I used the stripper for stripping and refinishing oem urethane bumper covers. bubbled up 5 layers of paint but didn't appear to harm the fiberglass.

BriceRG Mon Jan 28, 2008 2:45 am

I've used KleanStrip fiberglass paint remover before. I found out about it from a corvette messageboard. It comes in a blue gallon jar. I called the manufacturer a while ago and asked who in my area sold it. In San Antonio, TX I could only find it at Carquest. It took a week or two for the store to get it in stock. Its pretty simple put it on in a small area wait a couple mins and then take it off. Let me charge up the camera and I'll snap some photos.

The kleanstip website has a pdf of the can's label.
http://www.wmbarr.com/ProductFiles/GAF354%20l.pdf



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