Paint remover of choice?
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Paint remover of choice?
I’m intending to strip paint off of a C&V frame, but am wondering what’s the most effective chemical in this post-methylene chloride era. What I picked up at my local hardware store has been pretty useless. Recommendations?
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Well, what'd you pick up?? I recently got a big thing of Citristrip gel and will be trying it in a few weeks when it's too cold too much of the time to ride, so I'll report back.
In the past when I've stripped a frame it was a spray type, and that was not as effective as I'd hoped it would be; took a fair amount of time afterward to really get things off, so I'm hoping the gel sitting on there will be better.

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I'm using Citristrip right now. I rough sanded the frame (60 grit) to get through the clear coat. Then coat, let sit overnight, scrape, 2nd coat, sit overnight, scrape again. Not the most effective but it does work.
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The citrus stuff can be frustrating. If you don't wait long enough, it doesn't penetrate the paint and it wipes right off. Leave it on too long and it dries on.
Some good tools to use for the job are a few wire brushes of different sizes, steel wool, scouring pads, heavy gloves, and one of those drill powered wire brushes. It's a messy job, I have found that if you get a good strong batch of regular aircraft stripper, and optimal conditions, that's the fastest time-wise. That citrus stuff can take days and many repeated applications, just making a nasty job even worse.
Some good tools to use for the job are a few wire brushes of different sizes, steel wool, scouring pads, heavy gloves, and one of those drill powered wire brushes. It's a messy job, I have found that if you get a good strong batch of regular aircraft stripper, and optimal conditions, that's the fastest time-wise. That citrus stuff can take days and many repeated applications, just making a nasty job even worse.
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Well, what'd you pick up?? I recently got a big thing of Citristrip gel and will be trying it in a few weeks when it's too cold too much of the time to ride, so I'll report back.
In the past when I've stripped a frame it was a spray type, and that was not as effective as I'd hoped it would be; took a fair amount of time afterward to really get things off, so I'm hoping the gel sitting on there will be better.

Rough sanding promotes penetration and speeds up the process a lot too.
I did one this summer, out in the sun, once I got a couple of coats on it and it got hot, the next coat would bubble and wrinkle then the paint came right off with a big wire brush. if I missed that window, it would dry out and need another coat to saturate and soften so it would come off.
In the end lots of little bits that had to come off inch by inch but overall much less work than fighting with all of it.
I got a pack of stainless and brass tube brushes from Harbor Freight that helped very much with the detailing at the end.
It was a lot of work but far less than if the heat hadn't cooked much of it.
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Drywall sanding screens - though they wear out quickly. Warp around the tubes and pull each end, bare tube in 5 minutes (and probably more than one screen). Use the still-good bits of those screens for detail - a spot under your thumb, rub six times hard and it's bare. Available in various grits, pick your finish.
Dental pick for tricky bits.
Dental pick for tricky bits.
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I stripped a 1984 Trek 610 using multiple strippers. The one that worked the best with multiple applications was Aircraft Stripper. Imron is a tough paint to take off! It was a mess. Almost as bad as the Burley Tandem which I used Aircraft Stripper on as well.
P1000848 on Flickr
P1000850 on Flickr
P1000852 on Flickr
Since it was down to bare metal, I cleaned up using a file. In this case, the parting line on the BB shell was attacked. The crown was cleaned up as well.
P1000882 on Flickr



Since it was down to bare metal, I cleaned up using a file. In this case, the parting line on the BB shell was attacked. The crown was cleaned up as well.

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Sounds like pre-sanding the clear coat ahead of application of the gel is recommended. I'll try that.
#10
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My favorite paint stripper is my local powder coater. He'll media blast a frame for $40.
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Speaking of blasting, has anybody tried doing it at home? I'm thinking for the nooks and crannies. Is such a thing even possible? Probably requires a lot of airflow.
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Harbor freight sells a set up you use outside with big plastic sheet to collect the media or just sand the ground.

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BTW the bead blasted surface is about the best there is for that primer coat - mega bond! ! !
#16
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I used some Citristrip last time I used a non Methylene Chloride stripper, it worked OK. It didn't take the filler/primer layer very well, but honestly worked better than I expected.
I have though about going the harbor freight blasting route, are you talking about the little handheld gun or something else?
I have though about going the harbor freight blasting route, are you talking about the little handheld gun or something else?
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I just stripped a frame with Rustoleum Aircraft Stripper. It worked, but it took three applications and I had to break out the wire brushes.
The old Methylene Chloride strippers would have done it in one shot.
I'll get them blasted from now on.
The old Methylene Chloride strippers would have done it in one shot.
I'll get them blasted from now on.
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I had some citrus-based stripper on hand, so that’s what I’m using so far. The good thing is that it doesn’t dry out quickly, so it continues to work for quite a long time. The bad thing is that the job will still require a lot of scraping and sanding.
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#20
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I had the frame I'm working on now blasted by a local powder coating company after attempts using a stripper were going slowly. I used some marine stripper on the chrome fork.
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BITD I stripped a frame with sand. BAD idea! it will strip both the paint and the metal. Bead blast is best. Sand blasting is really risky when the target is double butted or triple butted, chew right through it.
Check with the service provider for the type of medium they use for blasting
Check with the service provider for the type of medium they use for blasting
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#23
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i stripped an old 14' boat this past summer. I started with Citrstrip and it was ok, but not nearly as good as what i ended with which was this stuff:
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Jasco-1-Qua...E&gclsrc=aw.ds
That's what i'd recommend.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Jasco-1-Qua...E&gclsrc=aw.ds
That's what i'd recommend.
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#24
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BITD I stripped a frame with sand. BAD idea! it will strip both the paint and the metal. Bead blast is best. Sand blasting is really risky when the target is double butted or triple butted, chew right through it.
Check with the service provider for the type of medium they use for blasting
Check with the service provider for the type of medium they use for blasting
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#25
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i stripped an old 14' boat this past summer. I started with Citrstrip and it was ok, but not nearly as good as what i ended with which was this stuff:
Jasco 1-Quart Extra strength Stripper Semi-paste
That's what i'd recommend.
Jasco 1-Quart Extra strength Stripper Semi-paste
That's what i'd recommend.
Dichloromethane {Methylene chloride; R-30;Freon 30} 60.0 -100.0 % PA8050000
Methanol {Methyl alcohol; Carbinol; Woodalcohol} 10.0 -20.0 % PC1400000
Hydrotreated light distillate (petroleum) < 5.0 % OA5504000
Methanol {Methyl alcohol; Carbinol; Woodalcohol} 10.0 -20.0 % PC1400000
Hydrotreated light distillate (petroleum) < 5.0 % OA5504000
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