chemically stripping paint/enamel/japanning from plane

[baldpate]

Hi,

I want to strip and repaint/enamel/japan a couple of my planes. I had intended to use Nitromors, of which I've had a tin sitting on the shelf unused for a couple of years. Unfortunately, when I opened it there was none left. This was the old stuff (DMC-based : before the Nanny state changed the rules), and very effective it was. Reading on-line reviews of the current retail offerings (non-DMC), they seem to be next to useless.

Can anybody recommend an effective chemical stripping agent which is currently available retail? Or alternatively, a mechanical method other than blasting (I don't have that equipment).

 

[jimi43]

I used to think that the "safe" ones were going to be useless until I tried the bog standard stuff from B&Q to finish off removing the Japanning which time had started removing on a Record 5 1/2

...but it stripped it right down to the bare steel and no pain on my hands!

You need to do about two or three repeat coats but it certainly works!

It worked very well indeed...

Jimi

 

[baldpate]

Jimi,

thanks for the recommendation. Had it been anybody but you (and pictures, to boot! ), I'm not sure I would have believed it. I'll take myself to B&Q tomorrow to give it a try.

It will be interesting to see if it will work on the finishes used by other manufacturers. I'm starting with a piece of modern junk, just for practice; next up will be an Acorn 4-1/2, a decent user but a bit battered; but eventually I would like to refinish a nice pre-war Record No 7 which has lost 70% of its original finish.

 

[speeder1987]

Yep I second that Jimi, tried the exact same stuff last week and it worked brilliantly, took 3 coatings and then back down to the steel. Horrible stuff to work with though

 

[jimi43]

Yep I second that Jimi, tried the exact same stuff last week and it worked brilliantly, took 3 coatings and then back down to the steel. Horrible stuff to work with though

Not as horrible as the old Nitromors!

I used to get dressed up in all sorts of protective clothing...barrier cream....nitrile gloves....and it still ate through the whole lot! Really the most horrible stuff on this planet!

With this stuff I didn't even wear gloves and it was fine...no itching...no burning...nothing. Just barrier cream protected my hands and I just avoided touching it too much and washed my hands and the plane afterwards...at the same time!

I am truly amazed. Most of this new H&S eco-friendly stuff is rubbish.

Jim

 

[Elapid]

Yep I second that Jimi, tried the exact same stuff last week and it worked brilliantly, took 3 coatings and then back down to the steel. Horrible stuff to work with though

Not as horrible as the old Nitromors!

I used to get dressed up in all sorts of protective clothing...barrier cream....nitrile gloves....and it still ate through the whole lot! Really the most horrible stuff on this planet!

With this stuff I didn't even wear gloves and it was fine...no itching...no burning...nothing. Just barrier cream protected my hands and I just avoided touching it too much and washed my hands and the plane afterwards...at the same time!

I am truly amazed. Most of this new H&S eco-friendly stuff is rubbish.

Jim

I remember using that stuff. I found just having a damp cloth to quickly wipe it off my skin was the best way to avoid chemical burns.

 

[Eric The Viking]

I've a sister-in-law who's an industrial chemist: apparently it's the detergent in the old water-based Nitromors that causes the irritation. Years ago she suggested using the white spirit-washable version instead, and I didn't have problems with that. It's got the added advantage that it doesn't encourage rust, too.

Nitromors used to be made by Wilcot, in Fishponds, Bristol, and I used to buy other nasties from the factory, including Trich (excellent degreaser!), but the factory's gone now, sadly.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

The white spirit washable one was much better, except it was thinner and ran off vertical surfaces. It burned like hell if you got splashed and didn't notice straight away.

 

[No skills]

Closing the gate after the horse has bolted... I've used cellulose thinners for stripping small things - last one was a stanley spokeshave, put the thinner in a plastic milk bottle with the top enlarged, drop item in and wait overnight - brush off loose paint and repeat till clean.