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John Z
27 Posts |
 Posted - 10/31/2009 : 18:55:13
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| I've got an Intermountain FP7 shell that I would like to strip the paint off(Cotton Belt). Normally I just place the body shell in brake fuild. I called IM about getting a different shell & new shells cost $50.00. Don't feel like paying $50.00 for a new shell. Any one strip an IM shell and what did you use. Thanks. |
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sp4009
USA
252 Posts |
Posted - 11/02/2009 : 10:06:51
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| 91% alcohol will take the paint off quick. |
Joe Gartman
Locomotive Engineer, BNSF
Bakersfield, CA
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GP38-2freak
Germany
284 Posts |
Posted - 11/02/2009 : 11:18:53
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Uuuuuuh...brake fluid is extremely harmful...use 91% alcohol or the paint stripper from chameleon..it works!!!
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brokemoto
USA
2660 Posts |
Posted - 11/02/2009 : 12:35:26
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Some shells will not stand up to brake fluid. The old LLs seem to be amoung the worst offenders. What happens to them is that the brake fluid makes them brittle. The B-mann doodlebug shell suffers from this, as well.
I have seen some of the more modern protoypes from Kato either melt or turn to powder. The F-units seem to hold up well. The PAs go brittle.
Ninety one per cent alcohol is better. I have not had much success with chameleon or other commercial hobby strippers. I have found them about as effective as ninety one per cent, but much more expensive than ninety one per cent.
I have actually seen one paint job stand up to brake fluid: that awful powder blue and grey on the RR B&O passenger cars. Fortunately, the RR cars would stand up to the brake fluid. It took numerous scrubbings and long soakings to get off that paint job.
Ninety one per cent is the way to go.
Thank you for your consideration and support. |
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John Z
27 Posts |
Posted - 11/02/2009 : 15:46:16
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| Thanks to all. |
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kornellred
USA
191 Posts |
Posted - 11/02/2009 : 16:15:14
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Is 91% alcohol suitable for removing all types of finishes from all types of plastic shells, or are there any restrictions one should be aware of? I don't know if this constitutes hijacking of the thread but it does seem suitably related.
WR |
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Lou D
USA
3416 Posts |
Posted - 11/02/2009 : 19:10:00
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| 91% alcohol,or better yet,93% if you can find it,is always the first choice to try to strip any shell.It's pretty much harmless to most plastics,and even the ones it will damage take a LONG time,and the worst thing I've seen is a hazing of the finish.If alcohol doesn't work,I move on to Purple Power cleaner.It's dirt cheap,washes Floquil and most other enamel and lacquer paints right off,and also is very kind to almost any plastic.It is NOT,however,kind to skin..Make sure you wear gloves,or you'll be a hurtin' cowboy after 3 minutes or so..If those two don't work,[they almost always do..]I throw them in the ultrasound with the Purple power.. |
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John Z
27 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2009 : 17:36:46
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| It does work. Would never have known. Thanks guys. |
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Ike the BN Freak
441 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2009 : 17:53:09
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| Anyone know if the 91% will just remove the lettering? I got 3 SP SD40T-2s and well, only need 1 or 2, so thinking of turning the other 2 into pool power for another RR. |
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peteski
USA
1648 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2009 : 18:49:10
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Even better for stripping is 99% Isopropyl alcohol (called Isopropanol). It is available in 1 gallon cans in my local True Value hardware store (in the paint thinners section). I believe that any hardware store can special order it for you if you ask for it. Even at 99% I never has it craze Polystyrene or ABS plastic. It is also good for degreasing loco parts.
I also don't like to use brake fluid but Floquil Easy Lift Off (ELO) stripper uses a chemical which is almost the same as brake fluid. It works well for certain types of paint.
Different paints need different strippers and there is no such thing as a truly universal stripper for plastic models.
I use about half a dozen of different strippers. That way I have a chemical for stripping pretty much any plastic compatible paint that is out there. |
Peteski |
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Lou D
USA
3416 Posts |
Posted - 11/07/2009 : 01:17:13
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quote:
Originally posted by Ike the BN Freak
Anyone know if the 91% will just remove the lettering? I got 3 SP SD40T-2s and well, only need 1 or 2, so thinking of turning the other 2 into pool power for another RR.
Ike,I've never seen lettering really come off first with alcohol.Sure there are guys that have better info on how to get lettering off,though..I usually just repaint stuff.. |
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GP38-2freak
Germany
284 Posts |
Posted - 11/07/2009 : 05:46:48
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| I had some great results removing lettering when I used a dry toothpick with a small drop of microscales Dio-Sol rubbing over the unwanted lettering. |
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ram53
Canada
34 Posts |
Posted - 11/07/2009 : 12:20:37
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Most professional painters (or so I have been told) do not use chemical stripping. They use microblasting techniques into a closed cabinet for abrasive recovery/reuse. Well, I'm no pro and can't afford that kind of setup, but I did recently buy a cheap Badger microsandblasting kit and I must say that for under $50, I have forever solved any worries about removing paint and finishes. Instead of the expensive abrasive alumina powder (sand) (which BTW does not harm plastic at all with proper use), I use ordinary baking soda, a technique called soda blasting, which works quite well and is very inexpensive and not harmful to you or the environment. It's like a cheap airbrush that you connect to a jar of baking soda and your compressor. I work outside with a dust mask and spray into a large cardboard box with the open top lying on it's side, and about 2/3 of the opening blocked off by a piece of plywood. I get about 80% recovery of the baking soda that way. Anything can be quickly stripped. You never have to worry about whether you can strip something, so you can buy any factory painted model and quickly turn it into an undec. One additional advantage is that the powder does have a microsopic scouring
action that takes the sheen off engineering plastic, so you can paint your handrails and trucks without thick blobby paint and with good adhesion. I think this is a great alternative to chemical paint stripping, it always works, never harms your model and it is also environmentally harmless, although a little dusty. Once you get good, you can remove just decals or factory painted graphics and lettering with very little harm to the underlying paint. I think the alumina powder (very fine sand) works faster but is expensive and harmful to inhale. The only thing that this technique will have you tearing your hair out is Squadron putty. It comes off so fast it's gone before you notice. But why would you be blasting an undec model with putty in the first place? You've noticed something awry after painting and need to go back and correct it. Putting some primer over the putty will prevent damage. Worth a try for the price of a cheap engine, if you already have a compressor and tank--you need 40-60 psi. |
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Roger Perkins
USA
2996 Posts |
Posted - 11/14/2009 : 09:58:19
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Very interesting! I am trying to strip paint from an Atlas smoothside passenger car from Rivarrosi. Used Chameleon which I had for sometime; it was like jello not fully set. Added isopropyl alcohol to it.
Did a poor job on the Scalecoat I had applied. |
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peteski
USA
1648 Posts |
Posted - 11/14/2009 : 13:50:11
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quote:
Originally posted by Roger Perkins
Very interesting! I am trying to strip paint from an Atlas smoothside passenger car from Rivarrosi. Used Chameleon which I had for sometime; it was like jello not fully set. Added isopropyl alcohol to it.
Did a poor job on the Scalecoat I had applied.
Roger,
there is another current thread on paint removal techniques. See http://forum.atlasrr.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=56807
If you look in the archives you should find some more related threads. This is a more or less regular topic here.
As I mentioned on the other thread, there are many types of paints and many different strippers. BTW, there is Scalecoat Wash Away Paint remover. I suspect that it'll remove Scalecoat paints... [:-eyebrows] |
Peteski |
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Lou D
USA
3416 Posts |
Posted - 11/14/2009 : 16:04:41
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quote:
Originally posted by Roger Perkins
Very interesting! I am trying to strip paint from an Atlas smoothside passenger car from Rivarrosi. Used Chameleon which I had for sometime; it was like jello not fully set. Added isopropyl alcohol to it.
Did a poor job on the Scalecoat I had applied.
Roger,the Purple Power I suggested before costs around 5-7 bucks a GALLON,and will remove Floquil,Scalecoat,and ACCU-paint.It also removes pretty much any other enamel or lacquer type model paint.[Keep hands out,it also removes skin..]It doesn't work well on new locos[water based paint?..]For them I use alcohol.Some old Rivarossi stuff for some reason won't strip with either,if I was desperate I'd use Brake fluid or denatured alcohol,but it does come off for me in my ultrasonic cleaner with Purple Power in it.. |
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Stripping an Intermountain Shell
