BDVT69

Has anyone had luck with a particular brand of fiberglass paint stripper. The paint on my 69 vert is so oxidized that a razorblade will not work and sanding is too much hassle.

MEGALADON

Aircraft stripper, that what it's called, and works well. I used it on my
hood when I did the scoop, it works very welll. after you get the pait off, scrub the area you did with a scotchbrite pad and lots of lacour thinner. Got mine from autozone

GDaina

I used BIX, Black and White can, can be purchased at Home Depot. Stripped my 68, and a 66 with mutiple colors...works great.

BLACKHORSEVET

Was talking to a guy at the roadster show here.He has a mobile soda blaster buisness.He uses granulated baking soda.He does a lot of marine type stuff(fiberglass boats),and cars.Can strip without removing
trim etc.And says it won't harm the gel-coat.It's not good for removing rust.Sounded pretty good to me.

jake1

I agree, I would use a soda blaster, your fiberglass is very old and I would not chemical alter it. That sripper, even the best stuff, if it just gets in there alittle to far, it will come back though and wreck your paint. Play it safe.

GDaina

Huh? What are you talking about? Not to be rude, but there is no validity in your statements, other than the use of media blaster...as for stripper ruining the fiberglass..... ....use of Bix, as I mentioned above, and soap and water to wash the residue, no harm to the glass panels. Lack of neutrtalizing the stripper, not thoroughly washing and rinsing the panels will do the most damage to the new paint. Forget about the panels absorbing the stripper, or the stirpper making the panels soft, that is plain

FEDX

At the risk of being banned,I have to disagree on using chemical stripper.Use it at your own risk may be a better way of putting it,but I have seen where it has come back underneath a paint job on a forum members car.Apparently the guy who painted didnt get it all,(I was told by a knowledgable painter it can get into the pores of the fiberglass to bubble back out on a hot day),and inside of 6 months his new paint had small spots where something came up from underneath it.Maybe you can use it and never have a problem,but I've seen where it was.

djgrelli

Everyone has their own preference. I tried the chemical stripper on my hood when I proceeded to paint my 78 over 10 years ago. Didn't like the smell and mess so I block sanded the entire car. I painted it myself in my two car garage. As you can see by the pictures it is still holding up well. Sanding is a lot of work but it is worth it in the long run.

fast idle

i have also descided to go the block sanding route,it took 3 months to get the body where i wanted it for paint.I was also warned about getting the stripper down too deep as it could saturate any exposed fibers. not to say it "will" frig up, but who wants to find out after the car is painted.
I watched a car show last year where they were restoring a c-3,they has their body media blasted with walnut shells , apparently they are not hard enpough to do real damage like sand will.
flog me with a wet noodle at dawn , but that's the result of my research.

vettfixr

I've stripped my car twice using Capt'n Lee's Spray and Strip with no problems. the first time I removed about 4 paint jobs of various types paint. The second time i removed a 20 coat lacquer paint job that I applied. I had to restrip because cracks came back in the seams, there was no problem with the paint or it's adherence. If you follow good stripping and painting procedures you will have no problem with this stripper and it's neutralized with water so it's easy to clean up. Here's a link to my site that details the process.
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/vettfixr/page9.htm

I've heard a lot about blasting and razor blades and sanding and a lot of other mechanical means of removing paint. Just remember one thing. Fiberglass bodies especially the SMC panels are not the easiest to repair without problems down the line. Special products have to be used that match the expansion and contraction of the panels so you don't get cracks or shrinkage after you paint. Any damage to the panels caused by mechanical paint removal will have to be carefully repaired using the correct products. Chemical strippers used with plastic scrapers will do no damage to the fiberglass body and if they are neutralized correctly will not lift subsequent paint overcoats. One slip of a razor blade or a wrong pass of a sander or a blast nozzel held too long in one spot can ruin a panel and negate any time savings you have incurred. This is just my opinion and I've seen many paint jobs that started out with paint removal by mechanical means that turned out great. It's just something that I would not want to chance.

fast idle

I started with 280 grit aluminum oxide paper on a "GOOD" block and followed proper block sanding procedures and had no problem .I admit you must be carefull at the outside edges and such as not to ruin the "line ",It really helps also to "flatten" out the surface of each panel,sometimes better than the factory fiberglass molds.It's not hard to see the look of the paint layers and be able to tell you are getting deep.

GDaina

Voicing your opinin won't get you banned....what you saw is a perfect example what happens when you don't thoroughly clean the panels. Don't blame the stripper for that, blame yourself for not thoroughly removing all the residue. I've stipped three vettes, my 68 in 2000, and two 66's since 2001. I hang out in a Corvette resto shop, the guys buy C2's and chrome bumper C3's, do body off resto's and sell upon completion. Capt Lee chemical stripper is their choice of paint removal. It's expensive, and using any chemical stripper can be messy if you don't take proper steps and plan the stripping process. Proper use and panel cleanup will ensure of a trouble free paint job.

The stripping process is a matter of personal preference, wheather by use of chemicals, razor blade, sanding, or media blasting. With full confidence, I will continue to use chemical strippers to remove paint. Sometime in May-June, going to strip a 68 coupe...yup, the trusty chemical stripper, will use 2 gallons of stripper and lots of hot soapy hot water to clean each panel. Total time? 16-20 hours, total cost...under $40.00.

Want to see the results of a 68 stripped with chemicals? Click on the link in my sig.

I'm Batman

GDania, there is no link in your sig...or in your profile. I'd like to see the results of your stripping job on the '68, too...my '77 is getting closer and closer to needing a paint job.

MEGALADON

100%, its all in your prep work, if you do a sloppy job,
it will come back on you! when I am done stripping, I wipe my entire
item done with fast dri thinnner, TWICE.

If your gonna strip your car go ahead, nothing wrong with that,
just don't be sloppy with it. Take care and attention to the job,
and do little area's at a time.

DO NOT TRY TO DO THIS JOB IN A HURRY

LemansBlue68

Just make sure the chemical stripper you use says "safe for fiberglass" or something to that effect on the container. If it doesn't, move on to a brand that does. I had great results with Captain Lee's spray strip.
Brush it on, wait a few minutes, scrape with plastic bondo speader, and wipe with a wet rag. The stripper is nuetralized with water. Then clean off remaining residue with cheap lacquer thinner.

I saw a '63 project Corvette at Carlylse a few years ago that was for sale at a remarkably low (for the time) price. I walked up to it and the body was so soft you could literally push your fingernails into the glass. The perpetrator of that crime used a chemical stripper that was unsuitable for fiberglass. Many of the "Aircraft" type strippers say right on the can that they will attack fiberglass. so don't use them.

txeagle

I'm using the Cpt Lee stripper, and so far it has worked ok. I'ts just messy, but efficent.

GDaina

Yes there is....this one.... http://www.corvetteforum.net/c3/gdaina//vette.jpg

luerja

If you read most of the post about chemical strippers you will see “I have seen” or I “have heard” about the problems of chemical strippers. You have never read I was a dumb A$$ and didn’t neutralize the stripping compound because I was too impatient to follow directions. Save yourself a lot of money and try stripping solution. I do not recommend one over another but some neutralize with soap and water or lacquer thinner. In any case, take your time and use the stripping solution….If you ask any paint and body shop guys here they will say we use a chemical solution to strip paint.

John 65

I went with the Capt Lees method about 9 years ago and never had any problems with it coming back to ruin the paint. Would use it again.

LFZ

I used Aircraft Stripper many times on Fiberglass with no problems whatsoever..just make sure you wash it off with soap and water and paint thinner and get all of it off.. I tried the "made for Fiberglass" strippers, and all it did was smear paint around..a real PITA.