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Paint Removal MRT is 100% eco friendly with little or no heating of chemicals. Simply soak the part and pressure wash the part clean. Paint Removal Choices Old School ref. search on Google paint removal returned the following. How do you remove old paint, primers, and fillers? Several methods include sandblasting, media blasting, chemical removers (hot tanks), hand stripping, power sanding, and grinding. Sandblasting is a quick, effective, and economical way to strip a painted metal surface. Sandblasted metal also provides an excellent surface for adherence of primers and fillers.
In my opinion, sandblasting is unacceptable when a car is still assembled because sand and dust migrate to every part of the car, getting into bearings and mechanical components as well as every nook and cranny. Years later you'll see sand fall out of hidden crevices. Sand grit quickly destroys machined surfaces such as bearings and bushings. Even if the parts are masked and sealed, grit will get in. I learned this the hard way—early in my career I ruined a VW convertible using this method. Sandblasting is good for removing rust and paint from heavy metal parts such as castings and housings. It works great on things like bumper brackets or a totally stripped chassis. Due to the possibility of warpage, it should never be used on aluminum. Media Blasting
The main drawback is that this process doesn't remove rust. The media isn't hard enough to dry out rust. Several years ago I worked on the first production 300SL Roadster. For this special car, we needed the least destructive method to remove its paint. The media did an excellent job without affecting the metal underneath. Still, surface rust in the lower panels and wheel housings had to be removed with a small grinder and wire brushes - very time consuming. Media blasting is also not very good at removing plastic body fillers, which are best removed by a grinder. Media blasting is somewhat more expensive than sandblasting due to the higher cost of the media. Chemical Removal
A caustic residue, trapped in nooks and crannies not thoroughly flushed with clean water, will later cause failure of paint in affected areas. Hand Stripping
Power Sanding
Grinding is best for removing small areas of paint that haven't responded to other methods. Use care when grinding near chrome or glass; a grinder throws off sharp hot particles at high speeds that can pit unprotected areas.
Metal Conditioning
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MRT's Immersion process
Removes Rust, Paint, Fillers & Sealers
Advantages of MRT’s process over traditional methods
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Still,
sandblasting has significant negative aspects. To avoid distorting
and stretching the metal, an operator must be thoroughly experienced
with sheet metal. I restored a 1955 300Sc that, in a previous shop,
had its hood sandblasted. It took me days to shrink the stretched
areas back to the correct contours. Another snag with sandblasting
is work hardening of the sheet metal surface. Sand grains hitting
sheet metal have the same effect as striking the panel with
thousands of tiny hammers, making the panel stiffer.
Removing
paint by media blasting is increasingly popular. It's similar to
sandblasting with an important exception. Instead of sand, it uses
another media—hard plastic crushed to the consistency of sand. The
same material used for common plastic buttons, it is hard enough to
remove paint and primers yet has no effect on the metal surface
beneath. I saw a demonstration on a die-cast metal part that had
been chrome-plated then partially painted. Although the chrome was
unprotected, the media blast removed the paint without damaging the
surface. With this method you'll still have dust everywhere on an
assembled car, but you won't have sand grit to damage mechanical
parts.
There
are several methods of chemical paint removal. Hot tank stripping,
or dipping, is an efficient way to strip bodies and parts. Dipping
involves immersing the body or part in a tank of hot caustic
solution. The body is submerged for several hours until paint and
undercoating have softened enough that they can be washed off with a
strong stream of water. The body is returned clean and de-rusted
(the caustic also attacks rust, effectively removing it), ready to
be washed with a metal conditioner and primed. The negative aspect
of this process is that it can't be used to strip aluminum. .
Another
option involving chemicals is hand stripping. A chemical paint
remover, bought in quart or gallon cans, is brushed in liquid paste
form onto a painted surface. The paste is allowed to work a few
minutes, then a scraper or putty knife is used to remove the
softened paint and undercoating. Several applications are usually
necessary to take off al1 the paint. Occasionally the bottom primer
coats seem liffle affected by the stripper and must be removed by
sanding or grinding. Hand stripping is a nasty business. The fumes
are noxious, and the chemicals can burn unprotected skin. Because it
removes paint without damaging the panel, hand stripping works well
on aluminum, but it is less advantageous where there is a lot of
paint or filler on the panel. The stripper is expensive and can
require numerous applications.
Our
final methods use sandpaper or grinding discs. A high-speed 7-in
body grinder with 16 or 24 grit grinding discs will quickly remove
paint and fillers. Unfortunately it removes metal, too. If an
operator isn't careful, deep scratches and gouges can occur.
Sometimes excess heat caused by friction can warp a panel. Never use
a grinder to strip aluminum panels.
Power
sanding is a paint removal method with few drawbacks. Dual action
(DA) sanders combine orbital and random motions, quickly grinding
away paint without the rough action and heat of a body grinder.
Relatively soft paint may gum or load up DA sandpaper quickly, but
stripping with DA is appropriate on any painted surface. It is only
limited by where the DA can reach with its round, flat disc.
Probably the cheapest and safest method if you attempt the stripping
yourself, it requires only a DA sander, minimal skill, and a large
compressor (five hp or more).
After
a surface has been completely stripped of paint, primer, and plastic
fillers, the next step is metal conditioning. On bare metal, rust
forms quickly. It is important to clean off this surface rust and be
sure the surface is chemically clean. To etch the surface for better
paint adhesion, use metal conditioner. Metal prep for steel, or
aluma prep for aluminum, is applied with a clean rag and immediately
rinsed off with cold water, then the surface is dried. The process
is the same for aluminum or steel. The metal should then be sprayed
with a light coat of primer to prevent rust. Improper use of metal
conditioner can cause paint failure later.