Paint removal

[jjb62556]

Trying to remove the paint off the Atlas C Liner...Tried ELO and destroyed the shell..did not even touch the paint. Using 90% alcohol..no good so far. Any other ideas?  Jim

[craigolio1]

I’ve had good success using a Badger sandblaster for stubborn paint.

Craig

[Dirk Jan Blikkendaal]

I agree with Craig!
See also FB/North American Ho & N..... some time ago a story by Lou Bourdages on decal removing and my post (plus all replies) in RW/3D PRINTING - Air eraser to clean 3D prints..... terrific.
I also use car brake fluid to remove paint from plastic and brass models (for more than 30 years). So far never had a model destroyed.... 

[thomasjmdavis]

I've had very good luck with a cleaning product called Simple Green. In some cases the shell needs to soak for 24 hours. It does not remove everything, but it has removed most paint on Atlas-Rivarossi cars I have tried it on.   That said, some enamels of that era just don't come off- so sandblasting might be the only way to go- although the enamel paint might be tougher than the plastic shell, so be careful and use some masking if possible.

The downside is that Simple Green has a pretty strong smell- so rinse thoroughly and prime inside and out, or it will smell very "clean" for a very long time.

[CRL]

Wouldn’t the latent smell indicate there was residue remaining on the model? Could that inhibit the paint?

[jjb62556]

Used oven cleaner...it did the job..Thanks for the help...Jim

[peteski]

I also use car brake fluid to remove paint from plastic and brass models (for more than 30 years). So far never had a model destroyed....

DOT3 brake fluid and ELO contain very similar ingredients (glycols), so that  might be one example where brake fluid might have attacked that shell.

[thomasjmdavis]

Wouldn’t the latent smell indicate there was residue remaining on the model? Could that inhibit the paint?

Best answer I can give is "I don't know."  Maybe I have a sensitive nose, but virtually all paint removers leave a residual smell, according to my nose.  Whatever the case, after a thorough rinse, and I also generally give everything a last minute quick bath in 90% alcohol just in case of fingerprints, etc. I haven't had any "residue related" issues. 

The other thing I am always careful about is to not go direct from cleaning to paint- always let things set a couple days, other than the touch up cleaning with alcohol.  Have also learned to do let paint-even acrylic- dry a couple days before decaling and have found I have better results.  Plus it gives me an excuse to be lazy, and lets things pile up until I have enough things to do in whatever color so that it seems worthwhile to get out the airbrush.