329 replies to this topic

[BIGTRUCK]

Dawn Power Dissolver is another option , it smells pleasant , found in most dish soap aisles and you can share it with who ever does dishes [I'm not saying wife ] LOL..

[Robert Myers]

I use Strip A Kit. You brush it on and let it sit for about 30 minutes, give it a light brushing with a tooth brush and rinse off. I strip and restore a lot of older kits. Some have two or three layers of brush paint. This stuff works every time and has never damaged the plastic. It is thick so you can spot strip small areas and repaint your mistakes.

I am not a shill for the company! This stuff is just plain good. You can get it from Hanger 3, POB 361 Arlee MT 59821-0361

[walt francis]

I use nothing more then Easy-off oven cleaner in a tupperware container This one day

[m408]

I've got a couple of bodies that I want to re-paint. I have been using "Scalecoat II wash away" as a paint remover. Not very effective and pretty pricey, $9.95 for one pint, which hardly covers a body. Any recommendations for something that will zap the paint without zapping the plastic?

[Clay]

I've got a couple of bodies that I want to re-paint. I have been using "Scalecoat II wash away" as a paint remover. Not very effective and pretty pricey, $9.95 for one pint, which hardly covers a body. Any recommendations for something that will zap the paint without zapping the plastic?

Go to WalMart and look for a purple gallon jug in the automotive section, It reads Super Clean. Wear gloves!!!!!! It does not warp the plastic, I have a body in mine thats been in there for over a month,( I just dont feel like putting the gloves on and scrubbing it.)

What you do is take an old container, I have an old display case turned upside down, and fill it up enought to submerse the body, and let it set overnight or however long you want, anf then take it a give it a rub down with an old toothbrush, or your wife's if there is one handy, you know those electric tooth brushes come in handy , Just kidding Ani. Make sure you wash the body with dish soap to get all the chemicals off. It also works good for stripping chrome and cleaning out spray can nozzles,

Hope this helps.

Edited by jones_clayton, 16 March 2008 - 04:30 PM.

[camaroman]

Clayton is Right!!!
Super Clean is the way to go, but be careful ...it will remove your fingerprints if you expose your hands too long...
I bought a Rubbermaid container with a rubber seal. I have been using the same S/C for around two years now.
Actually I use two containers of the stuff, one for the first soak(heavy removal) and the second for the stubborn stuff.
I will strain the first soak S/C through a paint strainer every now and then to remove some of the gunk.

[roadhawg]

Clayton is Right!!!
Super Clean is the way to go, but be careful ...it will remove your fingerprints if you expose your hands too long...
I bought a Rubbermaid container with a rubber seal. I have been using the same S/C for around two years now.
Actually I use two containers of the stuff, one for the first soak(heavy removal) and the second for the stubborn stuff.
I will strain the first soak S/C through a paint strainer every now and then to remove some of the gunk.

I've been using Westley's Bleche-Wite (yes, that's spelled correctly lol) for a long time for plastic and it works great. I just used it on a resin body and it worked for that too. You can find it in auto parts stores and I would imagine WalMart/Kmart too.
Like Camaroman said, just chunk it in a Rubbermaid container for awhile. Good luck.

[Brendan]

I've got a couple of bodies that I want to re-paint. I have been using "Scalecoat II wash away" as a paint remover. Not very effective and pretty pricey, $9.95 for one pint, which hardly covers a body. Any recommendations for something that will zap the paint without zapping the plastic?

What paint are you using? I use Scalecoat II all the time and I've been able to strip everything with it except for vinyl or latex paint. Also are you straining the Scalecoat after you use it? It starts losing its power after about the tenth use of it. But what I do is put the model kit in a plastic bag and pour a quarter of a cup of the stripper in and shake it. Then put the bag into another bag just in case it leaks and let it sit for about 15 minutes. Then take a toothbrush to it.

[m408]

What paint are you using? I use Scalecoat II all the time and I've been able to strip everything with it except for vinyl or latex paint. Also are you straining the Scalecoat after you use it? It starts losing its power after about the tenth use of it. But what I do is put the model kit in a plastic bag and pour a quarter of a cup of the stripper in and shake it. Then put the bag into another bag just in case it leaks and let it sit for about 15 minutes. Then take a toothbrush to it.

First couple of bodies were painted with model paints, Testers, Tamiya, etc... Strained after each use. Worked very well for the first few bodies. The paint that I'm having the problem with is Dupli-Color. primer, paint, and clear. I have just been soaking the bodies in a tuperware container for about 15 minutes.

[Clay]

First couple of bodies were painted with model paints, Testers, Tamiya, etc... Strained after each use. Worked very well for the first few bodies. The paint that I'm having the problem with is Dupli-Color. primer, paint, and clear. I have just been soaking the bodies in a tuperware container for about 15 minutes.

Super Clean will work wonders on any paint. Its about $6 for a 5 gallon jug

[roadhawg]

First couple of bodies were painted with model paints, Testers, Tamiya, etc... Strained after each use. Worked very well for the first few bodies. The paint that I'm having the problem with is Dupli-Color. primer, paint, and clear. I have just been soaking the bodies in a tuperware container for about 15 minutes.

15 minutes? The resin body I just stripped took 4 days! And that included taking it out and scrubbing it every 6-10 hours or so.

[roadhawg]

Super Clean will work wonders on any paint. Its about $6 for a 5 gallon jug

Thats probably $6 for a ONE gallon jug! You can't get 5 gallons of ANYTHING for 6 bucks anymore! LOL!

[Brendan]

First couple of bodies were painted with model paints, Testers, Tamiya, etc... Strained after each use. Worked very well for the first few bodies. The paint that I'm having the problem with is Dupli-Color. primer, paint, and clear. I have just been soaking the bodies in a tuperware container for about 15 minutes.

That's kind of odd. I use Dupli-Color all the time and I've never had a problem with it being stripped. Sometime takes a little longer but it comes off in the end. Might have gotten a bad batch of Scalecoat. I know they have had problems in the past with it being diluted.

[Brendan]

15 minutes? The resin body I just stripped took 4 days! And that included taking it out and scrubbing it every 6-10 hours or so.

Scalecoat II is great stuff. It acts quickly and doesn't leave on an oily residue. All you need to do after you strip it is to wash it, let it dry, and it's ready to paint. It will strip putty and body filler off. That's the only downside. With most paints it does take about 15 minutes. The longest I've ever had to wait was an hour because I had several layers of paint. It is worth the money, usually around $10 a bottle. It's non-toxic and after it's gone through its usefulness, you can flush it down the toilet.

[fatherdevine]

I know most of the guys here have a passion for the purple stuff, but I have used brake fluid for the last five years or so. It will not warp the body as I have left many of my bodies in the dunk for months at a time with no problems. Now that I think about it, everything that I have started has found its way into the fluid. Even though I'm using brake fluid I can't seem to stop putting them in the bucket.

[roadhawg]

I know most of the guys here have a passion for the purple stuff, but I have used brake fluid for the last five years or so. It will not warp the body as I have left many of my bodies in the dunk for months at a time with no problems. Now that I think about it, everything that I have started has found its way into the fluid. Even though I'm using brake fluid I can't seem to stop putting them in the bucket.

LOL! They probably have a support group for that somewhere! I've used brake fluid in the past on plastic and it worked ok, but I was told not to use it when stripping resin as it will turn the resin to mush.

[roncomatic]

I agree that a lot of the guys here seem to have a purple passion but I've had really good luck with a product made for cleaning pots and pans. I'm talking about Dawn Power Dissolver. It removes chrome. It removes paint. Takes a few hours. Stuff rinses off with plain old tap water. I just put the parts in a plastic baggy and then spray in enough Dawn Power Dissolver to coat everything. Let things set up for a few hours and then rinse.

I admit that I haven't tried Purple Power or break fluid for removing paint from models. Ditto for Easy Off Oven Cleaner and some of the other products that have been mentioned in other posts on this topic. Some or all of them may do a fantastic job but I used a lot of really harsh automotive chemicals for years working on 1:1 cars. In my book anything that gets me away from them is worth a try. And, while it's probably a good idea wear rubber gloves while working with any chemical of this type... including Dawn Power Dissolver, my feeling is that Dawn is possibly less harmful than most automotive chemicals. The smell is much less offensive as well.

ron

[JoshaWaRX]

I've used DOT-3 with great success. At wally world you can get their super-tech brand pretty cheap and it works very well. It doesn't give off too strong of a smell but I would still recommend using in a ventilated area. Also if you go the brake fluid route, wear plastic gloves, or else it will dry your skin out something fierce.

[m408]

15 minutes? The resin body I just stripped took 4 days! And that included taking it out and scrubbing it every 6-10 hours or so.

Well, so much for "truth in advertising". Manufacture recommended soak time is 20 minutes.