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Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 7:50 am
by robdebie
Last week I wanted to strip a ~35 year old Tamiya M23, and I found a new (?) way to do that. First I tried sodium hydroxide (NaOH) oven cleaner / drain opener, my classic method, that worked well but slow. I tried my ultrasonic bath, but that had hardly any effect. Out of curiosity I tried the combination too, with the sodium hydroxide in a separate container suspended in the ultrasonic cleaner. And that worked very well: all paint and decals were removed in 10-20 minutes. Interestingly all glue joints also broke down during the paint stripping, a unexpected but nice benefit.

Rob

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Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 8:29 am
by jaykay
Interesting!
I don't have old kits to disassemble, but i didn't know that ovencleaner is/contains NaOH.
I have a canister full of that stuff from photo etching.
Might try that on some Hotwheels :-)

Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 11:43 am
by flashman
Great tip. Thanks much for sharing it, Rob!

Cameron

Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 12:38 pm
by MoFo
Any idea what the adhesive was? I wonder if that played a role in the breakdown?

Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 12:45 pm
by robdebie
MoFo wrote:Any idea what the adhesive was? I wonder if that played a role in the breakdown?
I only used tube glue in those days, I'm sure of that. And quite a lot of it too :D The exact brand is lost in the fog of time.

I wonder whether my current CA-gluing technique would survive the treatment any better. Time for another experiment!

Rob

Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 3:09 pm
by Noddy
robdebie wrote:I only used tube glue in those days, I'm sure of that. And quite a lot of it too :D The exact brand is lost in the fog of time.

I wonder whether my current CA-gluing technique would survive the treatment any better. Time for another experiment!

Rob
35 years ago I'm guessing it was the safety stuff that was intended to prevent people from getting high by inhaling the fumes and didn't stick worth a damn.

Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 3:24 pm
by robdebie
Noddy wrote:35 years ago I'm guessing it was the safety stuff that was intended to prevent people from getting high by inhaling the fumes and didn't stick worth a damn.
Nope, I used the old-fashioned strong solvent-type plastic glue. I think the non-sniffable replacement was only available in the US, at least I never saw it in the Netherlands. The glue joints were still fairly good after ~35 years, no complaints about that. Therefore I was pleasently surprised that the NaOH-ultrasonic combination broke all the joints.

Rob

Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 3:34 pm
by JamesB
Great find, but I am nt celebrating I must say, in fact I am deceived:
I hoped the discovery included things at my reach! :lol: :lol: yes I have NaOH, but NO ultrasonic cleaner!! :cry: :lol: :lol:
Serius, it makes sense, as somoetimes Nah needs some hard brushing. Ultra sonic seeems to make a similar effect.
Great find!! :D

Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 4:02 pm
by Tyrone
I had to strip a Tamiya F60 the other day, 2k clear wasnt getting touched by isopropyl or oven cleaner, so I just sprayed another layer of paint over the top, as that is hot enough to burn through anything set solid. Then when still wet, oven cleaner the life out of it, the paint just falls off instantly, even the primer and sealer.

Re: Paint stripping discovery?

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 4:06 pm
by M.Chriss
Could you post a photo of how you suspended it in the hydrosonic cleaner? I have the same kit I want to strip. I found 2 lbs of sodium hydroxide on amazon for $13.