how to strip poly?

[alderbody]

i intend to strip the poly finish on an American Std Strat.

although i'm aware of a few methods, i'd like to see some opinions.

the neck is way easier, but the body seems tricky.

since it is a multi-piece body, extreme heating could be dangerous.


anyway, let's see what you got... :)

[Pedro58]

Go to an auto parts store and buy the "aircraft" remover or some name like that. It will take a couple of applications to get it all off. Follow the directions on the can. An alternative is to sand it off with a heavy grit paper (60-80 at first and then 100-120) and a power sander (NOT a belt sander-- too aggressive), but you will leave some hideous scratches to fill when you finally get all the paint off. my $.02!!

[Fuchsaudio]

If you want a wood finish (sunburst or stain etc) then strip and sand away.... If you just want a different color, you may be better of just roughing up the body and simply spraying over it. Some of those modern finishes are epoxy based and truly bullet-proof. I tried stripping one in a commercial stripping tank (at a furniture shop) and the guy was blown away. It came out like it was dipped in water.

[A440]

another method is wagner heat gun, and metal scraper.

I did it in my days at Ibanez. goodbye five alarm red and hello natural oil finish :)

be sure to wear goggles and a mask. basic idea is lightly heat up an area of the poly and scrape as you go. try not to get too close and burn the body, you're just heating up the paint to soften it up. once you get the hang of it, the layers come off easily.

if you screw up and burn the wood, no problem. you can sand out your mistakes ;)

[alderbody]

Originally posted by Fuchsaudio
If you want a wood finish (sunburst or stain etc) then strip and sand away.... If you just want a different color, you may be better of just roughing up the body and simply spraying over it.

i just want to get rid of the poly and apply a nitro finish.

the original color is black and i think i'll stick to that with the nitro "version"...

since it is definately a multi-piece, i wouldn't go for a sunburst or stain.

thanks anyway :)

[alderbody]

Originally posted by Pedro58
Go to an auto parts store and buy the "aircraft" remover or some name like that.

i'm afraid this product is not available in EU, but there should be something similar to that.

the rough sandpaper seems like a good way to go, but the potential "scars" on the body really frighten me.

i want it to have as less coats of sealers, paint, clears, etc as possible...

thanks :)

[alderbody]

Originally posted by A440
another method is wagner heat gun, and metal scraper.


yes, i knew about that but, as i mentioned above, it's kinda dangerous to do this on multi-piece bodies, isn't it?

i mean, excessive heat could make the pieces split...

but what could go wrong when you do it with caution?...



thanks anyway :)

[alderbody]

Originally posted by Suhr
Buy a new body
A lot less hassle, a heat gun will split the glue joints
Sanding with a dyna braide will take a while even if you are experienced
I hope you dont think Lacquer will make it sound any better cause you would be chasing your tail

yes, i know it's something like chasing my tail, but this was my first strat and i thought about making it a bit better.
[i don't expect it to become a '54, though... :)]

there's no need to buy a new body. This is not my main guitar any more.

i thought about installing a vintage style bridge and get rid of the annoying* two pivot one. (*= personal taste and opinion)
(it's more because i want to get a Callaham bridge assembly for my main strat, and put the old one to the Std....)

<yes, i know about the different string spacing, but the nut on the neck was slotted for a vintage bridge, so it won't be a prob.>


supposedly i leave the body as is, how about the neck_ which is much easier. Wouldn't it "deliver" if i nitroed it? (or just oil?)

[908SSP]

Originally posted by Suhr
Buy a new body
A lot less hassle, a heat gun will split the glue joints
Sanding with a dyna braide will take a while even if you are experienced
I hope you dont think Lacquer will make it sound any better cause you would be chasing your tail

That is what I was going to say but nobody would believe me.:(

You aren't going to hear any difference your wasting your time if thats is what you hope.:rolleyes:

[Fuchsaudio]

Originally posted by Suhr
Buy a new body
A lot less hassle, a heat gun will split the glue joints
Sanding with a dyna braide will take a while even if you are experienced
I hope you dont think Lacquer will make it sound any better cause you would be chasing your tail

You all beat me to making the same post John. I doubt he'll gain anything by changing the finish to nitro either.

[alderbody]

Originally posted by Fuchsaudio
I doubt he'll gain anything by changing the finish to nitro either.


have you tried something like that before fuchsaudio?

i bet John Suhr must have done it...


btw, this thread is about how to strip off a poly finish... :)

[alderbody]

John Suhr's opinion is probably right and i agree with him (99%).

besides, he's an expert on these.

but what i don't agree with, is blindly following the expert's opinions...

no offence intended :)

[GuitarNorton]

I'd try getting her good and drunk first:D

[Fuchsaudio]

Originally posted by alderbody
have you tried something like that before fuchsaudio?

i bet John Suhr must have done it...


btw, this thread is about how to strip off a poly finish... :)

I've refinished and sprayed my share of guitars, both solid and hollow body, new builds and refinishes. Although I don't manufacture nor refinish instruments for a career: In my personal experience and IMHO, I've never heard the change in finish make a significant (if any) impact on the tone of a solid body Fender style guitat.

If you don't believe me ask John Suhr....lol ;)

[Paul Secondino]

TO be honest, I have not personally sanded a guitar body yet. However, I always imagined that sanding something like a fender strat, Ibanez RG, and other common poly'ed guitars isn't a big deal.

THe majority of the guitar should sand fairly easily. In fact, a friend of mine sanded a Ibanez (Desert Yellow) to bare wood mainly with a detail sander. The majority of the body is close to flat and sands easily.However, I believe that with any guitars, contours and curves are always a hassle.

Sanding too hard on contours and curves will obviously trash them.So you'd have to be veyr careful in those areas and be prepared to do some hand sanding.

I'm going to sand down a beater Ibanez that I have this summer just for the hell of it and then refinish it.I anticipate that it will be easy to sand but certainly wont sound any better if and when I do it :AOK

[Riscchip]

My father recently stripped and refinished a strat of mine in nitro. He used a semi-paste spripping product by Savogran, I believe. When I asked him what he used he went on and on about how dangerous and toxic this stuff is. Apparently you should only use it outdoors in a large area with breathing gear and "chemical proof" (not rubber) gloves. Sounds scary, I dunno if I'd go that route, but thought the info might be of interest. He also pointed out that it may well not work on some poly finishes which are all but permanent.

And even though you don't care, I'm gonna say this anyway: the guitar sounds absolutely not one bit different with the nitro finish (looks nicer, though).

Good luck, please be safe whatever you do!

[alderbody]

Originally posted by Suhr
Yup it has been my experience it is how thick the paint is and how hard it is, too hard is no good and too soft is terrible. Lacquer is soft unless it drys for 10 years, then it still gets soft whenever it gets hot, I'm sure some of you have noticed the newer lacquer feels sticky and takes guitar case imprints if it gets too hot?

IF you want to change the tone of a guitar, I would look to the bridge and pickups. BTW The nut width of nut slot spacing has very little to do with the issue of the strings falling off the neck.

John, i agree with you and i'm well aware of those issues about poly and nitro.

but i wanted to do it just for the fun of it, and was looking for an "as-painless-as-possible" method to strip the poly off, because i know it's hard...

since the trouble is way more than the pleasure, the project is off and i'll stick to the bridge replacement. (the electronics are OK, though_replaced in the past)

now about the nut thing, i know it's not exactly a matter of slot spacing. But i forgot to mention that this neck has spent some time fitted on a body with a vintage bridge and it was modified
to eliminate this issue.


so here's where the story ends... :)

[alderbody]

Originally posted by Fuchsaudio
If you don't believe me ask John Suhr....lol ;)

hey man, ok, i believe you... ;)

if you read my reply to Suhr you'll understand. I was just looking for an easier way to do it, because in the past i had a really hard time with such stuff.

well it seems like we are all aware of these issues with more or less experience, but the damn "nitro vs poly" issue is so easy to start a controversy!...

i could 'rename' it, though...

"tradition vs easier production" could be one side of the story.

definately, there are others, too... :D

[Ian Anderson]

The term Poly is vague isn't it? Polyester resin or Polyurethane? Resin does not like to be stripped. I am not sure if aircraft stripper works on it, I know the Jasco gel stripper does not.

If you want to strip it try Jasco gel stripper available at the hardware store. If that doesn't touch it, get out the grinder! ;)


Lacquer is a great finish if you know how to do it, have the right materials, and are in the right environment. Unfortunatly that weeds out 95% of the guys. If you don't meet the above criteria, I imagine you would get what John mentioned.

[alderbody]

Originally posted by Ian Anderson
Lacquer is a great finish if you know how to do it, have the right materials, and are in the right environment. Unfortunatly that weeds out 95% of the guys. If you don't meet the above criteria, I imagine you would get what John mentioned.

exactly! ;)

[2x6L6]

Here's an interesting link addresing the question a bit... http://www.roryon.com/harrystrat208.html

[Stike]

Hey! Where are all the Nitro. Nazi's on this one? I wanted to kick back with some good reading:p .

[Riscchip]

Originally posted by Stike
Hey! Where are all the Nitro. Nazi's on this one? I wanted to kick back with some good reading:p .

Heh. If I was a Nitro-Nazi, I wouldn't want to face The Suhr in single combat. :D

[rocktuna]

This may be a little out there but a friend of mine who does bikes is going to do my 83 Strat and he said he was going to sandblast the old finish off with Walnut shell the stuff they remove paint from plastic parts on bikes. Costs about $15.00 to get it done

[Stike]

Might dent it up worst case butm you could probably sand that out.

[jaimo]

This thread is interesting for me because I'm putting together a strat with no finish. Bare wood. Do I have to seal it? Is a finish of some kind really necessary?
One of the best Les Pauls I've ever played had absolutely no finish. Not saying that was the reason. Just saying bare wood didn't kill the mojo of that guitar at all.

Sorry for the derail. Had to get this in.

[AJ Love]

Thin Polyurethane breaths just like Lacquer, it isnt the paint it is how thick it is.

Speaking solely from the perspective of a guitarist and not a luthier, I respectfully disagree. Sure, thin Poly is better than very thick Nitro. But with both equally thin, Nitro seems to be (in my experience) superior sonically

[Scott Lentz]

There are two poly's, polyurethane and polyester resin, one strips, the other you have to grind off. If you have polyester resin take John's advice and get a new body, chances are the other body will be a 2 piece and sound better anyway!

[Denyle_Guitars]

I'd try getting her good and drunk first:D

I thought you were going to say "Give her a cracker."

[alanbass1]

Speaking solely from the perspective of a guitarist and not a luthier, I respectfully disagree. Sure, thin Poly is better than very thick Nitro. But with both equally thin, Nitro seems to be (in my experience) superior sonically

Have you thought about rubbing the current finish to make it thinner which would help to gloss the whole guitar to a new like finish as well?

[Jon Silberman]

This is all my opinion of course however I was involved in a lot of paint R&D at Fender and I have personally sprayed over 4,000 guitars.

There are opinions and there are opinions. This background, to be frank, makes me pay closer attention to this opinion than most.

[Srini]

You are better off buying a new body
You wont hear any tone dfference the Multi piece body far out weighs the difference of finish, kind like putting a spoiler on a Honda Civic.

Heat guns and strippers will loosen the multiple glue joints you have on the body, I highly advise not screwing with it:AOK

Thin Polyurethane breaths just like Lacquer, it isnt the paint it is how thick it is. I have seen hot pot lacquer finishes 3 times thicker than what I put on

Just out of curiosity, how would you compare a one-piece tung oil finished body with a multi-piece body with a poly, Suhr Standard-like finish?

Srini

[Srini]

Talk about soft and gummy
I think oiling is the quickest way to deaden something. You are soaking it with soft gummy oil. I would rather leave the body raw.:RoCkIn
Except maybe for Koa, it can still hold it's tone even when oiled

We dont do Multi piece BTW, just 2 piece

Yikes! I guess its too late for my Warmoth now! One-piece swamp ash with a gazillion coats of tung oil......but its 13 years old, and irreplaceable. I don't suppose there's anything I could, is there?

Srini

[AJ Love]

I guess we agree to disagree, I have done hardcore tests many times.


Actually, now that I thought about it more, you are probably right. I can only go by my experience, which involves a few hundred guitars over the course of 20 years. You have vastly more experience in guitars than I do...

There were probably other factors in play which make me think the Nitro finished guitars have been sonically superior to the Poly guitars I've played...

Reading what I just wrote, it looks sarcastic, however I mean that sincerely and I appreciate your participation here...

[buckwild]

If you want a wood finish (sunburst or stain etc) then strip and sand away.... If you just want a different color, you may be better of just roughing up the body and simply spraying over it. Some of those modern finishes are epoxy based and truly bullet-proof. I tried stripping one in a commercial stripping tank (at a furniture shop) and the guy was blown away. It came out like it was dipped in water.

You couldn't be more correct. I tried to remove a poly finish off a Japanese Burny and had a hell of a time. None of the strippers worked. Finally I used a heat gun and popped the stuff off. That really worked just ok and finally I just sold the thing as is on ebay as a project. Best of luck stripping Poly. I'd rough it up hit it with some shelacc and paint right over it.

[paintguy]

aircraft paint remover and lots of sanding!!!!!:D

I've done it quite a few times. Big job, lots of elbow grease and lots of time. Sometimes you just have to do what you have to do. When people send me their guitars to paint, I don't have the luxury of changing the body.;)

Typical to spend 3 hours+ on a bolt-on body and I would like to think I know what I'm doing. I say I would like to think.:D