strat bodies, best way to remove thick poly finish

[bolero]

hey I have a couple strat bodies I want to refin in nitro, what's the best way to get the thick poly finish off?

thx!

[HeeHaw]

Good luck. That's some hard stuff.

[Mike9]

If they are in good shape the best thing to do is sell them and get some bodies and go from scratch. Really - it's labor intensive and the results are not always worth the effort. If you want a fresh color you can finish over the poly with nitro.

[gerryguitar]

heat gun.. I did this a few weeks ago and is the only way.. it will take some time and you should be carefull.. wear protection.

[defaultoprime]

Aircraft Stripper is probably the best choice... Permatex Gasket Remover in a spray can will also be effective... but for the love of god, be careful what you get it on...

[greuvin]

Sell them and buy new ones either with no finish and apply your nitro or buy new already finished in nitro. Removing poly is absolute misery. Don't ask me how i know.

[Robert1950]

[brentrocks]

Originally Posted by gerryguitar

I did this a few weeks ago and is the only way.. it will take some time and you should be carefull.. wear protection.

ARE WE STILL TALKING ABOUT GUITARS?

[edward]

Long thread on this not too long ago ...search for "stripping poly" or something to that effect in the archives.

Minor diversion, but still a couple of relevant questions:
- I just got my heat gun yesterday (to strip my MIM body). Do you scrape with a plastic scraper?

- And where do you start ...how/where do you make your FIRST scrape? I can only guess that once the process starts, the finish will start coming off (kind of like wall paper, perhaps?). But how do I begin with that first "break" in the finish? Thanks!!

Edward

[pickaguitar]

Someone could make a lot of money if they'd come up with a quick way to remove a poly finish...

[gkoelling]

I'll never understand why some are so determined to strip poly.

Yes, it's fun to work on your guitar but that stuff is ridiculous.

Do yourself a huge favor and buy a new body to work on.

[Structo]

Get a heat gun and a 2 inch putty knife.
Chemicals are too harsh and dangerous.
I've seen some polyester finishes that even aircraft stripper wouldn't touch.

If you are determined to strip the poly you will need:
Heat gun
2 " putty knife
Goggles
Gloves
And probably a respirator since that crap is toxic.

The goggles are for when this stuff pops off the body like shrapnel
The gloves are obvious.

What you do is heat an area until it starts to kind of bubble.
Then start working the putty knife under it and while keeping the gun ahead of the putty knife scraping up the poly.
Keep the gun moving to avoid scorching the wood.

The finish coat will come off easily this way.
The polyester undercoat or sealer is much tougher on some guitars.
So I would take the finish all off first then work on the sealer.

Unless you really love the guitar I would also recommend a new unfinished body.
A LOT LESS WORK!

A lot of the times you can spend a few hours stripping the poly off only to find a 9 piece body that is capped front and back with veneer.........

[stoob0t]

Heat gun is the only thing that's ever worked for me. I did it over a few days because i got so incredibly bored.

[edward]

Yeah, I hear you all on the "work" factor. If I had the discretionary dough, I'd just go get a body. But since I got this MIM for a song ($130 ) and she's in decent shape and plays great, I figured I'd make it a low-budget project/beater axe (but one I can still play out with). So whatever is under that gawd-aweful factory purple I'll live with. If it's truly, disturbingly ugly under there, then it will only be that much cooler

Edward

[Rockinrob86]

you could always use some of kim jong's nukes! Ive heard those work nicely.