Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Pickups, Pots, Caps, Wiring

Moderators: Slowy, Capt. Black

User avatar
Bg
Site Admin
Posts: 43187
meble-kuchenne.warszawa.pl
Joined: Fri Sep 05, 2003 12:13 am
Location: Auckland
Has liked: 2254 times
Been liked: 3873 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Bg »

oh and that rosewood is damn hot! I've got a yearning for some walnut....
So, is that low alcohol or no alcohol at all? mmmm, no alcohol, do you want to try it? Noooooooooo.

User avatar
Hollowpoint
Ashton
Ashton
Posts: 263
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2006 5:52 pm
Location: Wellington
Has liked: 13 times
Been liked: 19 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Hollowpoint »

Molly wrote:
Hollowpoint wrote:Most things I've read online seems to recommend using a heat gun/scraper online, but if possible I'd prefer to use a stripper so I don't burn or dig into the body.

Anyone done it before and have any recommendations?

Thanks!
Stop. Will post some tips when I get home.

Awesome, thanks!

User avatar
Bg
Site Admin
Posts: 43187
Joined: Fri Sep 05, 2003 12:13 am
Location: Auckland
Has liked: 2254 times
Been liked: 3873 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Bg »

nah, get the grinder out :)
So, is that low alcohol or no alcohol at all? mmmm, no alcohol, do you want to try it? Noooooooooo.

User avatar
Molly
Vintage Post Junkie
Vintage Post Junkie
Posts: 24937
Joined: Sat Dec 21, 2013 12:17 pm
Has liked: 2482 times
Been liked: 2794 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Molly »

I'm definitely no expert but have done enough to know I wouldn't use paint stripper. At least not for the bulk of the job. It's so bloody messy.

I've removed poly finishes with nothing more than a hairdryer. Heat guns are OK too but don't overdo it. It'll just blister and lift. You can pierce the blisters and peel it like an orange; chasing the edge with the heat so it softens and comes away cleanly. I used a feeler gauge as it was flexible and didn't scratch the body. I ended up with a 'bag of chips' in the space of an hour once when I stripped a Malmsteen Strat. However, the filler between the joins came away too so that needed tending to before I could apply more paint. Wouldn't have expected a wee line of filler but this particular Strat was a total POS with three poorly matched pieces of random alder. No better than a cheap Chinese guitar truth be told. The heavy poly finish hid a multitude of sins.

At the other end I've stripped some Custom Shop guitars and found wood with such a nice grain it was a shame to put more paint over it.

Anyway, main thing was I didn't want you scraping away for hours unnecessarily when the job can be done really cleanly and quickly.

User avatar
Hollowpoint
Ashton
Ashton
Posts: 263
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2006 5:52 pm
Location: Wellington
Has liked: 13 times
Been liked: 19 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Hollowpoint »

Awesome, thanks! Now to find the guitar!

User avatar
Hollowpoint
Ashton
Ashton
Posts: 263
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2006 5:52 pm
Location: Wellington
Has liked: 13 times
Been liked: 19 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Hollowpoint »

Guitar found!

User avatar
Molly
Vintage Post Junkie
Vintage Post Junkie
Posts: 24937
Joined: Sat Dec 21, 2013 12:17 pm
Has liked: 2482 times
Been liked: 2794 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Molly »

Don't forget the 'Before' pics.

User avatar
alanp
Vintage Post Junkie
Vintage Post Junkie
Posts: 4637
Joined: Thu Dec 18, 2008 10:51 am
Location: Wanganui
Has liked: 4 times
Been liked: 11 times
Contact:

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by alanp »

http://stompage.juansolo.co.uk/bajage.html

A guy's account of stripping his Baja tele. Seems straightforward enough.
Capt. Black wrote:Call me if you're looking for the sound of a sows ear made from a silk purse with a side of hot bitches and alcohol

User avatar
Hollowpoint
Ashton
Ashton
Posts: 263
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2006 5:52 pm
Location: Wellington
Has liked: 13 times
Been liked: 19 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Hollowpoint »

Thanks Alan, I hope it's that simple!

Here's the before pic:
Image

User avatar
Molly
Vintage Post Junkie
Vintage Post Junkie
Posts: 24937
Joined: Sat Dec 21, 2013 12:17 pm
Has liked: 2482 times
Been liked: 2794 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Molly »

Looks great as is.

Nice view by the way.

User avatar
Hollowpoint
Ashton
Ashton
Posts: 263
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2006 5:52 pm
Location: Wellington
Has liked: 13 times
Been liked: 19 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Hollowpoint »

Yeah it's not bad but it is quite a bit rougher than the photo makes it look. I'm tempted to keep it as is but I did buy it specifically for this project... hmmmmm. Yeah I can never get sick of that view!

User avatar
Hollowpoint
Ashton
Ashton
Posts: 263
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2006 5:52 pm
Location: Wellington
Has liked: 13 times
Been liked: 19 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Hollowpoint »

Pretty close to being done!

Image

User avatar
AiRdAd
Vintage Post Junkie
Vintage Post Junkie
Posts: 7691
Joined: Sat Jul 04, 2009 2:33 pm
Has liked: 57 times
Been liked: 696 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by AiRdAd »

That looks badass!!!! well done!!!
Slowy wrote: To Danny, everyone is either a supplier, customer or a courier.

User avatar
Molly
Vintage Post Junkie
Vintage Post Junkie
Posts: 24937
Joined: Sat Dec 21, 2013 12:17 pm
Has liked: 2482 times
Been liked: 2794 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Molly »

Looks great. Nice job.

I have a similar task to perform on my Tele. The black poly already has a large chip in it and you can see the paint is really thick. It's the lightest of my guitars and I'm hopeful that by the time I've got that crappy paint off and maybe given it a thin nitro refin it'll be the better for it. Suspect I won't actually be able to tell the difference tonally speaking...

User avatar
Hollowpoint
Ashton
Ashton
Posts: 263
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2006 5:52 pm
Location: Wellington
Has liked: 13 times
Been liked: 19 times

Re: Anyone removed a poly finish before?

Post by Hollowpoint »

Thanks guys! Now I just have to fill some of the old pickguard screw holes (new ones don't quite line up) and find somewhere that can print waterslide decals in white!

Good luck with yours Molly! Getting my finish off turned out to be a bit of a nightmare. I tried a hair dryer, a heat gun, and poly stripper and really didn't get very far other that the very top coat of of the poly off with a heat gun and scraper. That still left a thick coat of poly that i went at with sandpaper for days on end.

Post Reply