My 71 hood scoops have like 5 or 6 different coats of paint on them! Has anyone had any luck media blasting these parts? What type of media? Maybe a plastic bead at low pressure? I'm talking about the plastic scoops that the grills fit in. Or am I stuck sanding these things.
I would have to second the soda blasting, there is a place in Alton NH that does soda blasting , I have never used them but that is one option if you decide to try the soda blasting.
Easy Off Oven Cleaner will take off the paint. Spray them and put them in a plastic bag overnight this will soften the paint enough to take some layers off. You may have to respray a couple of times. This will not hurt the plastic.
If blasting, soda would be the only safe media IMO. Plastic media will change/damage the plastic substrate. I know plastic media will lightly pit an aluminum surface so I'm sure it would be worse on plastic. I too have used Easy-Off to remove paint and undercoating from other plastic, rubber and fiberglass parts but these were parts I've never had to paint. Not sure if it could permeate the plastic and cause an issue if painting but maybe Daves69 can report back on that.
They sell plastic paint removers which I have used with success. I just spray it on lightly then work it. I never soak it.... I just get soem scotch brite pads and lightly coat the part then use the scotch brite pads to remove the paint. Easy Off Oven cleaner only works on the "rattle can" paints, not professional automotive finishes. http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/klean-strip-paint-remover-plastic-eup367-p-12820.aspx Jon
No way would I use a soda blaster or razor blades on 71 plastic hood inserts. The plastic is fairly brittle to start with and has a tendency to flake-off pieces on the raised edges from being in the sun for years. Duane
Thanks for the tips, guys:TU: Just to clarify, these are not the inserts, they are the scoops that the inserts fit into. I will try the easy off route first, and then take a ride to Alton if that fails.
I agree 110% with Duane... You may as well throw them in the trash if you use razor blades. I would also shy away from soda blasting or any sort of blasting. The scoops that the inserts fit into are very brittle! Use a chemical stripper on them. Test a small spot on the bottom side first before covering the whole thing. Jon
I think the stuff to get it off is Jasco, sold at Lowes, applied with a brush and heavy duty chem gloves. It will even soak into bondo and pull it off if you do it a few times. Just make sure to put some card board down under it to keep it off your floor when it drips and be ready to wipe/spackle off the old stuff into a metal bucket. I did my entire Riv with it and still have a few places to get back to, but it is brutal on old paint.
How thick are the coats of paint? Would it be possible to hand sand, then add another coat of paint on top of what's already there?
