[tinman386]

I want to strip my car to bare metal it has clear coat on it. I tried a random orbit sander but it loads up. Do i need a chemical stripper? If so what kind is good to use? Also i would like to get a DA sander but i dont have enough air for what ive seen does someone make an electric DA sander? Or maybe one that doesnt use much air?

[bourne51]

in stripping cars i all depends on how much paint (buildup) you have i usually get a car that is in rough shape and have to strip it down to the metal.what i do is use a black carbid muffen(which can cause warping )of pannels if you put too much heat and pressure!,but it worksfine if you let the pad do the work.or you can use jasco stripper(eboxie type),you must do it in the shade and do it outside,and ware all the saftey equpment eye ware ect.it melts skin rubber ect.but it cleans off with water.take your time and do a fender or so at a time dont rush it,stripping is not a fast (thing) to do.........(bourne51)

[fordSR]

Go to your local auto body supply and buy the right sanding discs made by 3M either green or gold. These discs won't load up like the Home Depot stuff made for sanding wood. Shop around and get an air operated DA sander. Get 80 grit paper and you'll be surprised how fast the paint comes off. You will need to take a look at your compressor and your paint gun. If it wont handle the DA sander then it most likely won't handle your paint gun either. Running out of air pressure when spraying will give you more problems than you want and you will need to get some epoxy on those bare metal parts pretty guickly after stripping. Stay away from chemical stripper........gets in nooks and crannies and hard to get it all out and can leach out later ruining your new paint job. You will need an 80 grit finish on the metal before applying the epoxy for best adhesion and put your body filler on after the epoxy. When blocking down your body filler, if you sand thru to bare metal in spots, you will need to recoat those spots with epoxy. Hope this helps.

[jcclark]

I just got a air sander by "National Detroit",
It's not a DA (dual action) it's a rotary only.
I got it just for stripping, it's much faster and more aggressive
than a DA. Works much faster.

[fordSR]

I agree an orbital sander is way too slow. Most DA's or at least the one I have is selectable either orbital or rotary. The rotary works much better for paint removal.

[JamieK]

What about a wire wheel on a small angle grinder? Just to take off the majority, and then go back over with 80 grit to prep the metal?

Jamie

[fordSR]

Jamie,
The wire wheel will be WAAAAAY to slow. The absolute best way to remove paint is a bondo hog with 80 grit on the big flat areas, then follow up with the DA on the hard to get to areas. Again you must be using the right paper which I've already suggested. If you don't have a bondo hog the DA will do the job just fine. In the areas around the windsheild pinch mold, and any other areas I can't get with the DA, I use one of the small hand held sand blasters with the hopper on top available from Harbor freight (cheap). Be sure to grind out any areas of old body filler down to bare metal. Any areas rusted through will need new sheet metal. Cut around the hole to solid metal, then weld in a new piece using butt weld. Be sure to apply epoxy primer right away over your bare metal otherwise you'll see rust start to form in a couple of days. I use and recommend SPI epoxy. One coat will do it, however I recommend two coats around the windsheild and rear window pinch weld. This is a rust prone area and you don't want to remove the glass again to make repairs down the road. Do it right the first time and remove the glass.

[tinman386]

Thanks alot for all the good info guys. The reason i dont think a DA sander will keep up is because the only one i found used like 15 cfm and i dont think a paint gun uses that much does it? Maybe i'll shop around im sure there has to be a good sander out there that uses alot less air then 15 cfm.

[hgufrin]

I used paint stripper to do my entire 66 mustang. i tapped up nooks and crannies though so it wouldn't get in there.

i would do a couple of panels at a time and then epoxy prime them. it takes a long time but cleaner than all the dust from a DA.