stripping paint off of an enclosure

[mordechai]

Anybody have suggestions for stripping a clear coat and the color underneath it from an aluminum enclosure?  The coats are all Rustoleum and just didn't turn out very well so I want to start over...

[alparent]

Brake fluid. Let the enclosure sit in it. Will take the paint right off....will not damage the enclosure.
Make sure to wash with soap after.

And DON'T drop fluid on ANYTHING.....it will take the paint off anything!

[chi_boy]

Aircraft Remover is also a good choice.  Still messy though because the chemicals are nasty.  It will burn your skin if it gets on you.  It works great, but every time I've used it I wound up with some sore spot somewhere for a day or two.

That's why I usually use a palm sander with 120 grit paper.  Gets it off it no time.  And as long as you are using the same spray, it doesn't have to be ALL off.  I usually sand until I start to see metal and the finish is smooth.  Then I re-prime and start over.

[mordechai]

Thanks a bunch.  For this enclosure, I'll try the breake fluid, but I'll also pick up a sander for future problems. 

[chi_boy]

Do your research.  There is a lot of info out there.  Brake fluid is also reported to be nasty for your health too.  Just be aware.

If you do go that way, you'll need to clean real well or the new paint won't stick.

Cheers,
George

[Jorge_S]

Do your research.  There is a lot of info out there.  Brake fluid is also reported to be nasty for your health too.  Just be aware.

If you do go that way, you'll need to clean real well or the new paint won't stick.

Cheers,
George

Break fluids are generally some type of glycol-ether, which is the same component used as paint solvent.

Depending on the type of break fluid, it should boil between 200 C and 300 C, so heating it in the same oven used for drying paint should be more than enough to get rid of it before repainting.

It also shouldn't affect plastics and rubbers, so you should be able to make the unpainting process in any plastic container properly sealed.

[alparent]

I perfected the art of stipping paint when I was doing model scale cars.
I suck at painting.....so I needed to strip thing alot! I got really good at it (stripping paint that is!)

[Mark Hammer]

I just use paint stripper and paper towels to wipe it off.  I used to use metal paint scrapers but that just put scratches on the surface that I couldn't easily sand off.  So now I wipe the soft wrinkly stuff off before it gets hard and crunchy.

[therecordingart]

I use:

http://www.citristrip.com/