I am wondering about the best methods for paint stripping. Chemical vs. Sanding vs. Blasting. The following is from a hotrod.com article that has good things to say about using the baking soda blasting/stripping process. Also, this is what the Unique Performance guys do that build the GT500E Eleanor cars. This seems like a good way to go but I have no idea what it costs. RS
That sounds like a very effective method. It also sounds like you would have to bring the vehicle to them for the job, this could be a deciding factor depending upon location and the price of the work. I've had parts stripped by a local place using a chemical dip, it's harsh but works well, great for gas tanks. I sandblasted the cab of a 66 Dodge pickup we used to have, this made a big mess. It took everything our air compressor could dish out and left sand and dust everywhere on the vehicle in the garage driveway etc. While I love using a blasting cabinet for engine and suspension parts if I ever have anything big that needs to be blasted it won't be done at my house... I've used paint strippers on a few cars with mixed results. The "aircraft" brand stipper you can get at most parts stores works well on older paint jobs (pre 80's), but I've found that on the newer cars like my 88CSX-T it has a tough time removing the factory E-coat primer (the paint is already falling off, stripper has it easy on that car). On the CSX-T and a GLH I'm restoring we ended up using a good DA (dual action) Sander and a lot patience to strip them down. In the long run it came out the easiest and most budget friendly but did take some serious time commitments. There are lots of options out there, I think the best idea is if your having a shop paint the car ask for their recommendation. They're the ones that have to deal with the surface after it's stripped and it's likely they can tell you what works and what doesn't.
Great Post, Tango Classic Autos in Bellingham MA. offers baking soda blasting. Pricing varies on how much you want blasted. Entire cars top, bottom, inside, out will run in the $2000 range. Individual parts will of course be much less. BICARBONATE SODA MEDIA The use of a specially designed media-blasting tank for baking soda eliminates any possible mishap that could arise from blasting sensitive materials with the incorrect media. Unlike other medias, soda does not generate surface heat, virtually eliminating warpage problems. This type of unit permits blasting of sensitive materials such as fiberglass, carbon-fiber, plastic, rubber, aluminum, brass, copper, and steel without difficulty. Remarkably, soda will not harm either glass or chrome.
I just recently removed the paint from my Shelby useing the soda blasting method. It was chosen after studying all of the other processes. I was quite pleased with the results The cleanup went easily, and posed no problems, other than we all appeared to resemble the Pillsbury Doughboys Pricing tends to follow parameters of car size, parts to be cleaned, versus amount of soda used ( it comes in 50# bags ) and time. With 2 operators, expect to pay in the realm of $1200 to $1500. Soda does a great job of removing the paint and I would use this system again, if ever needed.
