The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Paint Removal Question

I finally have my 51 ready for paint. Took it to my painter and he tells me the whole truck needs to be razor blade stripped because whoever painted it before did it all wrong. He says the paint is chipping off and if he paints over it, it may chip off in time. Question is: is there an easier way to strip off old paint. Painter says if you use a striper that takes it too far. Also, says sanding is not recommended. This guy is good at bodywork and painting so I guess maybe I should take his advise and do it the razor blade route, any comments or suggestions.

A good paint job is 95% preperation. If your old paint is chipping off then the top coats are not adhering to the material under it. Get rid of the cause and either strip with removers or DA (dual action) sand down to prime coats. Block sand and featheredge as required with grits ending up with 320 to 400. Then epoxy urethane prime, color coat and clear coat. Finish by wet sanding with 1500, then 2000 grit, rubbing compound, etc to obtain desired gloss.

Doing it with a razor blade is the hard way, stipper or sanding is faster and more efficient. I would say that if the finish that's on the truck now is as bad as your painter says, it should be completely striped before a new finish is applied. By the way, there are strippers availible that take the old finish off one layer at a time. It's called Peeler, I think it's a Du-Pont product. It was originally for taking off paint for repairs without removing the Elpro bakes on primer that is used on OE cars.

LongBox55,

Hello again. I went to the painters garage and he showed me what he was talking about. He took a single blade razor blade and held it almost flat and the paint peeled off real easy. He said whoever painted the truck years ago did not put a primer on and also it was not sealed. I came home, started razor peeling and so far have got the hood and both front fenders completely stripped. Its not as hard as I thought. Got it down all the way and now I should get a good paint job out of it. (Of course, still got the cab and doors, bed, tailgate, grille, front splash apron, and a sun visor to do.) May take me a couple days to finish but I think this is the right way. This old paint would come off with one long stroke, did not even have primer on bare metal underneath. Now I know I'm not the dumbest body man around because whoever did that paint job should have taken lessons or read a book first. Again, thanks for your replys.

LongBox55, where can I find a model of a 1951 Chevy stepside pu.

Something that might help with the paint removal; get yourself a razor blade type gasket scraper. They can be found at pretty much any hardware store. It will allow you to get a better angle on the body and less hand fatigue.
AMT makes a model of a '50, which is very close to the '51. Should be able to get one at any hobby shop, it comes in either stock or street rod versions. Maisto makes a '50 diecast in several colors as well, toy stores and Wal-mart are good places to find them, thats where the lifted yellow truck in my Webshots album came from. Check out the swap meets too. Lots of venders with toys/models there.

If the paint is that bad would it not be wise to think about having the whole truck sandblasted down to bare metal and starting fresh from there?

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Guy
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'67 Chevy 283/350

Got it ready for paint already. Took it down to skim coat and bare metal. Took me 1 1/2 days to do.