Stripping Cab

[nicklear36]

Looking for pictures from you guys/gals on how you stripped your cab down to metal.

Not looking to spend the money for media blasting, so I would like to know how much is reachable with a wire wheel, stripper, etc. Pictures always help, thanks in advance!

[leftybass209]

Unfortunately no pictures, but we did strip about 5 coats of paint off a 64 C10 with solely paint stripper.

A bunch of razor scrapers with the plasic blades on them, and a weekend worth of work, 4 of us had it to bare metal.

I don't think it was worth the results, the work, the caustic fumes or the burning (if you've ever been in a gas chamber like the military uses, it's slightly like that after several hours straight using stripper if you don't have proper ppe)

It's also a lot of cleanup and general mess. All the panels need an indescribably thorough cleaning afterwards as well.

YMMV, but I wouldn't walk that road again. I have to reserve my waning young and dumb moments for other truck work .

[nicklear36]

Originally Posted by leftybass209

Unfortunately no pictures, but we did strip about 5 coats of paint off a 64 C10 with solely paint stripper.

A bunch of razor scrapers with the plasic blades on them, and a weekend worth of work, 4 of us had it to bare metal.

I don't think it was worth the results, the work, the caustic fumes or the burning (if you've ever been in a gas chamber like the military uses, it's slightly like that after several hours straight using stripper if you don't have proper ppe)

It's also a lot of cleanup and general mess. All the panels need an indescribably thorough cleaning afterwards as well.

YMMV, but I wouldn't walk that road again. I have to reserve my waning young and dumb moments for other truck work .

Mine is at two coats. I've got those carbide discs for the angle grinder. Thinking of getting paint stripper too. Any recommendations?

[Grumpy old man]

Never use paint stripper , it will get in the creases and come back to ruin any future paint work , 3m paint stripping discs work well . also 80 grit on a dual action sander . it's called body work not body easy .

https://www.ebay.com/itm/16584092107...Bk9SR5L3qdi-YQ

[Jason Banks]

I feel like there is no substitute for blasting on some areas. Grumpy is right, it's work. I used about every method possible.

If you can find a DA sander with 3/8 stroke, it seems to remove material much quicker than smaller stroke sanders.

I used 7 inch version of the 3m stripping discs on my buffer, and some 2 inch versions on a pneumatic die grinder. I used stripper on the outside of the hood.

You're going to need to use several methods to get it all.

I tried to get as much as I could with the stripping discs or sanding, then finished up the grooves and hard to reach areas with blasting.

[LS short box]

I use paint stripper on the big areas. Hoods, doors and fenders away from the seams as said above. Then on the rigid areas/tight areas that won't warp I have a 45 lb pressure sand blaster I use to get down to bare metal. After down to bare metal DA sanding and the epoxy primer
Pic of my 68 after stripping.

[special-K]

I used stripper on my cab for the '67. Stripper needs to be thoroughly washed away and neutralized. I stripped it about 12 years ago and primed it. No problems with any of the primer due to stripper. Do it right and you'll be fine

[Accelo]

No worries on the fumes from paint stripper anymore. It is banded from sales in this country and Canada. Even with training they were still killing people.

[special-K]

Originally Posted by Accelo

No worries on the fumes from paint stripper anymore. It is banded from sales in this country and Canada. Even with training they were still killing people.

I had to look that up. It's the ingredient methalene chloride that was used in paint stripper that has been banned (2019). I'll have to check the can I have to see if that has it. Probably does because it worked really well. Well, I didn't die or even get sick or dizzy. Just because someone gets training doesn't mean they obey all they learned. They only gave the one example of that and it was a 21 year old. I haven't been trained but I have common sense enough to know that stuff is a nasty unhealthy chemical I don't even want to touch my skin or breath. If it dissolves automotive paint and burns my skin I know it must be lethal. I use it outside and I never leaned above it. I follow the rule, if your nose is smelling it your lungs are feeling it. Works for me, except with odorless things. no worries now. That stuff is banned. I'll be extra careful when I finish that can off. The fumes are probably heavier than air, so the guy stripping the floor in his coffee shop was in a worse case scenario.

[May70]

4.5" strip discs compatible with a grinder bought in generic brands on ebay/amazon are the ticket. Those things fly through paint. Ill link what I buy thru black hawk. I think Grumpy turned me on to these things.

For rusted areas you may want to switch to a flap disc but these tear thru paint and even some filler.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/121748111489

[Grumpy old man]

For the areas where you can't get to easy with a stripping pad like under hood and edges of the fenders I used a Jobsmart siphon feed abrasive blaster it worked great , Low cost and used the fine grade of blasting abrasive ( coal slag) from Tractor supply They work with 80-100lbs of air pressure and uses 8cfm so it works but your not going to end up with warped panels that can happen at the commercial blasters that use 175 lbs of pressure . it worked so well for me I bought another one I wore out the tip on the first one (you can get new tips by calling customer service . Buy the blasting hood wear a face mask and NEVER USE PLAY SAND TO BLAST METAL !

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/pr...ABEgKYvPD_BwE#

[LS short box]

Back when I used aircraft stripper I always did it with the shop door open. Safety glasses and a flip down face shield. Lots of plastic on the floor to catch stuff. Heavy duty rubber gloves.
When sand blasting a similar garb setup. I do wear dust mask to keep the sand out of my nose.

[72c20customcamper]

Stripped most of the 68 with the Eastwood SCT and the 3m disc that Grumpy posted and the ones that go on an angle grinder . Wire wheels for the tight spots but I came across a HF sandblaster my dad bought buried in the barn and did the nose with that . All finished off with a DA sander and 120 paper . Never liked paint stripper it’s good on wood trim but not for a car with nooks and crannies for it to lodge in . Truck is just about done

[special-K]

Originally Posted by LS short box

I use paint stripper on the big areas. Hoods, doors and fenders away from the seams as said above. Then on the rigid areas/tight areas that won't warp I have a 45 lb pressure sand blaster I use to get down to bare metal. After down to bare metal DA sanding and the epoxy primer
Pic of my 68 after stripping.

This is pretty much what I do.

Originally Posted by 72c20customcamper

Stripped most of the 68 with the Eastwood SCT and the 3m disc that Grumpy posted and the ones that go on an angle grinder . Wire wheels for the tight spots but I came across a HF sandblaster my dad bought buried in the barn and did the nose with that . All finished off with a DA sander and 120 paper . Never liked paint stripper it’s good on wood trim but not for a car with nooks and crannies for it to lodge in . Truck is just about done

I've been wanting to try one of those out

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by special-K

I've been wanting to try one of those out

I'm really glad I bought it. They always have them for a good price at Carlisle

[Jason Banks]

I thought about trying the harbor freight version :
https://www.harborfreight.com/9-amp-...ool-58079.html

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by Jason Banks

I thought about trying the harbor freight version :
https://www.harborfreight.com/9-amp-...ool-58079.html

Heard good things about them. I paid 179 for mine no tax at the show . The HF version wasnt available at the time

[nicklear36]

Originally Posted by Grumpy old man

For the areas where you can't get to easy with a stripping pad like under hood and edges of the fenders I used a Jobsmart siphon feed abrasive blaster it worked great , Low cost and used the fine grade of blasting abrasive ( coal slag) from Tractor supply They work with 80-100lbs of air pressure and uses 8cfm so it works but your not going to end up with warped panels that can happen at the commercial blasters that use 175 lbs of pressure . it worked so well for me I bought another one I wore out the tip on the first one (you can get new tips by calling customer service . Buy the blasting hood wear a face mask and NEVER USE PLAY SAND TO BLAST METAL !

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/pr...ABEgKYvPD_BwE#

This looks awesome. Do you just stick the hose into a five gallon bucket?

[Grumpy old man]

Originally Posted by nicklear36

This looks awesome. Do you just stick the hose into a five gallon bucket?

Yep , just dump the bag of abrasive in the bucket and have at it , I have a pressure fed blasting tank and it clogged so many times I went to the jobsmart and it works , I set a up a tarp to blast against and reused the blast material over and over after straining debris from it . Just use the wheels to do large areas and blast the areas you can't easily reach , it works better using the fine (red bag) abrasive . and move anything away from your work area you don't want abrasive media on . NEVER USE PLAY SAND TO BLAST METAL, IT CAUSES SILICOSIS in your lungs !

Silicosis is a long-term lung disease caused by inhaling large amounts of crystalline silica dust, usually over many years. Silica is a substance naturally found in certain types of stone, rock, sand and clay. Working with these materials can create a very fine dust that can be easily inhaled.

[68 C10 Driver]

I used a combination of a hand grinder with a flapper disc, a random orbital sander, and hand sanding on my cab. I also used a wire wheel on my hand grinder for under the cab and on the interior.

I would each time pick a small area (like firewall) and proceed to focus on that until done, then move to the next area. Easy-peasy.

[my67c20]

Just gotta ask, why do you want to strip it down to bare metal, especially in a damp climate? What is there has protected the metal for 50 plus years. I can understand sanding down to expose rust, repair dents, fix seam sealer, etc, but once those areas are done, some good 2k primer, block sanding and you will have a surface ready for another 50 plus years.

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by my67c20

Just gotta ask, why do you want to strip it down to bare metal, especially in a damp climate? What is there has protected the metal for 50 plus years. I can understand sanding down to expose rust, repair dents, fix seam sealer, etc, but once those areas are done, some good 2k primer, block sanding and you will have a surface ready for another 50 plus years.

Most times the surface looks ok but there is rust under the paint . Even new Paints arent designed to last 50 years . Best to start with a clean slate because your finish work is only as good as it base

[nicklear36]

Originally Posted by my67c20

Just gotta ask, why do you want to strip it down to bare metal, especially in a damp climate? What is there has protected the metal for 50 plus years. I can understand sanding down to expose rust, repair dents, fix seam sealer, etc, but once those areas are done, some good 2k primer, block sanding and you will have a surface ready for another 50 plus years.

I'm not sure where all the rust is, I figure sanding all the way down will expose bondo/rust that I can't see on the surface level. The truck has been painted once after factory so I'm not 100% sure

[special-K]

Stripping to bare metal is known to be the best way to assure the best quality work, for a number of reasons. New paint is only as good as what it lays on.

I've owned my '72 K2500 for 22 years. I knew it had one repaint. It looked great and it wasn't a fresh job. Definitely had been painted a good while, so at least 30 years old now I'd say. In the last 5 or more years the hood and front fenders started getting fine splits showing up in the paint. Those started to lift and curl and flake off. I sanded down the bad spots and repainted. It kept on happening and as time goes by it is happening faster and over the entire part. The paint pops off to bare metal. I have no idea why. Maybe no primer, maybe mill scale on replacement parts. Maybe both, maybe defective paint mixing. I have no idea but for the first 15 years I had the truck I had no idea this was going to happen

[67C10Step]

Originally Posted by Grumpy old man

For the areas where you can't get to easy with a stripping pad like under hood and edges of the fenders I used a Jobsmart siphon feed abrasive blaster it worked great , Low cost and used the fine grade of blasting abrasive ( coal slag) from Tractor supply They work with 80-100lbs of air pressure and uses 8cfm so it works but your not going to end up with warped panels that can happen at the commercial blasters that use 175 lbs of pressure . it worked so well for me I bought another one I wore out the tip on the first one (you can get new tips by calling customer service . Buy the blasting hood wear a face mask and NEVER USE PLAY SAND TO BLAST METAL !

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/pr...ABEgKYvPD_BwE#

Grumpy is telling you good stuff here. I have a small 45# pressure blaster and have found the fine coal slag at TSC is the best for stripping stuff. Along with the abrasive wheels and I do have the SCT as well. Got a small spot blaster when I need to hit just a small area without making a huge mess.

All that said, I think I am going to just call one of the mobile blasters when I get my CJ project apart. It needs floor pan work and a few other places so I want to get it all done to see what I really have to work with. I'll throw some epoxy primer on it and then go to rust repair work.