Definitely, stripper is a bad time to try to save 5 bucks. And use eye protection. Getting the good stuff anywhere on your skin hurts a lot, but you'll run to the faucet and be OK. I don't want to know what would happen if you splashed your eyes.

 

To save money (I thought) I decided to sandblast my frame at home. It took about 36 hrs. on the driveway. I used a 135 PSI 60 gal compressor ($400) & a cheep sandblasting outfit (50 lb hopper) ($35) & sand was about ($75). Plus ($50) to take it to a high pressure truck wash to remove all the greese & oil.
What a mess!
If you have alot of time on your hands, do it yourself. If I was to do it over again, I would pay to have it done.
The body I sanded with a DA & 36 grit paper. took about two months to do that.
Some may say 36 grit is too harsh, but with a real good primer & blocked properly it works out great.
When people see my pickup they can't beleive it was stripped with 36 grit.
Mike

 

"It took about 36 hrs. on the driveway. I used a 135 PSI 60 gal compressor ($400) & a cheep sandblasting outfit (50 lb hopper) ($35)"

Mike

I believe you are a finalist for the forum perserverance award. I had one of those hopper style blasters long ago. They are just about right for cleaning the lawn mower's spark plug. If you're gonna do it, a pressure pot blaster is the only way to fly. But they really need a 2 stage air compressor I don't own yet.

Regarding the 36 grit DA. You're braver than I, but I have to agree with you on the modern primers ability to fill scratches. But we're back to using stuff that can kill us again. There seems to be no avoiding it. We just need to close down the forum and everybody take a $10,000 check to the hot rod shop and hire out all the bad stuff I guess. I just can't find any enjoyment in that method.

 

There one way I know of.. back where Im from.. Framingham MA.. There a place that will Chem dip it than a Acid wash than a Cleaning Dip and than a Primer dip.. all that for about $500.. The Rod shop I worked for there Use to have it done all the time.. If U can find a place to do this for U local.. its is the best way.....

 

Hi guys, I new to this forum. I'm just starting to work on a 56 F100 that I've had for several years. The cab of the truck is wearing original paint so I'm not worried about having to remove a lot of paint but It does have tons of surface rust and bad front cab corners and floor. My question.... has anyone here had an experience with"acid dipping?" a cab. It seemed to me it would be a smart starting point before sheet metal repair. what do you think?

Randy

 

Well, I believe everyone would agree doing all we can "ourselves" is great . However, this is not in any way a good idea unless you have a blast box for small parts. The key is Silicosis. Please reconsider the temptation to save a few lousy bux on this job. At 40/an hour a pro would make 60.00. I had mine done by a guy with 35 yrs experience for 85/hr and it took 1 hour. It was done in and out. And there is no sand/media,tools,mess,time,or health issues afterward. Do the math. Does heat warp not scare you??? Maybe I am biased because I am on 4 LPM oxy due to the lung thing. You can't win on this part of the project by doing it yourself. my.02

 

Mad


You're probably right. I had completely forgotten about acid dip. That's got to be the closest to the perfect solution. Never had it done, but have heard it is a very good method if you can get all the residual chemicals out of the seams. And I think an Effie is a vehicle where that is not going to be an issue. Doors are probably the only part that might be difficult to purge.

 

I must say, a friend of mine who ran a body shop taught me about the 36 grit & the good primers. rather than spend $10,000 to a body shop I'd rather do it myself.
I tried srtippers, paint removers, but didn't like the chemicals.

 

Well, I really think this has been an interesting thread.

I've always wondered (and still do wonder) how we arrive at our favorite methods of doing a job. I think it has more to do with good and bad past experiences than technical efficiency or measurable results. I also think we confuse the two more often than we realize when we make recommendations.

By past experiences, I don't mean experience as in "I've been doing this since before you were born", I mean experiences such as "I sandblasted my dog house, and it was a mess, and I got a horrible sunburn, the neighbors are suing me for sand in their yard, and I'm never going to use a sandblaster again.", or "I used bacon grease mixed with bird droppings, and it took the paint off without any sanding at all!" I'm just as susceptible as anyone else, and I have preferences, even prejudices, about the way I do various jobs on Earl.

Seems like the point is, each person has to use whatever tools, skills, and knowledge they have accumulated, plus factor in what they are comfortable with, to achieve the goal at hand. 'fenders is right - a pressure blaster will greatly reduce the blasting time required versus a suction grit blaster. Yet I still use my suction unit and spend hours blasting parts that could take half the time with a pressure unit. Yes, I have to admit I have no rational reason for doing the blasting this way and spending all the extra time. I guess my prejudice comes from the enjoyment I get sitting out there turning rusty junk into usable components. The extra time is just more time I get to enjoy the process. That certainly won't make sense to the majority of you reading this - and the point is that is probably shouldn't. It's my prejudice, after all.

I'd be a fool if I got on a soap box and told everybody that my way was the "BEST" way, or the "ONLY" way, for everyone to do their trucks and get it right. My method does, nevertheless, work well for me given that it produces results I am happy with and I enjoy the process.

I've already experimented with my grit blasting equipment and different blasting media, and figured out how I will be doing my sheetmetal. I've completed the work on both air deflectors and been happy with the results. Before and after photos are shown in Earl's World (a link is in my signature block below). No warping, no problems that I can tell with welding, and the results are acceptable to me. These panels are 18-gage low-carbon sheet metal as was used in the original truck sheetmetal. They are not 22-gage HSLA (high-strength, low alloy) sheet metal like newer vehicles. This may be why I don't see warping even using a pretty aggressive pressure and media.

Here is the setup I'll be using:

Grit blast system type: Suction feed
Air pressure: 100 psi regulated at 2 feet from the blaster gun, with 1/2" air hose to gun
Blast media: Medium grade CrystalGrit (specular hematite -a very aggressive, and high density media used for heavy rust removal)
Nozzle: new 1/4" ID ceramic tip
Air jet: new 3/32" ID carbide jet
Target: 18-gage low carbon steel with 2 to 4 coats of various types of paint plus both surface and through rust

Use the information above, or not, as you see fit. This is simply one real-world solution that has worked out for me. Hopefully there is enough data above that you can gage your own grit blasting setup against this one, and it might help you decide how you want to handle your particular application. Find a method you are comfortable with and then have some fun.

OK, my fingers are sore from typing now so I have to end this post.

 

I have seen Georges sandblaster. It appears well designed and gets good results. And he uses safe media.

George, when we say gravity feed we are talking about is typically a cheezy little plastic hopper you drag around, with a pipe you stick into it. You have to kick the bucket every 20 seconds so the media will flow. Or something to that effect. I doubt it is the same as your design. Or I know you would have redesigned it in short order.

I too have had zero problems with Effie panel warpage. it would require considerably more pressure than I can produce.

And I had no idea bacon grease and bird crap would strip paint. Great tip.

 

I did just that, kicked every 20 seconds, I even set the cheezy hopper at a higher level so help the sand down the hose. What a pain in the A--.
Never again.
Mike

 

Here's my 2 bits:

Electric drills with wire brushes are an express ticket to the nut house. I've tried it, worked my tail off, and the results were not impressive.

Sanding (DA/80grit) does a great job on wide open flat areas but you never get into all the nooks and crannies as good as a sandblaster will. Nor will you get the micro-rust.

DIY chemicals do a great job stripping paint but are a mess, and you will still end up scraping and sanding some afterwards anyway. Nooks and crannies still present problems getting them clean, and there's the potential for trapping chemicals in hidden areas that come out later on your paint. And you've still got rust to deal with, along with some new hazardous material to dispose of.

Sandblasting is a mess, but leaves you with great metal including the nooks and crannies. It destroys rust. Pressure pot sandblasting driven by a 2 stage compressor putting out 15+CFM @90 psi will give you tolerable amounts of work time. But you have to be careful and not concentrate the stream too long in on any wide open flat pieces, and unless you're blasting inside a cabinet, you'll need breathing apparatus.

Here's what I'm doing for my truck:
1) Homebuilt blast cabinet to strip small parts (See George's Earl's World website for reference)
2) DA sander with 80 grit to take down the paint on big parts
3) Finish by media blasting big parts in a large, temporary enclosure to get the nooks and crannies and zap the rust. Enclosure built sort of like a 6 mil plastic paint booth. Fresh air breathing required.

Ballpark dollar amounts:
Media-blasting stuff:
$400 to build the blast cabinet, $300 for the pressure pot, $150 for media and pop up expenses.

General purpose stuff:
$1,000 for the big compressor, $400 for breathing system

It's alot of money, but it's good money spent once for future benefits. I plan to paint my truck eventually and do other projects, so the $1,400 in general purpose stuff will be used again and again. The media blasting set up will become the heart of your restoration efforts. (Just ask George). And you've got the equipment in place for the next project.

The alternative is pay somebody $400-1000 to strip the cab, then somebody else $2k-$3k later to paint everything, and then the money is gone. But, you save alot of time and mess.

Hopefully some food for thought there.

Cheers,
Rob

 

I went to a local sandblast company, that is setuup to do it yourself. I took
1 1/2 hours to completly do cab inside and out, no doors, or hardware. I was able to "roll" the cab on its back to get at the underside as well. Cost per hour was $ 70.00. I got a quote for reverse electrolysis; $ 750.00, no brainer for me.

Tom

 

That do-it-yourself for 70 bucks an hour sounds like a great deal. I'll look into doing something similar for the pieces that don't fit into my blast cabinet (cab, doors, fenders, bedsides, etc) when it comes time to do them.

I still think the blast cabinet will be worth it over time for all the small to medium sized jobs that come up daily.

 

"I still think the blast cabinet will be worth it over time for all the small to medium sized jobs that come up daily."

Rob

Just do it. Don't even waste another minute thinking about it. George's cabinet is very slick. Even if you farmed out the body strip, you will be messing with the odds and ends for a year or two. Nothing you can have in your garage cleans like a blaster. Get some good primer on stuff and you are set.

And TIP got one super deal. Although I have repeatedly stated you can do it yourself. Your time is worth something. I would pay that in a minute for the use of pro equipment. Most of us will not find a place like that local though.