stripping old shellac

[astrid]

With the price of meth (My prefered medium for stripping shellac and nc lacquer) gone through the roof.
I thought of making a dipping bath.

I got an old 10 litre mineral water container, the sort with a wine cask type lug thing near the base, cut off 3 sides of the top to make a hinge.and reduce evaporation.

filled it with meths and put in the smaller turned bits of a chair I'm stripping.

It was brilliant, the pieces stripped themselves while i got on with something else.

The crap fell to the bottom, and i used the lug thing to put the used meths back in the bottle for next time.
used about 10% of what i usually would have and almost no effort required in stripping 25 pieces of turned mahogany.
can aynone think of a downside to this?

astrid

[echnidna]

good way to go Astrid.

[rsser]

Nice one.

Another option with flat surfaces is just to scrape it off with a card scraper. Quick, clean and fun.

[Blackout]

astrid,

how long did you leave it sit for? If there is no downside I'll be very happy to follow your lead. This looks a good one in terms of environmental friendliness.

Cheers,

Blackout

[astrid]

re cabinat scraper,
my hands are too small to bend it for long ,although I would love to use one i find i dont have the strengh in my hands.
how long to leave the pieces in the meths would depend on the composition of the lacquer i suppose, for that old black shellac it took about 5 min, turn the piece 5mins quick rub with a green scourer and toothbrush in the quirks
rinse off.
I'ts better for health too as you havent got to stand over the piece while scrubbing and inhale less.

astrid

[s_m]

It's better for health too as you havent got to stand over the piece while scrubbing and inhale less

You are supposed to wear a mask for this are you not!?

Steph

[rsser]

Astrid, there are holders that put the curve in the scraper and make it easier to use. If you're interested I'll track down a web pic. The other plus with this method is that you're stripping and finishing at the same time; with a bit of practice you don't need to sand.

[Sebastiaan56]

can aynone think of a downside to this?

astrid

Doesnt taste as good anymore?.....

[astrid]

thank rsser,
that wood be good, I have used them and it is fun.
and safer than broken glass but we're not going there
astrid

[Ian Wells]

just a small related trick I found when stripping shellac off a piece in a difficult spot, where I was concerned that meth might run. I used a gelled ethanol hand sanitiser made by ego pharmaceuticals. brushed it on , no drips or runs wiped it off 5 mins later with the shellac underneath coming straight off.
Because of is gel like nature it may even work on masked areas without bleeding.

Ian

[astrid]

this sounds interesting.
where do you buy it and how much do'es it cost?
astrid

[s_m]

You can buy it at pretty much every chemist these days. I first discovered it when going to travel in Pakistan nearly 10y ago and always had some with me when my daughter was in nappies.

Aqium gel comes in a little flip-top purse size and 375ml or 1L pump packs...

more info and prices here

It's about the same consistency as most paint strippers I've ever used and I reckon it would be ideally suited for stripping shellac - good thinking Ian!

Steph

[astrid]

this could be handy for small job like the top of a writing box when you dont want to risk a dribble
but at 4X the cost of meth its not cost effective generally.
and you cant reuse it.

cheers
astrid

[rsser]

Scraper holder here Astrid:

http://www.carbatec.com.au/store/ind...cPath=260_5560

[JDarvall]

Seems like a clever idea. Must remember to try that.