Removing Paint Off A Shell/Body

[shiftyjm]

Alright, well my dad's gf's friend asked me to do 2 model kits for her to give to her dad for his birthday, and before she gave me the kits, her kid had a try at building the kits.

The kits are the 57 chevy hard top, and the 55 chevy pick up. The kid painted both the body's very, very poorly. The 57 has a white roof, and red body, but it's all painted with a brush.

So I'd like to take this paint off without ruining the shells, how would i go about this?

Just paint thinner? or?


and to top off having the body's painted poorly, he built the motors without painting the pieces first, and glued on all the chrome parts already.

[stevenoble]

Soak the body shell overnight in either Isopropyl Alcohol or brake fluid.Give them a scrub the following morning with an old toothbrush and this will remove the paint without damaging them.If the paint is stubborn it may require more than one soak though.The same technique will also work on the engines.

[mrawl]

Scalecoat (from hobby store) does a superb job in 5-10 minutes. But most of these things will make the platic slightly brittle so be careful not to stress the body too much after stripping.

[shiftyjm]

After stripping the paint will there be anythng that I have to do before paint?

Or can I just put a coat of primer on after drying?

[stevenoble]

Originally Posted by shiftyjm

After stripping the paint will there be anythng that I have to do before paint?

Or can I just put a coat of primer on after drying?

I always wash the body in soapy water and give it a light sanding with fine wet and dry paper used wet.This is just to smooth it out really before giving it a light primer coat.

[exhaust smoke]

It also depends on what type of paint was brush painted on the bodies. If it was an enamel based paint, this can be removed with a soak in hob cleaner, such as Mr Muscle, which will not be as damaging to the plastic. After the paint has been removed, just clean up the body with some soapy water and thoroughly rinse before reapplication of paint.