brake fluid stripping

[gtidude]

Hi there
i know brake fluid removes old paint, but for how long do i leave the body in it? i dont want it to become brittle and break when i work with it.

i left a set of rim in brake fluid before for 24hours and when i finally took them out the broke in my hand.
any suggestions would be appreciated.

[sjelic]

depending on paint, I check it after 1-2 hours, it usually come of in that time period. As for the plating on the wheels (factory) use oven cleaner or plain Cola.

[MPWR]

The real answer is, don't strip in brake fluid. As you've seen, it can and will attack plastic. But it does it unpredictably. Some parts will be destroyed in a few hours or less, and others will be more or less unaffected after days or even weeks. There is no 'safe' period of time to use, and no way to predict what will be destroyed quickly and what won't. A good rule of thumb is, never strip in brake fluid any part that you cannot quickly and easily replace.

And of course there are much better and safer alternatives for stripping.

You can leave plastic parts in isopropyl alcohol or household cleaner/degreaser (Simple Green, Purple Power, CSC, etc) for months with no problems. These products strip paint as well or better than brake fluid. Why risk it?

[sjelic]

Originally Posted by MPWR

Why risk it?

Because we are lazy

But you are right, never had problem with Tamiya plastic but Revell and Fujimi become very fragile.

[gtidude]

thanx for the response, now with what do i rince the brake fluid off the shell?

[sjelic]

Originally Posted by gtidude

thanx for the response, now with what do i rince the brake fluid off the shell?

Dish washing soap, try to avoid any brake fluid in the drain or all over a cross when you carry it around. Simply make warm bath soap+water and wash it in side, then wash it again in the sink.
Be sure to sand the body again as plastic could be etched in places. Be careful not to snap pillars as they are the most fragile part. If you have glued something before, those joints could become loss to.

[gtidude]

thanx sjelic, some good advice, just what i needed to hear.