paint removal

Plastic, diecast or brass?

sorry, should have mentioned it, tinplate 402 standard gauge engine and cars

I sandblast my tinplate restorations. It's quick and easy.

thank you so much, but i don`t have a basement or garage, just a small shed which is busting at the seams now with storage, thank you anyway....

Super Clean degreaser is the best stuff that I have found. Available at Walmart, I'm sure it has some chemicals but is biodegradable so it goes down the drain. Just soak your parts overnight or longer if needed. It did blacken an aluminum horn on me once. Hope this helps.

Jeff

Love trains posted:

..........with out using chemicals........

Everything has chemicals in it!

I've seen forum threads on boiling with powdered detergent.  Of course, my supermarket doesn't carry powdered detergent.

Chemicals you say? Even US! 

NNJ Railfan posted:

I've seen forum threads on boiling with powdered detergent.  Of course, my supermarket doesn't carry powdered detergent.

I have used this method...it works sometime, mostly on plastic....BUT  don't boil it with the part in it...make a super saturated solution by adding powered detergent to very hot water until no more will dissolve then add the part and let it sit....paint colors like silver and gold come off easy....Lionel paint is tough but it can be done....bear in mind the solution is caustic...in that concentration you might want to use gloves....hope this helps...Joe

Find a local body shop with a bead blast cabinet and pay a small fee for them to strip your project otherwise you have two choices, buy some sandpaper or a respirator and some chemicals.

The downside to chemicals is that they only strip paint and primer where as a blast cabinet will strip everything clean including rust.

Here's one I blasted showing a before and after. Notice how clean the fans and screens are while leaving the fine details intact and undisturbed. There was ultimately about five layers of paint on this loco when I started the process. Took me about six or eight minutes to blast.

I use to blast trains for OGR forum members on an almost weekly basis.

NNJ Railfan posted:

I've seen forum threads on boiling with powdered detergent.  Of course, my supermarket doesn't carry powdered detergent.

I've used this method, too, and I think I'd rather do it with chemicals! Hot, messy, smelly, definitely an outside job. And it's not like detergent isn't a chemical anyway...

Thank you all for all of your ideas, guess I`ll try the detergent /hot water and see what happens, will post photos when I`m done....

Super Clean works well. It is not for aluminum, not for some platings, but steel is ok, and I've had good luck on plastic model cars(1:24). Wipe with a solvent after rinsing well.

I've found the citrus based strippers to work very well; better than I expected. With an orange scent in mind, Evapo-rust, also citrus based, make rust removal pretty safe and easy too (not a stripper)  Before the citrus, I wouldn't waste my time on anything without aircraft stripper at my side.

  Lacquer thinner or enamel reducer on stubborn areas/chips and for a final wipe. I'm a fan of etching primer for long term sheet metal protection.

For tinplate I've used the boiling method with good luck. I used a powdered detergent, get a big pot of water boiling, put in a couple ups of the detergent, then the tinplate cars, let it boil for a little, then turn off the flame and let it sit overnight. If it's the original paint, it will peel right off. You'll never be able to use the pot again, and it's best if you can do it someplace other than the kitchen. I used the side burner on my gas grill (oh, that's what they make that for)

For plastics, it may be best to go with some of the chemical based cleaners others mentioned, but test on a junk piece first.

Beyond that it's about priming, and sanding and re-priming to get a nice smooth surface before painting. 

Let us know how you're progressing with some photos.

Tim

In my experience, a  heavy solution of laundry detergent in a bucket works fine on most prewar tinplate.

No boiling or other stuff, just takes time. Found out the hard way, put marx prewar litho in the dishwasher.

Will come out bright and shiny, just no more litho. Lionel post war plastic boxcars clean up nicely in the dishwasher,

most marx will lose their lettering. Almost all track including switches will clean up nicely in the dishwasher

if you live in a dry climate like mine. No guarantees, just suggestions. 

I use Draino. for all my Tinplate paint removals.  Fill a container with enough water to cover your train, add a few tablespoons of Draino, Let it sit for about 1/2 hour, stir it a few times, if there are some stubborn  paint spots scrub with a tooth brush, let it soak a little longer, rinse with warm water and flush it down the drain with the water running so it doesn't stain your sink.

This will work too, electrolysis.  It is really for removing rust, but with these old trains it also removes paint very well.  It does not remove the tinplate either.

My G scale friends on G Scale Central have used brake fluid with excellent results, on plastic.  

A hot water-Oxyclean solution does a rapid, excellent job of removing paint.