Stripping paint from hull, HELP

[BZZE]

Please Help, I've been having a ridicolous almost impossible time stripping several layers of paint from a white oak ribbed, cedar planked hull, i need serious advice as I'm starting to gouge the hell out of a nice boat with great potential. thanks guys, B.

[hansp77]

How are you doing it now?

[riggertroy]

I used an "I-Strip speedheater" and with the help of a friend stripped the paint from one side of a 22 foot keeler in about 3 to 4 hours, used a standard scraper but made sure it had a clean edge. Did no apparent damage to the putty in the seams, and apart from a few times when I got a little careless there were only a few nicks in the timber.
DO NOT use one of these tools on any fibreglassed surface, it will lift it, that is unless you want to remove fibreglass then it is great for that.

[BZZE]

Rite now I'm using about 200 dollars worth of various strippers available, pretty much every brand you can find at home depo to no avail, I have not tried a heat gun but suggestions keep being made that I should, any thoughts.

[riggertroy]

The speed heater is not exactly a heat gun, google "I-strip", good luck.

[mobjack68]

Hey BZZE, do some checking and locate a stripper product called "PYROX". This is serious industrial strength stuff and was formulated for the aircraft industry to remove epoxy paint and catalyzed paint formulations (Imron). We used it on corvettes (VERY CAREFULLY) for years and that stuff will remove all the paint and the gelcoat from fiberglass in a quick hurry. Good luck

[Guest20100203]

There's only a few ways to remove paint and none are real joys to endure. Abating the surface (usually repeatedly) with sanding or scrapers is the safest way, though lots of elbow grease. Chemical strippers are fine in large open areas of a hull, but not in and around frames, seams and other things that can react badly with the chemicals. You may get the paint off, but may also ruin glue lines in joints, seam compounds, bedding compounds, etc. in the process of trying to save some elbow exercise. Many strippers can darken or change the color of the wood. This staining is difficult to remove completely. Unfortunately there isn't a magic formula, just elbow grease and diligence.

I use scrapers on heavy coats or built up layers, with heat, then switch to sanding to remove the last bits, with a finial clean up from a sharp scraper, which leaves a fine finish, much better then sanding. If not terribly concerned about a real nice bright finish, then skip the last scraping and prep for paint.