Stripping paint..the hard way

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Hey Guys,

Im looking for some advice on stripping my new aluminum. Its a 14ft V-hull, its got one layer of factory paint on it which is in reallly nasty shape. I would like to just take all of the paint off and leave it as bare aluminum. I've read about using aircraft paint stripper and other paint strippers along with just using a good old fashion wire wheel on an angle grinder.

I know the angle grinder is the hard way but I dont really want to do the whole paint stripper deal because of all the nasty fumes. Plus I think the angle grinder will give me the rough finish im looking for.

So, I have a pretty good Dewalt angle grinder but no wire wheels. I have read that you have to use brass or SS wire wheels to prevent "carbon steel contamination" which can cause some sort of rust. Is there any truth to this? Or is it fine to just use a normal carbon steel wire wheel?

Any advice on the whole topic of stripping boats with a wire wheel is much appreciated!
 
My "new to me" aluminum hull had a lot of pits so chemicals were out of the question. I ended up using the 3M paint and rust removal attachment for a drill. They were available at Lowes for about $7 each. I think I used about 8 of them total to strip the exterior pits. It leaves a nice swirl mark surface if that's what you're going after. It does make a lot of dust though.

Good luck.

https://multimedia.3m.com/mws/mediawebserver?mwsId=SSSSSu7zK1fslxtUm82Gm8_eevVSeChshvTSevTSeSSSSSS--
 
Stripping paint has been covered as nauseum so search a bit or just look at some of the other threads for ideas of pros and cons for each type.

Factory paint, take it to a car wash and see if it'll pressure wash off, then chemical strip. Grinders and wire wheels are hard on you and the boat, I try to avoid using them for long. throw a layer of saran wrap over the stripper and it doesn't stink as bad.

Jamie
 
Thanks guys, I have done some searching but haven't found anything regarding carbon steel VS stainless wheels.

Roughly how much does aircraft aluminum stripper cost?
 
Sandblast!!!!! I wouldnt reccomend any other way. Most will tell you that you cant sandblast aluminum but most havnt done it or are just repeating what someone else has told them. I completely stripped several layers of paint to bare aluminum on my 1436 in roughly 15 minutes. Piece of cake. Just use the finest media you can find and use a little common sence when you do it and you'll have no problem.
 

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