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Suitable Paint Remover For A Chaparral


Mr. Dave

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As the user Scottcald recently and very aptly described the video of my Chaparral's re-fret & repair as a 'resurrection', (I was very impressed and in agreement with that terminology, thanks awfully)  I'm now thinking of further revitalising the old chap with a fresh coat of paint as the dark blue finish is a little too dark even for my slightly more conservative tastes (btw in 'brit-speak', 'old chap' is a vernacular term for one of those pink & personal places 'down there', ho-ho)  So I know I can save a reasonable bit of £/$ by having my grandson do it for me instead of the professional painter.   Is it OK to use ordinary paint remover to do this? I'd really rather not have anything hot or anything involving heat being used to remove the paint, especially by himself.   In the UK there's this stuff called 'Nitromors', I don't know if you have it over the other side of the pond but it's this thick, clear gloopy & corrosive stuff you can apply to painted & varnished surfaces, wait a few minutes and the paint begins to bubble up a bit and then you gently scrape it off and end up with bare wood.  You generally need to sand it or wire wool it a little afterwards just to keep things tidy.  So will this work on the paint that's on my guitar, or do I have to use some other method?  I was thinking of changing the colour to a deep red perhaps but definitely something a little more uplifting than the existing colour.  Any suggestions and advice would be very welcome..

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If you’ve never done this kind of stripping before, I’d forget about saving money and take it to a pro.

Many times the newly stripped/prepped wood can have residual traces of old paint and stripper. These could react with the new finish and make a terrible mess. If you decide to proceed, you MUST BE CERTAIN that you’ve removed all trace amounts of original finish before you start in with pore-filling and primer coats. 

I spent time in the finish booth at Washburn and three years finishing hi-end cabinetry in Chicago. I’m no @Stike when it comes to guitar painting, but these are my experiences. 

Dont fuck up your Chap. Spend the bread and take it to a pro. 

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oooooooh dear, I have a murky vision that this guitar with some nice unusual features (Binding/Colour/23.94" scale length) is going to end up on ebay in a sorry state - like those ones that are on music-outlet-shop site, not selling for around 10 years.

Like this one... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1981-HAMER-PROTOTYPE-made-in-USA/123939773474?hash=item1cdb62dc22:g:UmAAAOSw705da9Dy 

That poor guitar has had a hard enough life hasn't it :) can't you leave it in peace?

 

 

 

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Is this the point of time when the Stike recommendation usually comes in?

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Those were nitrocellulose so most chemical strippers are pretty effective. If you're trying to preserve the headstock face I'd recommend keep the stripper away from that area all together and sand the finish off the back and sides of the headstock instead. Mask the fingerboard well.

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12 hours ago, RobB said:

If you’ve never done this kind of stripping before, I’d forget about saving money and take it to a pro.

Dont fuck up your Chap. Spend the bread and take it to a pro. 

^^This^^  but I read somewhere that you were home bound and have a lot of time on your hands... That said, it can be done and you don't necessarily have to remove 1000% percent of the residual paint however, you best be sure to have the knowledge/experience of paint/chemical reactions or this could be a very expensive lesson for both good and bad :unsure:... do you have a experimental/trash guitar you can  practice/ learn on?

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If you are going back with a solid finish you could just knock down the finish and spray over it.  Fill the tiny dents with super glue.  It will save the time of making sure the pore filler is still there if you strip down to the wood. 

Is your grandson an alternative to a professional painter because he has a track record of professional results?  Does he have a buffing wheel? 

Pay a professional and be happy with the new finish.  Leave the Chaparral finish alone and have a guitar you do not have to worry about scratching. 

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14 hours ago, Bennyboy-UK said:

oooooooh dear, I have a murky vision that this guitar with some nice unusual features (Binding/Colour/23.94" scale length) is going to end up on ebay in a sorry state - like those ones that are on music-outlet-shop site, not selling for around 10 years.

Like this one... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1981-HAMER-PROTOTYPE-made-in-USA/123939773474?hash=item1cdb62dc22:g:UmAAAOSw705da9Dy 

That poor guitar has had a hard enough life hasn't it :) can't you leave it in peace?

 

 

 

I most likely will, it's just sometimes I'll look at it and think 'what a crap colour'.  It's more 'thinking out loud' than anything really but I'd NEVER strip it and leave it that way, or have it done if I wasn't sure the new colour would look good.  I'm thinking maybe about selling it too but my mind isn't entirely made up.  I was playing it earlier and it does play very nicely now but I really do dislike those pickup selector switches, not one of Hamer's better ideas.  25.5" scale necks are fine but the shorter scales are very nice too, especially for someone like me who has been blighted with 'sausage fingers', I always envy people blessed with longer slimmer fingers, it does help with playing.  That 'music-outlet-shop' ebay shop is always good for a laugh isn't it? - the 'optimistic' pricing and the creative descriptions.  I look at the things he has for sale and his asking prices and think 'now there's a guy who isn't going to let silly things like 'reality' get in his way'.  I saw that that 'prototype' with the awful neck repair a while back, that was hilarious.  'music joke shop' would be a better moniker.

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10 hours ago, murkat said:

Heat gun

Acetone

Jasco premium Stripper

Not in that order, just some of the tools you will need and a lot of knowledge in what your doing.

Looks a bit like the mental list Marv was making before he went to take on Kevin in that movie 'Sin City'

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Just to put this to bed,  everyone has convinced me to leave it alone.  Best left in it's first suit.  I'd been playing it earlier this evening and put it on a stand in the living room.  I glanced over at it from the kitchen whilst I was waiting for the kettle to boil and the cream binding on the body does make it look rather good. I think the cool terminology is to say it makes it 'pop'?

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It’s a great guitar Dave.  When I sold it to you I kind of hoped it would stay as it was.  Hopefully, since your refret problems, it still plays nicely.  I saw online that Fret Fiend had issues with his tools that resulted in problems.

I hope you kept the original Floyd Rose.  That’s got to be an easy £100 on eBay towards your next Hamer.

The binding does indeed make it stand out, especially so, with that colour.  The amazing thing about the colour is that in bright light it really pops.  Perhaps inside, in these rather dull Brit winter months, there isn’t enough light to reflect its best attributes?

 

 

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8 minutes ago, Bennyboy-UK said:

I’m actually potentially in the market for an old FR that could go on my 86 SS1- I’d need a black one with good edges and maybe posts to replace as well...

Sounds like you have a sale there potentially Mr. Dave!

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Sorry, I don't have it any more.  Because the guitar been stored away in a cupboard for so long and Wales is such a damp place and the case isn't quite airtight, the string retainer screws and the nut retainer screws had become quite badly corroded and I'd decided to buy a replacement bridge & nut.  This was before I put a message on here asking if there were any repairers out there who could fit the new bridge and sort out that abusive re-fret I'd had done when I originally bought the guitar in 2013.   I let Vic have the original bridge as part settlement of my repair bill.  

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