Removing finish from a neck with maple board

Jack_

As the title suggests. I've got a vintage tinted Strat style neck, finished in poly. I'd like to strip it.

I found this thread: http://www.tdpri.com/threads/gfs-telecaster-build-project-fiesta-red-59-style-mrench01.245789/

It seems like the best method, using a paint stripper to get close to the frets - however, the paint stripper you use seems to be crucial.

Any recommendations for a good stripper for the job in the UK?

Or does anyone want to suggest a better way of doing it?

Corvus

DIY Nitromors and the like are pretty poor for it since EU regs enforced a change, but bodyshop strippers still contain DCM aka dichlormethane aka methylene chloride which is the thing to look for. You can get them on fleabay in the vehicles area, keywords like 'trade' and 'heavy duty' and suchlike should dig 'em out.

robgilmo

There is a company called ''strippers of Sudbury'', really, hang on , they have changed, http://www.stripperspaintremovers.com/

Ive dealt with them in the past, they know a lot about conservation etc. They really know their stuff so if the web site doesn't help (especially this http://www.stripperspaintremovers.com/I_want_to_remove.htm ) give them a call.

Deadman

Dichloremethane now comes under the REACH regs.  You have to be licensed by the HSE to both purchase and use it unfortunately. It involves mandatory training and certification (awarded by the HSE).

GoldenEraGuitars

Tbh after scuffing the surface with some 1000 paper and being careful with the likes of nitromors there's no reason why it wouldn't work. Use a fresh Stanley blade to get close to the frets to remove the poly. It's gonna take a lot of work mind... poly is a bugger to remove 

randella

I've stripped a maple board using a bunch of Stanley knife blades - secure the neck on your bench with the headstock pointing straight away from you and, holding the blade with both hands and parallel to the frets, gently scrape back and forth in each gap.  As soon as the blade has lost its initial sharpness, chuck it and start again with another.

This was a nitro-finished board, and it was easy to do as the finish had worn very thin over the years.  Poly might take a bit more application, if anyone else here has similar experience they might want to weigh in.

I got this hint from a guy on TDPRI who stripped a poly Tele board using the technique above.

Corvus

I've done the same, it worked OK, have to watch for digging in esp at the edges, have to scrape quite hard so it's easy to wobble the blade a bit. Smoothed the board after with a 1/4" quare wood stick with sandpaper, a quick going-over sorts it. The back of the neck & headstock sanded off - proper paper & blocks makes pretty short work of it.

If going paintstripper get some Synstryp or other bodyshop stripper, same price difference as DIY ones but more powerful, if bodyshops

WezV

I would also scrape, or go for a re-fret and re-sand the board in the process

You do need to develop your scraping technique.  As mentioned above its easy to dig in if you get the angle and pressure wrong. 

randella

WezV said:

You do need to develop your scraping technique.  As mentioned above its easy to dig in if you get the angle and pressure wrong. 

Definitely.  I took an age to do mine as I was terrified of losing some of the wood.  It turns out that after a while you are able to 'feel' the angle you need to hold the blade at in order to preserve the fretboard edges.

Better to take a long time than to damage the maple as if you do take a chunk out somehow you can't really use the glue/dust filling technique that you can with rosewood or ebony.  Or at least I don't believe it'd look as good.

Deadman

Forgot to say I did it in this thread. It was a tough job but turned out ok:

http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/27482/finished-first-guitar-build-shiny-then-not-so-shiny/p2

NPP

do you have to get the paint off the fretboard? I left it on, only stripping, oiling and waxing the back of the neck

Jack_

Deadman said:

Forgot to say I did it in this thread. It was a tough job but turned out ok:

http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/27482/finished-first-guitar-build-shiny-then-not-so-shiny/p2

Good job.

So you combined paint stripper and using a blade?

People in the thread have mentioned EU rules on what chemicals we can get etc, so what is the strongest paint remover I'll actually be able to get? Thanks.

Corvus

Bodyshop strippers, heavy duty strippers like I said, they still contain DCM which is what got removed from DIY products but is still there in 'trade' products - which anyone can still get so it's all a bit daft!
Synstrip is a well-known one but might not come in small quantities; ebay paint places sell 'heavy duty' stripper in 1 litre cans though. Some of these are unbranded cans which will be branded put into smaller cans, to sell better. If you got a named one you can hunt for the data sheet/MSDS for it, to see what's in it - dichlormethane, methylene chloride, DCM are the same thing.

Lozboy

I have used paint stripper(not saying its ideal) on 2 maple fret boards.A 90s MIJ strat & a Peavey wolfgang.These were fretboard restores only.It worked for me.
I masked the neck sides with 2 layers of masking tape.I worked very quickly removing the loose finish and wiping clean inbetween coats.
  MIJ Strat was redone in rustins the Wolgang in gun oil.Gun oil is easier to work with.The wolfgang needed a silk finish.This was done by using the finisher that comes with the gun oil.Obviously there were a number of coats and going through the grades in between.