Paint Stripper Harmful to Chrome?

dtripoli · #1 11-19-2012, 11:33 PM

Bought a beater Squier P-Bass for cheap.
Previous owner spray painted the chrome hardware black;
Bridge, tuners, string tree and strap nuts.
If I buy all these parts from stew-mac along with volume pot and knobs, I'll be into it more than the bass cost.
I'm thinking to just dip the tuners in stripper then brush and hose them off?

hdracer · #2 11-19-2012, 11:47 PM

If you take everything completely apart it shouldn't hurt anything.

If you want to be really safe soak the parts in DOT 3 brake fluid. It will lift the paint and not discolor the chrome. It will even lubricate the parts and you will not have to use water on them.

dtripoli · #3 11-19-2012, 11:50 PM

Good idea brake fluid, I have dot 4 on hand which I am sure is the same result

hdracer · #4 11-19-2012, 11:58 PM

DOT 4 will work but it may take longer. It isn't quite are hard on paint as 3 is. DOT 5 will not hurt paint at all.

Pilgrim · #5 11-20-2012, 10:58 AM

Brake fluid definitely can lift paint, and it's water soluble to make clean-up easy.

Afterwards...probably a good idea to use a DROP of oil - or - since WD-40 was designed to displace moisture - spray sparingly with WD-40.

dtripoli · #6 11-20-2012, 07:18 PM

Here are the progress pix.
*The bridge is not worth fixing. Missing saddle screw, rusty and pretty much toast. I ordered replacement.
*Tuners I will Brake fluid dip this weekend and let you know/see the results.

dtripoli · #7 11-20-2012, 07:19 PM

*Headstock picked up the paint from the tuners. I guess he put them back on before the paint cured. The tuners will cover the paint but I will know it's there. I'm thinking maybe a light sanding then a clear coat?

1958Bassman · #8 11-20-2012, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hdracer

If you take everything completely apart it shouldn't hurt anything.

If you want to be really safe soak the parts in DOT 3 brake fluid. It will lift the paint and not discolor the chrome. It will even lubricate the parts and you will not have to use water on them.

OK, but it will also contaminate the finish. It's not easy to remove all of the silicone.

brothernewt · #9 11-20-2012, 08:38 PM

I used Strip-X stripper (the 30 min version) for a used SWR grill... no damage at all.

before

after

SurferJoe46 · #10 11-21-2012, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dtripoli

*Headstock picked up the paint from the tuners. I guess he put them back on before the paint cured. The tuners will cover the paint but I will know it's there. I'm thinking maybe a light sanding then a clear coat?

Sand as far as you need and use this stuff:::

You'll love it and it's idiot proof!

dtripoli · #11 11-22-2012, 12:03 AM

Thanks...that products looks like just what I need.

dtripoli · #12 11-22-2012, 12:09 AM

BTW, here the front of the headstock before it was disassembled.
And yes, the D string was strung backwards and that is years of grime on the nut
I still have high hopes of turning this sows ear Squier into a beautiful Precision silk purse.

Thick McRunfast · #13 11-22-2012, 12:48 AM

Looks to me like Strip X contains methylene chloride. As a rule I'd stay well away from any product that contains methylene chloride. Look at the material safety data sheet. Carcinogen and the only respirator approved for protection against the vapors is a supplied air/air line type. Your standard cartridge respirator won't cut it.

Every time I have conducted air sampling in places that used methylene chloride, even for relatively short periods of time I found exposures well above permissible levels.

SurferJoe46 · #14 11-22-2012, 09:11 AM

Yup - I'm surprised that Cal OSHA allows it yet, but here's their assessment of it:::

Quote:

II. Health Hazard Data

A. MC can affect the body if it is inhaled or if the liquid comes in contact with the eyes or skin. It can also affect the body if it is swallowed.

B. Effects of overexposure:

1. Short-term Exposure:

MC is an anesthetic. Inhaling the vapor may cause mental confusion, light-headedness, nausea, vomiting, and headache. Continued exposure may cause increased light-headedness, staggering, unconsciousness, and even death. High vapor concentrations may also cause irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract. Exposure to MC may make the symptoms of angina (chest pains) worse. Skin exposure to liquid MC may cause irritation. If liquid MC remains on the skin, it may cause skin burns. Splashes of the liquid into the eyes may cause irritation.

2. Long-term (chronic) exposure:

The best evidence that MC causes cancer is from laboratory studies in which rats, mice and hamsters inhaled MC 6 hours per day, 5 days per week for 2 years. MC exposure produced lung and liver tumors in mice and mammary tumors in rats. No carcinogenic effects of MC were found in hamsters.
There are also some human epidemiological studies which show an association between occupational exposure to MC and increases in biliary (bile duct) cancer and a type of brain cancer. Other epidemiological studies have not observed a relationship between MC exposure and cancer. OSHA interprets these results to mean that there is suggestive (but not absolute) evidence that MC is a human carcinogen.

dtripoli · #15 11-22-2012, 11:21 AM

Please, no more Cal-Osha details. For God's sake, we aren't applying this stuff daily in huge quantities. I deal with OSHA on a weekly basis with work and those guys spend more time justifying their need for existence than actually safeguarding workers.
We are talking bass repair here not government oversight.

SurferJoe46 · #16 11-22-2012, 11:22 AM

Well - if you're a lab rat, it would be interesting.

dtripoli · #17 11-24-2012, 02:08 PM

This here "lab rat" successfully removed all traces of paint from the tuners, strap nuts, screws
and tree without enduring the wrath of Khan or Cal-OSHA.
Took tuners apart and soak everything except the plastic spacers in Dot 3 Brake fluid.
Let sit over night then brushed with a soft wire brush. Afterwards, cleaned off brake fluid with
Dawn dish washing soap and water, then dried. Lightly WD-40'd the gears.
Unfortunately the previous paint-happy owner had used a fine grit sandpaper on the chrome
to rough it up so the black paint would adhere better. Looks OK and sort of has a relic'ed look to them.
Getting this beater Squier has been a great way to learn basic bass repair without the worry
of damaging an expensive instrument

SurferJoe46 · #18 11-24-2012, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dtripoli

This here "lab rat" successfully removed all traces of paint from the tuners, strap nuts, screws
and tree without enduring the wrath of Khan or Cal-OSHA.
Took tuners apart and soak everything except the plastic spacers in Dot 3 Brake fluid.
Let sit over night then brushed with a soft wire brush. Afterwards, cleaned off brake fluid with
Dawn dish washing soap and water, then dried. Lightly WD-40'd the gears.
Unfortunately the previous paint-happy owner had used a fine grit sandpaper on the chrome to rough it up so the black paint would adhere better. Looks OK and sort of has a relic'ed look to them.
Getting this beater Squier has been a great way to learn basic bass repair without the worry
of damaging an expensive instrument

People like that need their thumbs bent severely.

**waterboy** · #19 11-24-2012, 03:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SurferJoe46

People like that need their thumbs bent severely.

Lost my coffee on that one. Good stuff.

dtripoli · #20 11-25-2012, 08:53 PM

Rebuild/repair went great. Got everything back together. P-Bass has a great tone and decent playability.
This bass was born in July 03(was stamped on neck butt end) and never had a damn thing done to it except abuse. Neck had never been adjusted and even with many turns on the truss rod over a 3 day period, still has a slight bow. I guess the wood compressed from years of being allowed to be bowed. Other than that, it is now my bass at arms length when ever I get the urge to play w/o having to unpack my gig bass. I thought I'd have to replace the pickups but they are solid and great tone.