HELP ME!!! Rat Fur Removal Advice Needed

[ColonelZulu]

This week, I jumped into a project to refinish my rat-fur covered Epifani Cabinets. I started with the 410 as it was pretty gnarled, pilled, and torn.

I thought I had all I needed. From what I read, you can generally pull it off with a heat gun for assistance and a plaster knife.

Disasterous. The fabric pretty much disintegrated leaving nasty pulled furry patches all over the surface looking worse than Sydney Crosby’s “beard”

I tried a razor scraper. That tended to gauge wood and get gummed up. I tried a couple of solvents. They both worked at losening the glue, but it ended up just turning the cabinet surface into a gooey layer of black swampy hairy stickiness.

I tried a rotary palm sander. It ended up melting the fabric-glue mix, hardening it in swirls all over the cabinet. I could not sand through it because it quickly gummed up even 80-grit sandpaper pads.

I may have to sand blast it.

Seriously, if I don’t get a real solution to this, I’m going to try wood bondo all over the surface and just sand it smooth and laying the tolex over that.

I’ll probably send my other cabinet out for the professionals.

Any advice, in the meantime, is greatly appreciated.

 

[briandavismurph]

I Would seriously consider the Herculiner Bed liner stuff. You roll it on like paint and it is tough stuff. Looks good too.

 

[monkeyland]

Fire.

Or put a plant in it.

 

[ColonelZulu]

I Would seriously consider the Herculiner Bed liner stuff. You roll it on like paint and it is tough stuff. Looks good too.

I was considering that. But I went with the Tolex, which I already bought.
Getting the hair/glue residue is still the issue, regardless of the material I go with to resurface.

 

[mapleglo]

Once you pull off as much as the rat fur as possible, I'd go at it with an orbital sander.

BLACK+DECKER 5 in. Random Orbital Sander Disc-BDERO100 - The Home Depot

 

[ColonelZulu]

Once you pull off as much as the rat fur as possible, I'd go at it with an orbital sander.

BLACK+DECKER 5 in. Random Orbital Sander Disc-BDERO100 - The Home Depot

Tried that. The glue/hair combination quickly gums up the sanding pad leaving it useless other than to “melt” the material into thicker swirled patches

 

[mapleglo]

Tried that. The glue/hair combination quickly gums up the sanding pad leaving it useless other than to “melt” the material into thicker swirled patches

What grit disc are you using? 60?

 

[ColonelZulu]

80

See above

“I tried a rotary palm sander. It ended up melting the fabric-glue mix, hardening it in swirls all over the cabinet. I could not sand through it because it quickly gummed up even 80-grit sandpaper pads.”

 

[mapleglo]

Hmmm, maybe a belt sander. They make 36 grit belts.

 

[ColonelZulu]

One pass and clogged

 

[MultiScaleMale]

Find someone with woodworking skills/tools that can build a similar cabinet or see if something exists from one of the cab suppliers. Barring that, contact Epifani and find out what glue they used to see if there are any solvents that will allow removal of the glue.

 

[mpdd]

Gotta start over I'm afraid.

Put it back on and shave it into a hipster beard

 

[braud357]

try some paint stripper - worked on the residue left on a cabinet I refurbished a while back

 

[ultra60]

I'll 2nd the belt sander suggestion. I removed the rat fur from a pair of subs. Belt sander was the only thing that got it all off.

 

[tr4252]

If the glue gums up your sander (because of the heat generated by the friction), then maybe it's a hot melt glue. Some times in the past, I've used a heat gun in conjunction with duct tape; the tackier the better, to remove stuff like what you have on your cabinet. I'd warm up the surface, press on a length of tape, and peel it off before the thing gets a chance to cool. Worked good on contact adhesives, not sure it would be much good with all that hair, but what have you got to lose? Good luck!

Tom

 

[Maynjo]

I agree with the fire situation. Is there a way to safely burn most of it off?

 

[Bugeyed Earl]

A cabinet scraper would probably do it, but it'll be pretty tedious. I've run into the problem when de-furring a cabinet, you just have to try a few different approaches until you figure out what works.

Don't give up, you can skin this rat!

 

[robd]

I'll 2nd paint stripper - worked on a couple Eden cabs I did to remove the goo. Put it on, let it soak then scrape off

 

[ColonelZulu]

I'll 2nd paint stripper - worked on a couple Eden cabs I did to remove the goo. Put it on, let it soak then scrape off

Any specific brand of paint stripper?

 

[Doug Parent]

I stripped an Epifani 410 cab once. What a bear.
I use a sharp chisel and a heat gun. Sometimes I have used a dremel type tool with a thin scraper blade and a heat gun blasting ahead of the vibrating blade. Heat melts the glue and the blade pushes it out of the way. You have to work in small areas at a time. Good luck. I will never do that job again.