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Post subject: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 12:20 pm
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My first and only Mexi Standard Tele has always sounded AWESOME! My favorite guitar. Metal, hard rock, country folk... name it. It was a present to me in the early 90's. But the finish was never my favorite thing. SN MN2107295

I happen to be a lover of pink ( yes all while retaining my masculinity ) I wanted a pink guitar, and BAD! I didn't want to buy a new tele because I didn't want to play a different tele. So I decided to take my guitar and strip it and refinish it. I know a guy who does this to old rifles... he said "Yeah just get some quick strip, submerge it, wait and scrape" So who couldn't do that right? Me apparently.

I have tried this several times. and it won't get any more stripped. After the first failed stripping attempt ( I used the brush on method described on kleanstrip container ) When that didn't work I took to my oscillating radial sander. After about what seemed like minutes on top of minutes of trying to get the finish off with that I went to a heat gun, which was equally inefficient.

So I gave up for a while and recently, rifle man said "Dude, I told you to submerge it" So I did that today and it just aint working. Everyone I know who has stripped guitars, furniture and anything else with paint on it is telling me "I am not sure what the hell you are doing wrong but it should just be shlopping off" So this begs the question.... what the hell am I doing wrong?

Got a bin, submerged the damn thing for 30 minutes, checked it... not scrapping off ( plastic scrapper ) checked it after an hour, no dice, checked it after 1:30... no dice. At 2 hours I decided to try to sand and again nothin.

Fellas.... I can't take it... i want to play my tele... i want the damn thing to be pink... Has anyone done this... any idea what method works best. I am a DIY guy, I DIY everything and I have never had this much trouble with guitar stuff. I can do my own electronics, fret work, name it.... except strip and refinish!


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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 12:32 pm
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It's a well known fact that the only survivors of a thermonuclear holocaust would be cockroaches and Fender poly finished guitars. :mrgreen:


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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 12:35 pm
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I think paint on some guitar are very tough to strip more than furniture. I have a friend do that 2 time and it is a very hard job. He have to use some stripping paint and sand paper too.

IMO paint stripping products are not all good


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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 12:53 pm
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Two awesome insightful posts. Thank you.


stratele52 *- In your opinion can you recommend a paint stripping product?
Vulpinity - I am starting to hate Fender Poly finishes equally as much as I hate cockroaches!


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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 1:28 pm
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I try a paint stripping from Home Depot , sorry I can't remember the name. Not sur if it is a very good one but it do the job on a furniture .

I never strip a guitar paint.


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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 2:01 pm
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Location: Cow Pens Island, NJ (USA)
Much like modern consumer paint products, paint strippers have been weakened and diluted of strength because of environmental reasons, and litigation from stupid people who miss-use such products.
It's difficult for the average consumer to find and purchase a paint stripper that will easily remove any type of poly finish. On top of that you need to be careful of submerging and soaking a guitar body in a wet solution, the wood can absorb those chemicals changing the tonal characteristics of the guitar body.
The only suggestion I could offer is to try wetting the poly surface with acetone to see if that doesn't soften the finish enough to scrape and/or sand it off, just be careful of the fumes and flammability of acetone. Acetone has a very high evaporation rate and very little will actually soak into the wood......

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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 3:17 pm
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TonyMig wrote:
The only suggestion I could offer is to try wetting the poly surface with acetone to see if that doesn't soften the finish enough to scrape and/or sand it off, just be careful of the fumes and flammability of acetone. Acetone has a very high evaporation rate and very little will actually soak into the wood......


This guy tried to strip his guitar finish with acetone. He really didn't know what he was doing.

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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 4:39 pm
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NO...actually he used lighter fluid and a match, and it did strip some of the finish off, but his guitar was finished in lacquer not poly......

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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 4:44 pm
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All your questions, solution here:

http://www.stewmac.com/tsarchive/ts0151.html

(answers may be a little painful though!)


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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 4:53 pm
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Great tips. Thank you
raeldridge - Not painful at all, had I known that was such an efficient method I suppose I would have stuck with it! I suppose all I need is to get a heat gun... damnit!

No pain no gain.

Good excuse to buy something eh?

Every one of you have been fantastic! Thank you for such quick enthusiastic responses.


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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 6:17 pm
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TonyMig wrote:
NO...actually he used lighter fluid and a match, and it did strip some of the finish off, but his guitar was finished in lacquer not poly......


Ummm, it was a joke man. I'm sure you've heard of those. :roll:

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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 7:09 pm
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bluesky636 wrote:
TonyMig wrote:
NO...actually he used lighter fluid and a match, and it did strip some of the finish off, but his guitar was finished in lacquer not poly......


Ummm, it was a joke man. I'm sure you've heard of those. :roll:
Now, Bill, you know there's nothing funny about removing the finish from a Fender guitar, regardless of the method used... :mrgreen:

Hey, I got it, okay?! Tony probably just takes life more seriously than you or me.

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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 7:22 pm
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CRGuitarMan wrote:
Tony probably just takes life more seriously than you or me.


That's too bad. :(

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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2012 7:21 am
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See...now this is why we need a sarcasm font for these internet message boards....

I know you were being funny, and I appreciated your sense of humor, in return I was being humorously sarcastic, but you evidently did not see that in my post.....

No harm, no foul.....and trust me fellas, there's not much in life I do take too seriously.....

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Post subject: Re: Stripping a Tele
Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2012 7:55 am
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TonyMig wrote:
See...now this is why we need a sarcasm font for these internet message boards....

I know you were being funny, and I appreciated your sense of humor, in return I was being humorously sarcastic, but you evidently did not see that in my post.....

No harm, no foul.....and trust me fellas, there's not much in life I do take too seriously.....


I find this usually works: :wink:

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