Removing paint from lexan

[timie1]

Does anyone know a SAFE way to remove paint from lexan? My paint is chipping in places and now it's time to redo it. I've tried brake cleaner but that eats the lexan so I won't touch the stuff any more.

Please help!!!!

[FESTER2004]

you can try denatured alchoal,but why is the paint chipping?its eatheir the the wrong paint or the body was cleaned/rinsed good before you spray it?

i hate to say it but it would be easier to get another body?

[Mini-TBasher55]

paint thinner. I think theres a special solution you can you...JConcepts includes an instruction sheet saying what you can do, so if anyone has one sitting around maybe you could post it?

Festers right though, getting another body would be easier.

[catman42]

EASY, Use brake fluid. brush it on or let the body soak in it for a while. paint comes off pretty easily. This is a trick I learned by building plastic model airplanes. Works on enamel paints too.

[catman42]

almost forgot, it won't cloud the lexan!

[timie1]

Thanks Catman. I have tried brake cleaner, but it eats the lexan. I take it brake fluid is a lot less caustic?

I was rummaging around in the basement and I found some heavy duty cutting compound I used years ago when re-painting my real car. I tried this and it works really well. It requires some elbow grease, or a dremel polishing wheel, but it takes it off nicely.

[67Camaro]

Nitro Fuel. Nitro fuel works the best but it takes a while to work and doesnt work with all paints. Try it on a small area, let it soak and then just wipe it off with a cloth. It wont cloud the lexan but will leave a filmy residue which can then be easily removed with a degreaser like simple green. DONT USE brake fluid or oven cleaer, those are for hard plastic bodies and will just eat away the lexan. I dont know about alchohol.

Also, unless the body is very rare or expensive, its usually better just to buy a new one because this takes a long time. When I did it, it was on a Tamiya Porsche 959 Body and as you know these sometimes go for 2-3 hundred so it was worth it. It took me about 4-5 hours to do it. Hope this helps. If you have any questions, drop me an email.

[catman42]

yes brake fluid is less caustic. Despite what 67camaro said, it will NOT eat away or cloud the lexan. I just saved a poorly painted body using nothing but brake fluid. It will remove water base and the spray can type lexan paints. Just takes a while. Cleans up pretty good with soap and water when done.

[timie1]

Thanks all of you for your suggestions. Is there anything wrong with clouding the lexan? I have sanded with 1000 grit wet & dry sandpaper at one point, a lexan wing on my buggy. If the plan is to paint it, sanding it with really smooth, and wet sandpaper, it actually makes the paint stick so much better, and the cloudiness doesn't show through with paint on. Obviously, it's not good to make cloudy windows if the plan is keep them clear, but the rest I don't see much of an issue, especially with dark coloured paints. I haven't tried white or other light paints with clouded lexan (from sanding) though.

[catman42]

just referring to removing old paint. I'm sure you don't want to mask off the windows while trying to remove old paint.

[VW_Factor]

Just did the brake fluid trick on an old lexan body for an old 10T. Worked well, and sure enough, didnt cloud the lexan. However, the previous paint that was put on the body did cloud the lexan.. :(

I know the brake fluid didnt do it, because the "windows" were not painted and they stayed clear, but where the paint was removed was clouded.

[Mini-TBasher55]

All that really matters is the windows. The cloudy lexan won't be noticable once painted :)

[VW_Factor]

All that really matters is the windows. The cloudy lexan won't be noticable once painted :)

Good infoz. :D

That makes me happy.

[catman42]

Where the paint was was probably scuffed to allow the paint to adhere to the lexan better.

[VW_Factor]

Either that, or some harsh paint. It looked and felt like old school Krylon paint. (Xylene or whatever)

Edit : I saw that because the paint was flaking in some areas, and the clouding was not as severe in these areas. This was for a body for my old 10T. I dont remember who painted it, as I dont remember painting it. Its like an early 90s Chevy body or something.

[timie1]

Update:
Since starting this thread, I've removed all paint from the inside of the body with some auto cutting compound and then given it a really good clean. I was careful not to get the stuff on the windows, so they are pretty much as good as new. I then sanded the body with 1000 grit wet and dry sandpaper with running water pouring over the body. Yes the lexan was cloudy and I did doubt why I had started it in the first place. While there was no paint on the lexan I decided now is the time to make that body scoop I need so I can fit the MM esc under the body without it pushing it up about 8 mm. I went searching my box of goodies for scrap lexan and found a perfect bit that I knew I could form into a perfect scoop. I then drilled a hole on the body just where the ESC touched it. With the reaming bit on the dremel, I enlarged that hole. With my lexan I found for the scoop, after much checking, sanding, reshaping it slightly and then more sanding to get the fit right, I glued it on top of the hole I made. I used 2 part epoxy which works REALLY well, it fills in any gaps where the lexan meets the scoop. Oh, before I glued the scoop on, I painted it my new colour. With it on, I figured it would be too hard to paint the inside of it. After the glue dried overnight, I did the new paint scheme. It turned out perfectly. Clouded lexan paints fine and you don't notice it at all. The only thing that gives it away that it's not the original paint job is the slight wear and tear on the outside of the lexan, the bit that get's scratched when it rolls :P My invention I'm most happy with is my scoop, now the body fits over the Mamba Max ESC without any bits of it being pushed up. Apply a few decals here and there to help mask the epoxy (which when applied correctly, settles nicely creating a professional "smooth" join without sanding the glue afterward). This air damn/scoop now also aids in getting some cool air into the body to cool the ESC. If I find I need more cool air, I can enlarge the hole a bit more.

I also painted the wing, which was brand new. I used the same 1000 grit paper on it before I painted it. That turned out perfectly. Even on brand new lexan sanding it with really fine sandpaper is beneficial. It scuffs the surface just enough for the paint to adhere better. You can't see it when it's painted. I can't think of a reason to NOT sand it lightly, especially on the wings seeing as they are prone to paint flaking all the time.

[FESTER2004]

that came out awesome!congrats for pulling it off!

[Bnoland]

Lacquer paint thinner works but you have to be very careful because it can melt the body. It pulls paint off clean and leaves the body clear and unclouded. BE VERY CAREFUL

[savagekid94]

nice i would have screwd it up. for the future Parma's faskleaner takes of faskolor paint and it is non toxic!!! so indoor use is fine. what paint did you use?

[timie1]

Thanks, yeah I am happy with it, considering the amount of butchering it has been through.

I had originally used Tamiya Acrylic paints in the airbrush. They've never let me down in the past. However, maybe the cold (-10°C) didn't agree with it. One light hit into a curb because of too much mamba power on freezing roads, and it damaged the paint a lot all around the front body mount. And it also actually broke my servo, which is odd because it wasn't all that hard. I think the cold made everything go rigid and brittle.

I have since used Duplicolor auto paint from automotive shops. I have used this type of paint in the past long before I got the airbrush and seems to work really well. The colours I chose with the duplicolor paint is as close as I can get to the Tamiya paints.
Actually, I was planning to spray some paint from the cans into the reservoir for the airbrush and use that to spray it on instead of from a rattle can. But once I tried the cans, I was fine. It may have been a bit easier for the stripes of the Volkswagen Pearl Black colour, but hey, it worked, this time!!! :D The blue is a GM colour, and the metallic dark grey is Honda Pewter (I picked the Honda just because I like Honda's, even though each other company has their own version of the same colour ;))