Removing paint and resin from Stainless Hardware

[Spot]

I have some pintels and misc. hardware on a rudder that were slopped with paint and polyester resin (styrene smell when sanded) before I got the boat. Just repainted the wood and want to spruce up the re-install without buying all new everything.


Any tips for cleaning these up? Do strong solvents or strippers mess with the 'stainlessness' of the stainless steel- passivation and/or electro-polish?


I may just get the 4 bolts and lock nuts for the pintels as a preventative thing.


Thanks!

[JPA Cate]

I scritch stuff like that off with a knife (which needs sharpening often, I'm afraid) If it leaves scratches on the pintles that you don't like, you can polish them with rubbing compound, sometimes called cutting compound, then polish with Wichinox. It is a passivating polish, and requires to "rest" in the shade, which should be easy for you to manage with the boat on a trailer.

Ann

[coopec43]

Won't a plastic paint/putty scraper do the job?


I always start off using a credit card (or something similar)


If that doesn't do the job I'd try a metal paint/putty scraper.


My experience with resin on metal is that it won't stick tenaciously.

[Nicholson58]

Hardware/lumber places have a rubbery block like an eraser. It is available with fine, medium, coarse carbide impregnated. Get only the fine. We use it to polish stainless and remove ‘tea stains’. It will cut paint and epoxy. Stripper won’t hurt metal.

[Spot]

Thanks Everyone!
I picked at the small pintel with thumbnail, old ID card from the motor club, and a little carburetor cleaner and paper towel. About 5 minutes of elapsed time it is 95+ percent clean. I can see that the mark is FICO AUSTRALIA and that people before me have gouged it with various tools. The larger pintels have the added joy of some RTV orange gasket goop on the inner faces.

[Spot]

I hit the bigger ones with carb cleaner first.
The paint flowed right off with the spray
RTV is around the bolt holes, resin and MDF 'paper' is on the insides.
I will have to look for the polish and eraser next time I am to the home improvement store.

[Aquadome]

Try some plastic razor type blades. They are good to have in your toolkit in any case.

[Cheechako]

Propane torch to get the thick stuff off. SS is fine with that temp, just dont linger a long time, which you wont need to, to loosen the resin/paint. Paint stripper for any paint residue.

[Boatyarddog]

Originally Posted by Spot

Thanks Everyone!
I picked at the small pintel with thumbnail, old ID card from the motor club, and a little carburetor cleaner and paper towel. About 5 minutes of elapsed time it is 95+ percent clean. I can see that the mark is FICO AUSTRALIA and that people before me have gouged it with various tools. The larger pintels have the added joy of some RTV orange gasket goop on the inner faces.

Use a wire wheel on a drill.
You can regulate the pressure on the wheel.
No scratching, polish up with soft wheel polishing pad and drill as well, some compound helps.
SV Cloud Duster

[Mithril Bham]

Poly wheel.
Grinding wheel with flap disk will take it right off.
Make sure you don't use a wheel that has previously been used on steel or will impregnate SS and rust

[billgewater]

FICO was (Field Instrument Company) was an Australian company that made a wide range of excellent SS products. As did Ronstan. However I believe FICO went to the wall. Getting exact replacements may not be possible.

[Mithril Bham]

I meant polishing wheel with rouge.
For this job possibly a rotary tool like a Dremel with the right polishing compound.

[Spot]

Thanks Everyone for the additional tips!
I have a small wire wheel for a drill, various rotary tool attatchments, and an old set of 4 buffing compound sticks and a couple cotton wheels originally meant for a 6" bench grinder.. I hope I kept the little card that says which stick is which is which and that they have not aged out from sitting in the garage for over a decade...and a couple of torches!

[Spot]

I went after the larger pintels.
-Carb cleaner to remove easy paint and resin.
-Heat and metal scraper to remove large chunks of resin
-Pick at stubborn areas with scraper or razor blade
-Repeat using sequence heat-scrape-cleaner-pick.
It only took a couple minutes on each step for each pintel.

I am pleased with where they are at, deciding whether or not to polish. Looks like white rouge would be the preferred sauce for this.
I am missing the attachments for the rotary tool, not sure if I misplaced them or if someone borrowed them.
The wire wheel has been used for multiple messes, concerned it could contaminate, seems like I am past that step now anyways.
The flannel wheel and compounds are new old stock still in the box.
Wishing I had a 3" (75mm) flannel wheel for the drill press, I may have loaned out the bench grinder too...

Thanks for all the tips. I need to look into the new generation plastic razor blades and scrapers.

[akopac]

Heat gun and scraper