What is the best way to remove paint from the exterior surface of a Barth? I've been told that sandblasting will create too much heat and warp the aluminum. I've been told that even media blasting using the plastic beads will produce a pitted surface that would be fine if you're going to paint it but I'm not. I'm going to polish it like an Airstream. I've used the plastic pads that body shops use and they leave scratches. I've got time, 70 year old strength but not much money. Want to get it looking good for the East Coast rally in September.
Jim

A 4" orbital sander works fine, as long as you keep it FLAT...You can go down to as low as 400 grit (600 better but takes longer). Any quality aluminum polish will take out swirl marks created by 400 or higher grit.

Welcome to the world of sweat, dirt and sore muscles....You'll look back at the project with great pride and ask yourself, "What in the hell ever possessed me to do THAT?!"

Good Luck!

I've had good luck with aircraft paint stripper available at AutoZone. I wear a respirator and acid resistant gloves. Every little speck of stripper will burn like a fireant.

The best stripper, Turco, is no longer available, due to the EPA. Whatever you get, make sure it's safe for aluminum - the same for the polish (Avoid abrasizes). Met-All is what I used to use for my airplane (at least the one with some bare metal).

I had two airplanes painted by AOG (http://www.aogpaint.com/) after we tried to do what you have in mind - Why? Well you have lots of holes on the skin of the coach where the pop rivets are placed and stripper get inside and eats the insulation between the steel frame and the aluminum which leads to galvanic corrosion. You also have lots of caulking at seams (even though it is hard to see, Barth did a good job) and it will be destroyed by the stripper. Then of course there are various metals and plastics in addition to the aluminum they all will be affected by stripper. The AOG people can use soda blasting (it is Baking soda) which avoids the chemical destruction and they can treat the aluminum after to slow down oxidation while keeping he shiny appearance. Sanding and grinding should never be done - it thins the metal, destroys fasteners and cannot be uniformly done. I would suggest calling AOG, taking a trip to Arkansas, (it is lovely most of the year) and saving up your money to do it right. Good luck

If you want to go the chemical-stripping route, consider Removall-220. It's water based, non-toxic & biodegradeable. Approved by Boeing.
Go to:

www.napierenvironmental.com.
The stripper uses hydrogen peroxide as the active ingredient. It works by penetrating the paint to the aluminum where it reacts as a catalyst to create oxygen that forces the paint away from the surface it is adhering to. It is not classed as a hazardous material, and the residue contains only water, oxygen and paint. It has only trace amounts of solvents and does not give off solvent fumes.

From my experience, if you go the mechanical route, 400-600 grit abrasive on the painted surfaces will never reduce stock thickness enough to be an issue. (aircraft maybe - Barth no)

I converted a bus back in the early 90s and because of a shortage of money I had to strip the bus myself. Also being a lazy fellow I felt there had to be a eazy way to do it.

I went to the hardware store and bought the cheapest stripper they had, loaded it into an old paint spayer and laid down a nice coat and stood back and watched the paint bubble. Then to remove it I used a pressure washer. In a few places I had to repeat.

I ended up with unpainted aluminum which in my case I repainted with primer.

Tom K, I called AOG and they told me that all they do is chemical stripping. They seemed to think that the stripper getting behind the rivets would not be a problem. I don't want to remove all the running lights, so how would one protect them if you used the chemical stripper? Maybe I can do both mechanical and chemical stripping. Use the mechanical on the large areas on the chemical on the small ones. But the Removal 220 sounds like a very friendly product. Has anybody ever actually used it?

There is a special masking tape that is chemical resistant that is used around the nav lights (wing tips, flasher strobe, etc.) that is applied before the stripper is used. I also heard of a paste type that is brushed on the part to be protected that works. I would call them back and ask for the naems of the products they use. The reason they are so popular is that most areas of the country are in air quality non-attainment status by the EPA and can't use open strippers or things like MEK or Toluene. Though they specialize in airplanes the process of stripping a BARTH is the same as their prime customers. If you want to do this yourself I would consider buying the materials from them and getting their advice on the protection issues of the lights, gaskets (doors and windows) and how to deal with the hinges and such that are carbon steel or brass, or stainless steel. I applaud you on the interest, you are embarking on a very major project.

I forgot to mention that I replaced all my lower doors when I saw corrosion pin holes. If you find that as you strip the coach you might think about the same process I used. I am copying this from my earlier post because I don't know how to refer you any other way:
After trying to repair the blisters that Bill H is dealing with I started checking my industrial friends. Eventually I came across Whiting Door Company in Western New York. They make aluminum honeycomb panels in a variety of thicknesses and components. I measured each of the 8 doors that have evidence of blisters (because of the luan and insulation)and then discussed what I wanted. They offered to fabricate aluminum skin panels with aluminum honeycomb cores in the sizes I needed. I could choose the gauge of the aluminum for the face and inside and the overall thickness of the panel. The original is 0.020 thickness with the luan etc. sandwiched. I chose .050 for both sides with overall thickness of .75 inches. They treat the entire components to retard corrosion and cut to size. While each order may differ, I received 8 panels to insert in my existing edge channels (they can also make the whole thing), all ready to mount and then paint to match the coach. My price - under $500 depending on shipping (I am in Texas so it's more). As an alternative to making them yourself you might want to call them. Whiting Door Company (716)542-5427
The extra thickness and lack of wood and foam will make these outlast me and the next three owners.
Tom

Thanks for all the advice, Tom. The fellow at AOG was very helpful. The chemical they use is flamable and sounded a little more dangerous than I'm equipped to deal with. So I called Napier,the company Lee suggested, and they make a stripper that is very environmentally friendly. You brush it on and wait 1 1/2 hours and take it off with a squeegee. The residue has almost no chemical in it. It doesn't burn your hands and you can do as much of an area or as little as you want to. So I ordered 5 gallons which should be enough to do the whole thing. Wasn't cheap, $280.00, but that's a lot less than having someone else do it. My idea is to leave the area below the windows polished aluminum and paint from the bottom of the windows up one of the original Barth schemes. A lot of the Prevost conversions are like this and they look really good. Maybe I'll call it a mini-Prevost, or Barthvost, or Prevostbarth, or???
By the way Tom, that's one good looking Barth you have. I've always yearned for a 32', but I'm happy with my Regal.
Jim

I saw Vintage Trailer has the RemoveAll 220 for $209.95 for 5 gal. Check it out at http://www.vintagetrailersupply.com/ProductDetails.asp?...=VTS-3141&click=7581