Need help with some paint

[juliusmichaelhonrada]

What is the best way to remove urethane paint , from the mag wheels and the footpeg sets without sanding ? Is it okay to just use bare aluminum on them for a 1987 bike , or it is dangerous? i had some experience with an old zzr400 where i was bleeding the rear brake then the brake lever just broke off from the whole footpeg set, it doesn't have any paint it was bare aluminum.

[jkv45]

Chemical stripper would be the way to do it, but you would need to disassemble as much as possible and make sure no stripper gets anywhere else.

Bare aluminum will corrode. Most of the parts that look like bare aluminum are clear anodized to keep them from corroding.

Bare parts aren't going to be fragile though, so I don't think it had anything to do with the lever braking. Most likely it had developed a crack.

[juliusmichaelhonrada]

Originally Posted by jkv45

Chemical stripper would be the way to do it, but you would need to disassemble as much as possible and make sure no stripper gets anywhere else.

Bare aluminum will corrode. Most of the parts that look like bare aluminum are clear anodized to keep them from corroding.

Bare parts aren't going to be fragile though, so I don't think it had anything to do with the lever braking. Most likely it had developed a crack.

Thanks man , will the chemical stripper hurt rubber parts like that one in the footpegs and the tires?

[FrugalNinja250]

Chemical strippers like methylene chloride will destroy plastics and most rubbers, but will not harm any metals including aluminum. In fact, methylene chloride was developed to strip paint from aluminum airplane bodies, hence the common nickname of "airplane stripper". Citrus-based strippers aren't anywhere near as effective, but they are safer. MC will kill you if you use it in an enclosed space.

A recommendation is to use a specific brand called Talstrip. It has microspheres and a formulation that makes it into a gel that doesn't run off nearly as bad as regular varieties, and it dries to a flaky consistency that's easy to scrape off with a plastic scraper and is suitable for plain trash disposal. It's pricey, but a little goes a long way.

[Triple Jim]

Keep anything containing methylene chloride off your skin and don't breathe the fumes. I know this firsthand. Luckily the damage wasn't permanent, or at least most of it wasn't.

[jkv45]

Originally Posted by Triple Jim

Keep anything containing methylene chloride off your skin and don't breathe the fumes. I know this firsthand. Luckily the damage wasn't permanent, or at least most of it wasn't.

Were you burned by MC or did you inhale the fumes? Are there any lasting affects?

I use it daily, and always wear full hazmat gear. MC is bad, but other common additives in chemical stripper like hydrofluoric acid are even more dangerous.

[juliusmichaelhonrada]

I had experience with a paint stripper but im not sure what is the chemical in it , i got it in a hardware store cheap , when it hits any part of my skin , it feels very hot and itchy like an ant bite but far worst . I used that on my aluminum mag wheels , it did hit the tires there was a brown stain that i cant remove eversince but no cracks or whatsoever.

Although my goal was to strip the paint and expose clean shiny aluminum mags instead i got aluminum with white strips , and ended up sanding it buffing it even after the paint stripper , which was triple work, i should had just sanded it down by hand

[Triple Jim]

Originally Posted by jkv45

Were you burned by MC or did you inhale the fumes? Are there any lasting affects?

I use it daily, and always wear full hazmat gear. MC is bad, but other common additives in chemical stripper like hydrofluoric acid are even more dangerous.

It was back in the '80s when people were just starting to use some caution around chemicals. I often used methylene chloride for things around the shop like welding Plexiglas, and cleaning and degreasing thngs. I bought an old vertical mill and wanted to get the grease off of it and repaint it. I didn't use a respirator or even gloves. Over many days, I used paper towels dipped in MC to clean a part, then painted it. Around that time my dentist noticed the start of a gum infection and said he saw that among college students near finals, when they were not getting enough sleep and being generally run down. He gave me a rinse to stop the symptom, but suggested I see my doctor to see if something else was wrong. The doctor did a blood test and said I had a low platelet count. He then assumed I was an alcoholic and told me to stop drinking for a month. I did, and my platelet count was lower on the next blood test. He sent me out for another month of non-drinking. Then a friend in dental school heard my story and asked if I had been exposed to any odd chemicals or solvents. The light bulb in my head went off, and I quit using MC until my next blood test, but resumed having a beer or two when I felt like it. The next test showed normal platelet count and I quit going to that quack of a doctor, who assumed I was an alcoholic without even discussing other possible causes of low platelet count with me.

I assume I don't have any lasting effects, but I guess I can't be sure. My liver function has been normal since then, so that's a good sign. I rarely use MC, and when I do, I make sure I don't breathe it, and I don't get it on my skin.

[jkv45]

Glad to hear you have recovered completely.

The stuff I use (MC and hydrofluoric acid ) will take your skin right off. I've seen photos of people that have scars from over a year after being exposed. The MC bubbles the skin (just like it does paint or powder) but the hydrofluoric acid continues to leach into your bones even after you think it's washed off, causing all sorts of nasty medical issues.

I try to be super careful, but the combination is one of the best coating stripper out there and there are times where nothing else will do what I need.

[Triple Jim]

I guess MC has to be on your skin for a long time to do much damage, because back in those days I didn't bother keeping it off, and the worst symptom I ever had after a few minutes of exposure was some redness and a little burning. No matter though, it's bad stuff and needs to be used only with proper precautions like you use, and I use now.

[juliusmichaelhonrada]

Originally Posted by jkv45

Glad to hear you have recovered completely.

The stuff I use (MC and hydrofluoric acid ) will take your skin right off. I've seen photos of people that have scars from over a year after being exposed. The MC bubbles the skin (just like it does paint or powder) but the hydrofluoric acid continues to leach into your bones even after you think it's washed off, causing all sorts of nasty medical issues.

I try to be super careful, but the combination is one of the best coating stripper out there and there are times where nothing else will do what I need.

Hell , HF acid is the most scary chemical on earth that thing can eat through glass , it will suck the calcium out of your body and cause cardiac arrest (your body needs calcium for the muscle's electrochemical stimuli) even as little as 1 drop can kill you if not neutralized soon enough

[jkv45]

Originally Posted by juliusmichaelhonrada

Hell , HF acid is the most scary chemical on earth that thing can eat through glass , it will suck the calcium out of your body and cause cardiac arrest (your body needs calcium for the muscle's electrochemical stimuli) even as little as 1 drop can kill you if not neutralized soon enough

Strips coatings great though!

I'm really careful when working with it.