Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[James22391]

Does anyone have any advice on how to strip paint effectively off a triumph herald, also does anyone know any good respray centers in somerset?

Cheers James

[Rick]

Hi

You could sand it off by hand, or with a drill attachment, if you want to go back to bare metal. Make sure you repaint it soon afterwards else it'll start to rust! dont 'dig in' too much with the sander though coz you may end up scratching the metal, which could show up under the new paint. An attachment fitted to an angle grinder may well be too severe if not careful.

Paint stripper is a gentler, but slower approach, and is really messy. You have to make sure all the stripper is removed from every nook and cranny prior to paint. Wear gloves, and do it in a reasonably well ventilated area.

Sand, grit or media blasting is an extreme option, but may damage the flat panelwork of a Herald unless done with great care. You'd either have to buy your own plant to use with a compressor (dust and grit goes everywhere) or else pay up for a pro to do it (££).

However you go about it, protect your eyes and wear a breathing mask.

hth
Rick

[rustyreks]

James i dont know what shape the paint job is on your herald but if it is tidy just faded etc there is no reason to strip it right back unless you wish to fully restore back to original.If you wish to use the car regularly and keep the cost down you only have to take the shine off the old paint to give the new paint something to stick to.Again if it has been painted a few times then it maybe best to strip it down to bare metal the more you take off the more cost and work you have to do.Do you know any trust worthy spray painters in your area who could advise.Even if there is damage to the existing paint work you can prime any bare metal or fill any scratchs or dents or fix rust etc.I am contemplating repainting some old cars i am doing up and will take this method myself my thinking is if it doesnt need fixing leave it alone.

[Uncle Joe]

If you were going to paint it yousef, then I would say use a DA sander. But, if you are going to use a pro. sprayer, get him to do it!

Doing it yourself, then taking it to a centre will not work, due to flash rust!

[chimpchoker]

I was in this quandry with the jag but I had the intention of stripping back to bare metal as I want a proper restoration on this car. I was going to sand blast it back to bare metal then bead blast the rust. I was told about rippling the body panels...... so I looked at plastic media blasting and walnut shell blasting and whilst better than sand it was going to be about £800 all in.

I thought dipping in hydrochloric acid and then phosphoric acid....couldn't find a big enough tank etc.

I was then told of a way to dip and strip and galvanise in one go so I reseached this method and found a company in the West midlands, Dudley in fact.

Having spoke with these people I'm confident this is where i will be taking the bodyshell in a few weeks to get sorted. I have since been told not to get the galvanising done before the welding so i'll be getting the first stage done, bringing it home for the welding and then taking it back for the galvanising. ll in all it will be about £2k but as i'm keeping the car for ever it will be worth it I reckon.

Anyway here is the company website
http://www.surfaceprocessing.co.uk/

[Uncle Joe]

Just a word of advice here, not regarding this Company in particular, but similar ones. For heavens sake, make sure that you have a good bodyshell before you let then at it!

I'm not speaking from personal experience, mind, but that of a number of longterm friends!

UJ

[chimpchoker]

[Uncle Joe]

This process does work. The trouble is that it removes ALL of the rust and contaminants. Which is what you must do if you want the job to be perfect.

How much rust is really on the bodyshell? Some of it you can see, but some you cant, eg in cavities. If the job is done correctly, then all of this will be removed. In extreme cases, new holes will appear, in others, the metal will just be thinner in places, perhaps too thin, especially on unit bodies that rely on the integrity of the sheet metal.

Then we come to transporting home, and welding afterwards. Most of these companies say that the metal is stable for a period afterwards. I’ll partially accept that. Believe it or not, even if sheet steel is sand blasted, it is stable for a while. But for how long? Long enough for you to complete all of the welding? Even the welding that you don’t know about yet if there is any.

Then there is the welding itself. Ever welded stainless and then left it somewhere damp? It rusts! This is a natural process caused by welding heat on all steels!

I don’t want to sound negative, but just make you aware of things that I know can happen!

I'll give you some food for thought. Somewhere on the forum, I posted a topic regarding Rust Preventative paints. Have a look at that, tell me what you think.

I'll bet that theres a lot of comments as regards this answer!

UJ