Stripping paint from sidesill

[bth1]

I am looking to repaint my side sills and thought that I would strip the paint before I brought it to my body shop. Can I use a chemical stripper and the aluminum--the one I have says it is safe for aluminum ?

I thought I read that you want to avoid chemical strippers for the body panels which obviously aren't aluminum and just wanted to be safe.

Thanks,
Blake

 

[dansauto]

yes you can use even aircraft stripper, just dont leave it on. Let it lift the paint then scrape it off and wash it down with baking soda.

 

[Simms]

Dan, have you seen any side sills that the corrosion goes all the way through requiring some weld?

 

[dansauto]

Dan, have you seen any side sills that the corrosion goes all the way through requiring some weld? [/quote

yea every gen 1 I have gone

 

[bth1]

Thanks for the tip Dan. I am almost done with the first sill--man that stripper stuff is potent. There are just a couple little holes so I am surprised to see it isn't worse.

Do most people re rivit the insulation or is there really no need for the rivits? I think I recall that on the Gen 2s they did away with the rivits and the sills were all smooth. It doesn't seem like there is anywhere for the insulation to go.

 

[ROCKET62]

What was the name of the stuff you used to strip the sills? Readily available? Have you found a decent place to repair and repaint? Also hope someone chimes in regarding the insulation as well.

I am in the same situation right now and have 2 small holes visible and no telling whats below. It would be nice to get this project done now before Viper weather returns.

Thanks!

 

[RedEnuf93]

Dan, have you seen any side sills that the corrosion goes all the way through requiring some weld?

Dan repaired mine, full of corrosion.

 

[bth1]

ROCKET62,

I will post the name of the stuff I used and some pictures. The stuff is green, toxic, stinks something horrible (use outside) but gets most of the paint off quick.

Right now I haven't decided where to go for the paint and minor repairs. My dad has a guy that works on his 69 Jag that does a lot of aluminum work and tends to be good and reasonable. But at this point I am focusing on just getting everything down to bare metal.

 

[dansauto]

I am not doing these anymore so pls dont ask. Any good body shop should know how to paint aluminum. They should grind out the holes and tig weld them back up with a copper backing plate to minimize heat warping. You can use any good aircraft stripper, sometimes I just da them down with 80 grit if I know I am going to grind and weld anyway. You could get away with leaving the rivits off and form the insulation so it fits tightly in the sill before you mount it. Its not going anywhere and is easly spread open to fit snuggly in the sill.

 

[ACR steve]

Its called Aircraft Stripper and its avaliable at most auto parts stores.The stuff works great just make sure its at least 70 outside

 

[GT40DOC]

bth1,
Appox. 1 1/2 years ago I stripped , repaired, and painted a set of side sills(Gen 1) to convert my GTS to side exhaust. That Airplane Stripper works great, but be careful with it as it is caustic. You will also need to remove the "paint" fron the inside to get down to bare metal. I used a paint remover disc that fits on a drill. It looks like a black sponge disc and is hard. Use it at slow speed and it works great. Once you are down to bare metal, clean it well and wash it down with soap and water. Then heli-arc ALL of the holes not needed for mounting(rivit and corrosion holes). You do NOT need the stainless steel shield that holds the insulation in place, it won't go anywhere. When we painted the sills. I used base coat/clear coat INSIDE and out to seal everything up good from the elements. I also added a bit of sheet insulation over the cats and mufflers for added protection. To date, NO problems and it gets plenty HOT where I live. This is what worked for me, Hope it helps..Doc

 

[bth1]

Thanks Doc, I am almost completely done with the outside of the sills. I have been using one of those discs on the inside and it seems to be working well.

That is also a good tip about the shield. It looks like it takes up quite a bit of space. I will also have the holes filled in then also (minus the mounting holes).

I am replacing the stock cats with randomtech cats and hope that will also help. What you you mean by sheet insulation? Is that the same as the heat wrap that Roe sells?

It is a lot of work to strip everything down. I actually have a blasting cabinet but they are just too big to fit.

 

[GT40DOC]

DO NOT BLAST them, they are very soft alum. and will warp and pit badly. It does take time, but when you are finished, it will look good. I had some sheet insulation(not sure who made it) that looks like asbestos cloth and one side has a thick alum. foil adhered to it. If you are going to change to aftermarket cats, you really don't need the extra insulation. Of course, you do want to use the factory insulation, as it is the best out there. If you decide to use extra insulation, leave each end open to let the heat out(if you wrap cat and muffler with one piece like I did.) If I can be any help, will be glad to, (except for doing the stripping...Ha)........Doc