Sand her back or just blast?

[cogspin]

Ladies and gentlemen, just a quick question.

Will sand blasting a 240z weaken the metal? and if I can save a dollar sanding it with whatever tools necessary, is it the same as blasting the car (albeit rougher and longer).

Regards,
Good kid, bright future

[nizm0zed]

To my understanding of it, no, blasting it wont weaken the metal, unless its riddled with rust, at which point its fubar anyway.
Depending on how its blasted though, it may warp the panels.
Soda blasting is the nicest of it all, but leaves a residue that can be a pain to deal with.
Sand blasting (garnet blasting) will strip quickly and leave no residue, but if the operator isnt careful it'll warp the panels (eg, roof, doors, large flat areas)
Acid dipping is the most effective way to get EVERYTHING off in one go, however i have heard that you'll have the acid solution leach out of seams for years to come.

Sanding, either by hand with with a DA orbital, will give you the best and most consistent control over the finish, depending on how deep you want to go, but it'll also take the longest.
Personally i hate sanding, it takes forever and drives me up the wall.
There is also chemical strippers, they'll remove bulk paint (and body filler) very quickly in localised areas and make a hell of a mess, but they'll still need finishing work in the area afterwards, eg, cleaning/sanding of residue.

[thriller]

I don't think you'll ever be able to strip those intricate nooks and crannies on the inside of the car. Take off the hanging panels, strip them with a sander yourself and send the shell off to a blast. At least, that's what I'm doing.

[gilltech]

Quickest: get the shell & loose panels media blasted by someone who knows what they are doing, & who won't be tempted to rush the job (which can result in warped panels if too much pressure used) & immediately etch primed.
If you want to save money & have the time available then use 3M strip disks to take it back to bare metal yourself, & prime. Slow but effective. Do one area & prime, before starting the next. Fiddly around seams & brackets, you just have to be patient. Exposed edges damage the strip disks so assume you will need plenty of them. Leaves a nice buffed finish to the metal for etch primer application.
Personally I wouldn't use paint stripper.

[nizm0zed]

sounds like a man with experience....

Gilltech, how do those 3M strip discs go on somewhere like the middle of the roof?
Does the amount of heat they generate warp the panel? I would have thought it would.

[Rat1314]

I've now stripped 2 cars using the 'Brumby Strip it Discs' from Bunnings on a 4inch grinder and have had no issues with warping panels. Just take your time and work a section at a time. Also make sure you wear the appropriate PPE.

[PeterH]

I had this company do two guards and a hatch panel for me. I'm very happy with the work and they will  do the body shell when I have it ready . might be worth a look.

http://www.bicarb.com.au/

[xa1973]

I had this company do two guards and a hatch panel for me. I'm very happy with the work and they will  do the body shell when I have it ready . might be worth a look.

http://www.bicarb.com.au/

Over the years Ive used all the methods previously listed, this is by far the best method, modern technology is great......

[gilltech]

The 3M strip disks don't generate much heat, the panels would get much hotter just sitting out in the sun.
You can buy them with the spindle built-in so once the disk is worn down the whole thing is a throw-away, but by far the more economical is to buy the spindle separately & the strip disks in a pack - just fit them up to your drill like a sanding disk. And there are different thickness disks. I prefer the thinner ones which can flex more.
If you happen to catch a raw metal edge you'll tear chunks off the edge of the disk. The trick is to work with the rotation of the disk when you get close to raw edges to minimise that. It's slow going if there are multiple layers to remove, but they remove bog & surface rust really well, & leave a clean slightly cross-hatched pattern on the metal surface. With a little practice you'll find they can last quite well.
Just make sure you wear a mask & most particularly eye protection! Chunks of paint, bog, rust & strip disk will fly off in all directions, often right at you.