How to remove paint from table and chairs?

[MarcL]

Hi, I'm looking to strip our family table and chairs (very centimental) back to all wood, it has several layers of paint. Original paint+  water based acrilic and spray enamel has been used on it. I dismantled the first chair with a car jack gently. Money has been right so I had a go with what tools I had. I own a grinder didn't have rough enough sanding pads.  Used the stanley surform, and a few scrapers though the most effective method I found that wasn't using the grinder was a old knife better than the scrapers I had, then Stanley surform, rough sandpaper. Could someone please tell me the easiest method of stripping off all the paint to get to sanding the wood? Don't really want to use and harsh chemicals to strip it off. My friend has a belt sander which I thought might work well? The legs of table are round and shaped also which I don't know what way to go about either? Any advise would be really appreciated, thankyou!

  

[JacobZ]

Hi @MarcL,

Thank you for your question about restoring your old tables and chairs.

Unfortunately, the easiest way to remove old paint like this is to use a chemical stripper such as Tricleanium Paint Stripper.

Obviously, there are other methods to removing old paint, but the amount of work required is far greater than with a stripper. 

A UNi-PRO Professional 50mm Tungsten Carbide Precision Scraper is a good option for removing paint, but it is not great around contours.

An orbital sander or detail sander would also be good options to speed up the process, but they are not excellent at dealing with contours.

An angle grinder with Flap Discs is also a great option.

There are also specialised contour sanding tools such as this Arbortech - Contour Random Orbital Sander which is available from our friends at Tool Kit Depot.

Then there is the tried and true 40 Grit Timber Sandpaper Roll, which is a heavy grit sandpaper that will speed up the process substantially when compared with something like 80 or 120 grit.

If you are unwilling to use paint stripper, which is entirely reasonable, then elbow grease and persistence are going to be key to getting a great result.

Allow me to tag some of our knowledgeable members to see if they have any advice they can offer, @arfabuck, @Dave-1, @Nailbag.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

[arfabuck]

JacobZ has said everything necessary to answer your question.

A couple of hints, if I may.

Using any mechanical/electric tool in removing paint is going to result in a loss of detail/ flat patches no matter how careful you are. Especially on the round legs. ( Use 80 grit emery cloth in a to and fro motion ). Those tools revolve at high speed and controlling the gyro direction ( 90 degrees from the direction of force ) cannot be minutely controlled in the hand. How do you think flying saucers are steered.?

Steer clear of any joints that have a right angle. Go close then finish the job by picking out by hand, ( usually the corner build up of paint will come off in bulk).

Failure to do so will result in a sanding groove into the wood that will require filling later.

Don't go anywhere near that cane with a machine tool. You will end up cutting it to pieces.

From a professional point of view where time is money, your table and chairs, ( not dismantled ) would come into the shop, be stripped, neutralised with MEK, dried and ready for painting in 2 hours flat. I realise this is not an option or your intent.

[Nailbag]

Hi @MarcL 

@JacobZ has already provided the advice I would give. Understanding funds are tight and if you can't afford to buy a sander and need to rely on the grinder as your only powertool, then just a 120G flap disc will be all you need to get the outer surface down to bare timber again. It will be vitally important to go VERY lightly as these disc are extremely abrasive on wood and it would take much to create imperfections in there flat surface.

I would then turn to basics with sandpaper wrapped on cork blocks. The most cost effective way to buy sandpaper is to get these A4 packs which are available in a range of grits. These can be cut in to quarters and still wrap around a bloc. Start with 180G then to 240g there are packs available with multiple grists in them.

Regards, Nailbag

[Dave-1]

EVening @MarcL 

Now that is a fair amount of work that you have done on the seat, impressed for sure.

Im going to go the other way then what the guys are suggesting and push for a paint stripper. I had this quandry when I was renovating my front door and had detail work on it plus who knew how many layers of paint Front entrance door renovation is the process I went through.

Effort plus wanting the pieces to be as close to original shape and feel is why I suggest this, sanding will mean you are taking something away from it, a small amount true. 

Dave