Thermic paint stripping

[Henkie]

Hello,

Does anyone has experience with thermic paint tripping of there car body?

Positive or negitive!

[exkay120]

Thermic as in ice basting ?

[Mr Rusty]

Hi,
I had the body of my TR4a stripped by Ribble Technology in Preston. The car is baked in a large oven. Paint, filler lead drops off the body as the temperature slowly rises. When the body is taken from the oven any remaining bits of filler or paint are removed with a high pressure washer. The body is then treated with phosphoric acid which kills the rust. Ribble can also then spray the body with a very hard primer but I didn't opt for that as I had a lot of welding left to do on the body shell.
I was very impressed with the process. The shell was much better to work on once all the paint and rust had been removed. You also have the peace of mind that all the rust has been removed, but you have to be prepared for what that means. My rear valance was left looking like a metal gossamer. There were pinholes all over the panel where the rust had eaten through the panel. I was fairly laid back about this because I wanted to eliminate all rusty panels but be warned it can be a shock.
I prefer the process to dipping as I have concerns about the paint stripper remaining in the joints between spot welded panels.
Price wise it's competitive; I think the TR cost around ?750.

Rgds
Barry

[paydase]

That Ribble treatment seems to be radical.

Not only you have to remove everything from the shell as with sand blasting or dipping but also, as the heat treatment removes all the lead filler, it means that you have to redo it all again wherever there were defects corrected by the lead.

And if the shell is thereafter treated with phosphoric acid, you will have to carefully rinse everything everywhere to completely remove acid before further treatment, as with paint stripper...

[christopher storey]

No need to remove anything following phosphoric acid treatment. It can be painted immediately on top of the surface. I coat any ferrous metal routinely with H2PO4 at 10% solution and then paint on the surface directly

[paydase]

No need to remove anything following phosphoric acid treatment. It can be painted immediately on top of the surface. I coat any ferrous metal routinely with H2PO4 at 10% solution and then paint on the surface directly

Thank you for your advice, Christopher.
I thought it was necessary to rinse.
Good to know, that makes the treatment much easier for some parts.

[christopher storey]

Serge : I'm sorry if I have misled you - I do wipe the surface over with water after the phosphoric has cured for 24 hours, but you can then paint on top of that once the surface is dry

[1954Etype]

I think the issue here is that you cant get to the areas that have been spot welded together so the rust and now acid is slowly dissolving the metal.

[christopher storey]

Angus : H2PO4 will not dissolve steel at all . What it does is convert iron oxide tp ferrous phosphate which prevents further oxidation of the steel . It has been used for at least 100 years to preserve steel from rusting

[1954Etype]

Angus : H2PO4 will not dissolve steel at all . What it does is convert iron oxide tp ferrous phosphate which prevents further oxidation of the steel . It has been used for at least 100 years to preserve steel from rusting

Sorry Chris, I was referring to the acid.

[Phil2+2]

Apologies for resurrecting this old thread but having read everything on this forum about dipping vs blasting, the hot strip option offered in Preston which isn't far from me seems the least worst option maybe.
My question for the masses is as this process also melts the lead loading on the car how much lead is there on an etype body? Will my newly derusted shell be sat in a huge pool of lead that I now have to pay an expert a kings ransom to put back on or am I worrying about this unnecessarily.
Phil

[JerryL770]

I don't think it will be that much of a problem.

The company I work at part time just received a coupe body back last week. I think most lead resided about the top of the body by the front screen ends. The lead seems to stay on the car though not where it was originally put I didn't look round the back and it's an S1 so none in the bonnet. An S2 might have some in the seam below the headlight aperture where the don't get the chrome trim.

It all depends on whether you are talking about original factory applied lead or leading done for any subsequent repair work

BTW: H2PO4 is phosphoric acid.

[Phil2+2]

Thanks Jerome, mine is an S1 2+2 with a brand new bonnet and I was only really concerned about how much lead the factory applied when built so maybe I'll go and have a chat with the gents at paint strip UK.
Thanks for the reply and if I go down this route I will share my findings..... Hopefully all good ones.
Phil

[christopher storey]

There can be a lot of lead on an E type shell. One area which is nearly always leaded is where the sides of the roof on a FHC /2+2 join the C posts. Also where the sills join the bulkhead side closing panels, and also where the sills join the rear wings behind the doors . Often the front edge of the sills is leaded to match the bonnet profile . How much value this lead has when it is 50 years old is debatable because it tends both to crack horizontally and also to drift downwards under its own weight , but you need to be aware of this before you inadvertently lose it all, because it is a rotten - and expensive - job to replace it