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Hey guys, just wondering what you prefer for stripping a poly finish, thinking about refinishing my Squier Bass in something ridiculous (like Oil-Rubbed Bronze for grins). I've stripped a scumbag silver Jagmaster with the Airplane Stripper or whatever it's called, and I hated doing that. I have a heat gun, and was thinking I'd give that method a go this time around.

Anyone have any good/bad experience stories to share?

Heatgun works the best for me. Except on metallic finishes. They're a real pita.

I stripped a poly finish off a Jazz bass once and the strippers I tried wouldn't eat away any of the finish.


I've heard good things about a heat gun but chances are, you won't be able to do any kind of clear or transparent finish because you usually end up burning some of the wood. Especially if you've never done it.

Medium/Course sandpaper and a block for me...

Don't strip it. Sand the gloss off with 220 grit sandpaper and spray directly on top of that. Saves ya a lot of trouble.

UNLESS you're planning on spraying it with nitro, or any other compound that doesn't stick to poly very well. In which case I don't use any chemical strippers, just power tools Chemical strippers are extremely hazardous and don't work very well as several others have noted.

Dillon wrote:Don't strip it. Sand the gloss off with 220 grit sandpaper and spray directly on top of that. Saves ya a lot of trouble.

UNLESS you're planning on spraying it with nitro, or any other compound that doesn't stick to poly very well. In which case I don't use any chemical strippers, just power tools Chemical strippers are extremely hazardous and don't work very well as several others have noted.

Yeah pretty sure I killed a ton of brain cells and probably gave myself cancer when I chemically stripped the jagmaster, that shit was rough. Stupid visions of a nitro refinish on that, didn't even happen. I sprayed the thing with black Chalkboard paint, which was awesome though.

The only thing I've ever heard of recommended was Aircraft Paint Stripper, and even then, it's hard graft. I know people who've used heat guns, but it can make multi-piece bodies separate at the seams. Sanding is horrible hard work, but effective.

I stripped the poly off my Bronco bass with a heat gun and I semi-burned most of the wood. Luckily it's basswood, which had a dull grain anyway. If was to do it again I'd do the method that Dillon describes.

Awww man but a heat gun sounds so hot for this (no pun intended).

Dillon wrote:Don't strip it. Sand the gloss off with 220 grit sandpaper and spray directly on top of that. Saves ya a lot of trouble.

I wouldn't have said this a year ago, but this is so true. Stripping poly paint off is such a pain in the ass, and really not worth it unless you are planning on staining the wood, or it's a very special instrument. And these days, I usually use a poly clear anyway; so I don't feel so bad by not removing the existing paint.

I bet with the proper primer, nitro would stick just fine to poly.

but... but... but... HEAT GUN!!! Yeah alright, you guys win, I'll try just sanding the poly and going over it this time. If I hate it though, there is no stopping me from using the HEAT GUN!!! next time.

I've done heat gun, and Over The Top. Over the top is how I would do it in most situations.

Has anyone noticed too much of a difference in tone by painting over an existing poly finish vs. stripping it?

I thought I posted here last night, but maybe not. Another argument for heat gun is to get the experience. I stripped my first guitar (Strat) and did pretty well.

Narco Martenot wrote:Has anyone noticed too much of a difference in tone by painting over an existing poly finish vs. stripping it?

This is what I wondered. Purist will tell you that it won't allow for the guitar to really "breath" or resonate. I'm just wondering if you can actually tell.

i've had realy good luck with this stuff:



i've done about 4 or 5 strip-and-refinish jobs with it and always with great results.

most recent was a shorty matsumoku SG bass with a slot headstock and it turned out really well.

portugalwillie wrote:

Narco Martenot wrote:Has anyone noticed too much of a difference in tone by painting over an existing poly finish vs. stripping it?

This is what I wondered. Purist will tell you that it won't allow for the guitar to really "breath" or resonate. I'm just wondering if you can actually tell.

i think the answer is no. there is so much shit that circulates about "tone" and people seem to miss the important stuff that have a big impact like the hardware, the pickup choice and placement and focus on the stuff has a small effect like the number of pieces of wood, wood type and finish.

Heatgun.

Tried the purely chemical method on my American Tele, which was a nightmare.

I want to refinish my Jagmaster over the summer, in my own crude way. Nothing fancy, just an electric blue colour. Tempted to just take the gloss off, and paint over it. Bad idea?

sand and spray over will do fine. getting a decent finish is not easy though.

portugalwillie wrote:

Narco Martenot wrote:Has anyone noticed too much of a difference in tone by painting over an existing poly finish vs. stripping it?

This is what I wondered. Purist will tell you that it won't allow for the guitar to really "breath" or resonate. I'm just wondering if you can actually tell.

I'm just wondering if that actually has any scientific basis at all. so far, I'm leaning towards... no it's probably just hoodoo nonsense.