Using Nitromors to strip paint but which type???

[Canadian Steve]

Stripping a poyurethane paited Strat using Nitromors but there is:
All purpose paint and varnish stripper
Specialist varnish remover mousse
Craftsman's varnish remover mousse
What's the most suitable and won't raise any grain?

[WezV]

sandpaper

[Canadian Steve]

It will be finished off with sandpaper but I need some form of stripper first.  Anybody know which is the most suitable?

[WezV]

it was a serious answer you know, the best results i have had stripping poly finished guitars is with various sanders and sandpaper, and a fair amount of elbow grease.   its a bitch around the edges and cutaways and takes longer than you would expect to get right... but it works and it wont harm the wood underneath as long as you make sure to sand evenly

now the real question, why are you stripping it?   

If its to redo it a different colour then you will be better off just sanding the shiny surface off and finishing over the top.  its poly anyway so adding more shouldnt harm the tone and it saves you a lot of hassle i the long run

if its to have a natural finish, do you know what the wood looks like underneath and whether it will look good natural

here is something from the reranch website to consider

Should you ever have the unfortunate job of stripping a polyurethane finish, I have found only one chemical stripper which will remove poly; AirCraft Remover by Kleen Strip. It can be found at most automotive paint supply stores. Be aware that should you decide to use A/R, it is deadly to plastic bindings. Protect the bindings and if possible strip with A/R only up to near the binding area and use lacquer thinner or sanding to remove the finish adjacent to the bindings. One trick; on stubborn finishes, cover the area being stripped with a plastic garbage bag to prevent the stripper from evaporating. This will give the stripper a longer working time. Test the bag first to be sure that it is not attacked by the stripper although most bags do not seem to be affected.

they also talk about using heat guns to shift poly but i havnt tried that

[Philly Q]

I think Wez was "hinting" that none of those strippers will work on poly. 

It's pretty much indestructible - I stripped an old Fender Bronco body once and Nitromors had no effect at all.  I had to resort to sanding, which took forever. 

Nitromors will work a treat on nitrocellulose, and if I remember right it works on acrylic (e.g. Halfords car spraycan paints) too.

(Edit: Wez replied again while I was typing!  :lol: )

[tomjackson]

I just used a heat gun on my American Strat, that worked well but you've got to watch you dont singe the wood

[Canadian Steve]

Thanks.  I actually started to sand off the paint but it won't budge - I don't have a sander.  I was reading an article on the Manchester guitar tech site and he had good results with applying a thick coat of Nitromors, then sticking it in a garbage bag overnight and scr@ping it off the next day.