I'm definitely going to give this a try. I just bought a Ludwig black oyster pearl kit that came with the BD painted black. The seller neglected to point this out even after I've asked if all shells are 100% original. I'm about to soak them in varsol hoping they were painted with an oil based paint but will try your technique first. Thanks!!!

You can also soak them in white vinegar for about 24 hours (not much more)

and then clean it up whit a tooth brush, it come off easy.

After that, you wash them with a mixt of water and dish soap,

, rince in hot water, dry them up with A HEAT GUN. your done.

Vinegar is cheap, and it does the job.

I soaked my painted screws in plain old Lacquer Thinner. Rinsed the paint right off after 24 hours.

Yepper................

I did the same thing Laquer Thinner. they came out looking brand new. They must have been painter when the drums were pretty new. The interior of my drums had been painted white then painted black. I will attempt to strip all that paint off of the interiors one day, or maybe i'll just paint them with my plasti-kote stone paint and make them look like ludwigs acoustical coating. These are 1969 Luddy Classic, my 1969 luddy standards had the acoustical coating in them. I just wonder if that would be acceptable to a collector.