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Gretsch Round Badge Restoration Need Help!

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Gentlemen,

I need your thoughts/advice on removing automotive paint from this classic 60's Gretsch Champagne Sparkle kit.

Found this nice kit locally for $300. The seller was the original owner and drummer who acquired this kit as a kid in the early 60's. In the 70's, Gretsch CS was "not cool" in garage bands and in the bar scene, so feeling compelled to have a cooler kit, he took the 22,16 and 13 down to his Buddie's auto body shop and had it sprayed car lacquer white (significant improvement at the time :) Today though, we all know that this nice kit could use restoration. All the parts are there. Underneath all that white paint is a nice original champagne sparkle kit!

Her's my question: Since, I don't want to re-wrap this kit, have you or do you know of any way to remove lacquer from drum wrap? I have done furniture stripping taking paint from oak furniture using the chemical strippers with great results. I would pour paint stripper all over the wrap and remove the paint in a heart-beat as long as I knew the stripper would not destroy the wrap... heat gun, I dunno, help!

The owner removed the wrap from the 13 as you see.

I really appreciate the advice that can be gained here. Thanks in advance.

-kelly

"It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing..."
Posted on 9 years ago
#1
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I has been done with successes, I have never done it but I know others have. I would try some mild strippers like that citrus stuff some guys talk about on a small area first, then try to determine weather or not the auto body dude sanded the shells first. Any good finisher would scuff sand any surface before painting, so that would be my concern. But Im like you and would want to save the wrap, well but who wouldn't. Good luck with this, I hope someone will chime in for you.


Thank you!
Jeff C

"Enjoy every sandwich" Warren Zevon
Posted on 9 years ago
#2
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Jeff,

I never thought of the finisher sanding first, yikes! I hope he didn't, but its likely. That's a nightmare just thinking about a guy sanding those drums. He didn't know at the time :)

I will try and scrap off some of the paint from the 13" wrap to see if that is the case.

kelly

"It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing..."
Posted on 9 years ago
#3
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Try Motzenbocker's Grafitti Remover #4. I stripped a heavy coat of paint off of a 60's Roger's Mardi Gras kit and it did not harm the wrap. The paint just peeled right off.

John

Too many great drums to list here!

http://www.walbergandauge.com/VintageVenue.htm
Posted on 9 years ago
#4
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We used to use Easy Off on slot car bodies we'd painted with automotive touch up lacquer. The bodies were plastic, the Easy off did not harm them. The lacquer peeled cleanly off in sheets! These would be 1/32 scale model bodies from the 80s/90s which we attached to the slot car chassis - so whatever type of plastic was used for that, I wonder how it compares to wrap.

The paint came off so amazingly, I'd try some Easy off on a small area or test-piece of wrap first and see what happens...

[edit] From the pic with some paint removed, it doesn't look to me as though the wrap was sanded before paint was applied.

Mitch

Posted on 9 years ago
#5
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From Purdie Shuffle

Try Motzenbocker's Grafitti Remover #4. I stripped a heavy coat of paint off of a 60's Roger's Mardi Gras kit and it did not harm the wrap. The paint just peeled right off.John

Home Depot John?

"It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing..."
Posted on 9 years ago
#6
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Thanks for the tips. I will give them a try and report back.

kelly

"It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing..."
Posted on 9 years ago
#7
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Home Depot, Lowes etc. I ordered mine online which is an alternative source. The stuff works really well and doesn't harm the wrap. I don't know about auto paint, but it removed a heavy black oil based paint from the Rogers kit I stripped. Just spray on, leave it alone for a few minutes, you'll see the paint start to droop and curl, then wipe off. Messy, but easy peasy.

John

Too many great drums to list here!

http://www.walbergandauge.com/VintageVenue.htm
Posted on 9 years ago
#8
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