Stripping paint and disolving superglue

[garethashenden]

I have a brass kit that I half built several years ago. I superglued it together and then painted it with enamels. I didn't do either of these stages very well and I'd like to take it apart and start over. I'm looking for something that I can soak it in that will remove both the paint and the glue. I know there are products that will do one or the other, but is there anything that does both?

Thanks

[71jeep]

I believe acetone will do the trick for you but I am not 100%

[peteski]

Yes, acetone will soften and  slowly dissolve CA glue, and will also dissolve lacquer or soften enamel paint so it can be removed.

[71jeep]

Thank you for confirmation Peteski I was did not want to give bad info!

[C855B]

Agreed. The main reason we don't discuss acetone for paint stripping is it also dissolves most plastics. Brass? No problem.

Acetone = fingernail polish (enamel) remover. So there you go.

[Chris333]

I keep bottles of Acetone just to clean brushes.

Some people who machine parts will superglue 2 metal parts together for milling and then toss them in Acetone to dissolve it.

[peteski]

Acetone = fingernail polish (enamel) remover. So there you go.

I know I'm splitting hairs here but AFAIK, nail polish is a lacquer, not enamel.  I should know - I use it (for painting model cars). 

Dry lacquer can be re-dissolved using a solvent (like acetone). Theoretically, if you got the proportion of of solvent right, you could the re-use it.  If lacquer thickens up in a bottle (due to solvent evaporation) adding mode solvent makes it usable again.

Enamels are different.  They dry in stages. First the solvent evaporates and they can be handled, but the coating is still soft. Then they continue to harden by the process of oxidation. Once the enamel is fully hardened, it cannot be redissolved.  Solvents will swell and wrinkle the dry enamel but it will never turn back into homogeneous liquid  paint, no matter how long it sits in the solvent.   If enamel thickens in the bottle (due to solvent evaporation and air (oxygen) intrusion, adding more solvent will not make it into usable paint.  It is unusable.

[C855B]

Interesting, thanks. I had always heard nail polish referred to as "nail enamel", but that could easily be just a popular shorthand for a shiny, hard-surface paint. Lacquer makes sense, of course.

[peteski]

Interesting, thanks. I had always heard nail polish referred to as "nail enamel", but that could easily be just a popular shorthand for a shiny, hard-surface paint. Lacquer makes sense, of course.

Maybe there are also some nail enamels out there. But since they take long time to fully harden (and lacquers dry and harden very quickly) I have feeling that enamels would not be desired for painting fingernails.

[garethashenden]

Thanks everyone. I thought acetone might be the answer, but it's always good to check first and I knew you guys would have the answer.

[Spades]

From Steve Hile of the MFCL group posted this. 


https://jonrocket.com/store/products/us-1-super-solvent-for-ca-super-glue

I have not used this product,  but it looks interesting.

[peteski]

From Steve Hile of the MFCL group posted this. 


https://jonrocket.com/store/products/us-1-super-solvent-for-ca-super-glue

I have not used this product,  but it looks interesting.

Ah, a nitromethane-based product. I have used something similar int he past and it does work. But since acetone will strip paint and soften CA glue (and it is fairly inexpensive) it is probably the optimal solution here.

Quoting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanoacrylate

Acetone, commonly found in nail polish remover, is a widely available solvent capable of softening cured cyanoacrylate. Other solvents include nitromethane, dimethyl sulfoxide, and methylene chloride. gamma-Butyrolactone may also be used to remove cured cyanoacrylate.] Commercial debonders are also available.