Hello folks, I've got a 1946 18' Old Town square stern canoe that needs refinishing. The finish (which I've been told is epoxy) has developed big blisters all over. I've been told to use an angle grinder with a paint stripping wheel to remove the old finish, (which horrified me), so I went out and got a carbide scraper instead. Unfortunately it doesn't seem any friendlier to the canoe than a grinder would have been, and skips here and there leaving an undesirable finish. I haven't had much luck with my steel scrapers either, I encounter the same skipping problem and they dull very quickly. I am not interested in chemical strippers, mostly because I can't get anything with methylyne chloride in it, and also because the last guy fiberglassed the bottom. Any advice on how to tackle this would be much appreciated.
Mechanically stripping epoxy finish
Michael Grace
Lifetime Member
Hi Verne,
Have you tested various strippers to see if one is effective on this finish? Doing so might help you determine what the finish is, and you might get lucky and find an effective stripper for your finish.
I have that same scraper in my arsenal and it works great, but neither it nor any other scraper is going to be easy and effective given all the small and complicated spaces, plus going cross-grain can really roughen the planking. Still, scrapers can be effective. With ever more practice you'll get it to work better for you, and getting at least some of the finish off with a scraper can make stripping much easier.
Finally, if you can find one near you, consider taking your canoe to a professional for chemical stripping.
Hope this helps - Michael
Have you tested various strippers to see if one is effective on this finish? Doing so might help you determine what the finish is, and you might get lucky and find an effective stripper for your finish.
I have that same scraper in my arsenal and it works great, but neither it nor any other scraper is going to be easy and effective given all the small and complicated spaces, plus going cross-grain can really roughen the planking. Still, scrapers can be effective. With ever more practice you'll get it to work better for you, and getting at least some of the finish off with a scraper can make stripping much easier.
Finally, if you can find one near you, consider taking your canoe to a professional for chemical stripping.
Hope this helps - Michael
Dave Osborn
LIFE MEMBER
I used to have some minor success with methyl chloride stripper on polyester epoxy. That’s out of the question now. I hire a professional furniture stripping company to strip varnish. They use methyl chloride and if there are bits of epoxy left, say on the hull, the stripper doesn’t remove them.
A heat gun may help. Worth a try….
Basically, you may be out of luck.
A heat gun may help. Worth a try….
Basically, you may be out of luck.
Todd Bradshaw
Sailmaker
Most so called "Epoxy" paints or varnishes don't have the same characteristics or durability that epoxy resin does. Before chopping up the surface with sharp metal tools I would try Citristrip stripper. It is often surprisingly effective and fairly mild to use.
https://citristrip.com/
https://citristrip.com/
Worth Gretter
LOVES Wooden Canoes
CitriStrip worked well for me on thick layers of old varnish. I would paint it on, let it sit a few hours, scrub with a coarse bristle brush, and rinse. In the worst places it took 3 applications, but it was pretty easy work.
