Best Method to Strip off Paint (Metal Speaker Stands/Plinths)

captouch

Addicted Member
Some speakers I picked up awhile ago have metal plinths/stands that the speakers sit on top of.

For whatever reason, they had rust problems and the original black paint was peeling esp in the rusty spots.

I want to strip the paint off and re-paint them. I used a scraper on the worst parts (where paint was already bubbling up) and the paint came off pretty easy, but in other spots, the paint is stuck on pretty good. I tried to apply some mineral spirits and use both a green scouring pad as well as some course sandpaper for metal, but both seem like they'll be extremely slow going.

Any suggestions on how to get the paint off most easily? Or do I need to really strip off the paint off areas where it's not clearly rusted?

Since they sit under the speakers and aren't really prominent visibly, I don't feel the need to get them perfect cosmetically, but I don't want the rust to continue progressing and affect any new paint job I put on them.

Welcome any advice from the community.

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i thought you may have had a grinder .
paint stripper is maybe best way . i used to use lots of it years ago stripping paint off vintage cars . best done in the open air in the shade on a cool day . always wear correct safety gear .
i heard there is a water based one nowadays . i used to use the other sort .
 
Lots of water based strippers, but still caustic so still not good stuff to get on you. Apply and let it sit for a while then strip off with a putty knife and steel wool. I like some applied right on steel wool to work on tough patches. It may take a couple of applications. Suggest testing on the inside where it doesn't show to make sure there isn't a funky reaction with the metal.
 
If you REALLY want them nice, have them "blasted" and powder-coated. There are many other colors-if desired. And, the powder-coating will protect them much better than painting. Find a powder-coater in your area. Or, you can purchase a powder costing kit from Eastwood and do it yourself (if you have an oven big enough)
 
+1 on powder coating. Very durable, dozens of colors, choice of finishes from matte to super glossy. My local shop will strip and coat a component cover for about $40, which I consider a good value. The net cost is a lot less when you back out your cost for paint, stripper, and incidentals.

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Any suggestions on how to get the paint off most easily?
Did you know that I'm a furniture finisher for over 37 years?

Or do I need to really strip off the paint off areas where it's not clearly rusted?
Well it all depends on the end result look your trying to get and how much time / money you want to put into them.

As others have said you can pay to have them sand blasted and re- powder coated (most likely what's on them and you not going to get it off with chemical stripping).

Would the same look that you had on your IMF speaker stand be good? I can do this finish at home while you wait (Buy Records :p) some weekend morning. :thumbsup:
 
Why wouldn't you just sand and repaint them? That's what I've always done with arcade cabinet parts and being that your surfaces are all nice and smooth it seems that it wouldn't be very hard. Especially since you have rust issues you'd want to make sure and get all the rust sanded off and paint strippers won't do that. Plus you don't risk more rust with further liquid intrusion. This is a serious question btw and not a suggestion that I know more than others who've responded.
 
I've used Citri-Strip on metal with good results. Not horribly nasty like the old methelyne chloride stuff, but not nearly as fast. Goop it on and put the part in a trash bag so it doesn't dry out. Give it a few hours, it usually bubbles off fairly easily.

If they are steel, caustic degreasers also work well as a paint remover but they are very hard on the skin. They will destroy aluminum though.

To be fully honest though, all you really need to do is sand it lightly to scuff the surface and blend down the edges. Paint will lay over paint quite fine.
 
Here is a situation with some Martin Logan speakers. On these they didn't do a lot, mat black on MDF and the paint they used failed and got sticky. One would have a mess if they tried to chemically strip them.

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I opted to put a mat black texture finish on them.

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OP's pics? Can't remember the name of the primer but a body shop would tell you. It converts rust into primer on metal but stuff has a short shelf life. If these puppies are worth anything I'd get them sand blasted and if diy then prime them yourself but a few bucks to a body shop painter with a car getting ready to paint? i.e. 'black'? probably only an extra pint.

However... orig. paint is perfectly fine, don't need bare metal, just touch up with some primer and take a shot at spray can brands that give good results.
 
Why wouldn't you just sand and repaint them? That's what I've always done with arcade cabinet parts and being that your surfaces are all nice and smooth it seems that it wouldn't be very hard. Especially since you have rust issues you'd want to make sure and get all the rust sanded off and paint strippers won't do that. Plus you don't risk more rust with further liquid intrusion. This is a serious question btw and not a suggestion that I know more than others who've responded.

I often like to strip to get the big chunks of before sanding so that it reduces clogging - the sander to finishes it off. Depends on the job of course, for the metal straight to sanding may be the quickest if not sent to a blaster. Need to get that rust out either way.
 
Thanks everyone. After yesterday's comments by @petehall347 , I went back to Ace, returned the paint thinner they had suggested I use (they don't always make good suggestions btw!) and bought some paint stripper (Citri-strip coincidentally as later suggested by @gadget73 ) and applied it last night. I took the scraper to it a couple of hours later and 95% of the paint came off.

I applied another coat and left it sitting overnight. I'm optimistic that the rest will come off when I take the scraper to them this morning.

So thank you again for all the suggestions everyone. Much appreciated.

@4-2-7 , I would love to have the same matte finish as the IMF stands. I'll take you up on that if you don't mind - thanks! It'll look much better than the black spray paint that I had planned to attempt. I'll PM you. I'd like your input on whether I need to treat the rust remnants or not. As mentioned above, I have seen the liquid treatment that will neutralize rust and convert it to primer, but unsure whether the technique you'll use requires this or not.

BTW, these stands came with some TDL speakers I bought pretty cheap, so not putting a lot of $ into the refinishing was an objective.

(As it turns out, Amazon Prime Day had a cheap deal on an angle grinder, so I ordered one last night to have on hand for future needs even though I won't need it for this project.)
 
I'm still of the belief that you will have to sand that rust off. As far as I know nothing else will stop the rust from continuing to erode underneath. If someone can confirm otherwise I'm all ears.
 
Phosphoric acid is the usual. There are rust converter primers that contain this in order to stop the spread.

Other option is Evapo-Rust. Thats pretty cool stuff, not sure what the magic ingredient is but I don't think its phosphoric acid.

Neither will fix pitting though, so you might need some glazing compound to smooth it out completely if its too rough.
 
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