Removing Paint from a Rifle

[Rumpled]

I just bought a lever action rifle that had been in Alaska in a previous life.
Most of the lever, the sights, and the swivels are all painted bright green.
(Might be fluorescent to see at night? Bear medicine dispenser?)

How best to remove this without damaging the underlying blue?
I figgered I'd start with GunScrubber and then maybe steel wool?
Other ideas?
I'll have it in my hands Tuesday to start working on.

[Ericthenorse]

I would try finding some citrus paint remover. put some on, and the paint should come right off. They probably did not prime or otherwise prep the area before they painted it. If you use some sort of abrasive, you run the risk of messing up the finish.... Avoid some of the very harsh strippers, as they are usually harder to rinse off...... The green is probably just spray paint, so it should come off prety easy....

[C.G.]

I just bought a lever action rifle that had been in Alaska in a previous life.
Most of the lever, the sights, and the swivels are all painted bright green.
(Might be fluorescent to see at night? Bear medicine dispenser?)

How best to remove this without damaging the underlying blue?
I figgered I'd start with GunScrubber and then maybe steel wool?
Other ideas?
I'll have it in my hands Tuesday to start working on.

Test a small patch with Acetone.

[M1A Rifleman]

Hoppes #9 and a bronze brush. You need to use something that will not hurt the blueing. Steel wool will wear the blue off.

[Leo762]

i would use acetone, gets rid of everything really well - wont hurt the blue, just oil it well after you are done

[ivanimal]

try denatured alcohol and a toothbrush to clean after the acetone.

[saki302]

I've used standard automotice paint stripperint he past with good results. It did not harm my blue. I would test it in an inconspicuous area first. It should not have to stay on for long- when I used it, the paint peeled in about 15 seconds. A toothbrush got it off, then I flushed with water, washed with soap, flushed again, and WD-40'ed the heck out of it, followed up by your favorite gun oil.

-Dave

[Pulsar]

Acetone. It's what we use in class for this kind of stuff all the time (gunsmithing class). Also works very well on Cosmoline. We also use a ton of Simple Green

[icormba]

yeah... like eveyone else said... the acetone thing!
or if you don't have any and are too lazy to get some... steal your wife's or girfriend's fingernail polish remover if you got the guts!

[Rumpled]

Thanks for all of the tips.
I'm almost done with getting the paint off.
I used Hoppe's and brass bore brushes, came off fairly easily.
The 16 ga brush worked well on all of the lever radii.

I have access to plenty of acetone since I work in a lab, but started with what I had in the house.

Of course, as with all of my acquisitions, I'll give it at least a good field strip, cleaning and lubing before using - more disassembly if it's warranted.