Granat net or saphir

[RKA]

As I said above, heat melts the paint and makes a mess.  That's why sanding paint is not fun.  So think about what you're doing that generates heat.  Pressure - let the machine do the work, don't lean into it.  Too much suction can also draw the sander into the surface.  Turn it down, you won't hurt your extraction efficiency much by cutting the suction down to half.  Adjust your movement so you're not dwelling over an area too long.  If an 1" per second is gumming up too fast, go a little faster. 

 

[Gregor]

I went through probably 15-20 sheets on just one door, and this was one of the ones that didn't have the somewhat fresh coat of latex on it.

Ok, seriously? What kind of stuff do you guys use to paint your doors, chewing gum? I've done entire houses with only one or two discs of Saphir, that stuff lasts forever.

What I'm used to, stripping a door with granat 60 would costs me a disc per side. If I'd gone through 3 discs on a single side then it is time to look for another method, like the scraper and heat gun, a pressure washer, or a blow torch.

It took me a while to learn not to keep in one place too long to not melt (instead of sand) the surface as this quickly destroys the paper. Maybe this account of my early failures can help [member=70462]dataz722[/member] (as being new to the machine from what I gathered in the OP) to shorten his learning curve should he have a similar problem? My lesson learned is to never stop moving the rotex, and move faster than slower, when sanding away existing finishes...

 

[leakyroof]

I've removed miles of paint on wood boats and in this case everyone's advice is wrong so far..... 

A HEAT GUN AND PUTTY KNIFE are the tools needed for this job and will make very short work of it, sanders are for smoothing/finishing not removing layers of paint.  Trust me on this one!!!

. If you use too much heat you vaporize the lead in the paint, I believe it’s about 750 degrees F that’s the danger level.

 

[cblanton42]

I wouldn't be concerned about the fumes when he's only doing 7 doors worth of work, a respirator could be worn for a big job.  I would be WAAAAY more concerned about breathing in the lead DUST created by the sanding!! 

 

[leakyroof]

I wouldn't be concerned about the fumes when he's only doing 7 doors worth of work, a respirator could be worn for a big job.  I would be WAAAAY more concerned about breathing in the lead DUST created by the sanding!!

  The OP should be wearing a Respirator regardless. And if he's got that CT -26, he's cut down on the dust to begin with.

 

[leakyroof]

I'd stay away from my precious doors with Saphir, we don't wanna scratch up a nice looking straight door. Use standard granat grit 60 or 80, not the net variety. After that go over it with a finer grit like 120 and finish with 180. I haven't used the net paper yet but I wouldn'ty trust it for heavy stripping. As for clogging, that is to be expected, you can't do a good stripping job without burning through some discs.

I'm not worried about scratching up the doors as they will have to be painted again anyway.  The wood is in no shape to just be finished, plus i'm going to have to cut out and patch a section of each on to remove the mortise from the skeleton key lock that was in them.

Have you tried Peel Away 1?  That seems to work wonders on most paints, although I've heard if there's too much latex it can sometimes require a second round.

No, at first I bought multistrip advanced, but I would have needed to do that outside because of the fumes and the weather wouldn't cooperate so I went back and go citristrip.  I had read pretty good things about it, and I guess it worked well for the top couple of layers, but the ones that are likely lead it didn't do much.  There are still some parts of the door (the rounded areas inside the panels) that I won't have much of a choice but to strip.  I'm going to try the multistrip on them, unless I can find another way to do those areas.

Not to make you buy another tool, but have you seen the Metabo paint removal tool? Might make quick work of taking the paint off with a blade instead of gumming up a lot of sandpaper. The Rotex would be great for taking off the remainder after a pass with the Metabo, I imagine (haven't actually handled one myself).

There is no way I could swing another tool right now.  The company paid for the Rotex, and that was a bit of a hard sell.  I ended up getting the hard backer pad myself and while I was back in Woodcraft today I stupidly (at least from a financial sense) bought a CT26 too.

So after two trips to woodcraft today, I have found there really is no best option for paper for this.  The net that I bought yesterday clogged and was useless darn near immediately so I went back and didn't want to mess around any more so I bought a box of both 24g Saphir and 40g granat.  The Saphir does work a little better and last a little longer, but I don't think it is enough to make up for being twice as expensive.  I knew I would be going through a lot of paper no matter what, but I didn't expect it to be this bad.  That said, I've never done any sort of refinishing or stripping work as everything I have ever done was just made from the start by me, so I really didn't know what to expect.  I went through probably 15-20 sheets on just one door, and this was one of the ones that didn't have the somewhat fresh coat of latex on it.

I also didn't expect the Rotex to be that much of a beast.  It was the most workout my shoulders and arms have had in a really long time and I am sore as anything right now.  Also, does the RO150 no longer come with the front auxiliary handle?  I thought it did, but what I was seeing may have been old.  Either that or it was just missing in mine.

I do have one last question though, and maybe it would be better suited for its own thread, I don't know.  Since I now have the CT26, which worked amazing, and have been sanding what may be lead paint, I will want to try and get as much remaining dust out of the system as possible once I am done these doors.  I was thinking I would just replace the bag and maybe the filter and then suck up a bunch of water to try and clear out the hose.  I don't know what to do about the Rotex itself aside from blasting it with compressed air.  Any better way to do it or is there something wrong with my plan?

Thanks again

  Front Aux handle is available as an accessory, at least it has been in the past. I don't think they came with the Sanders in the past or even here in the present, but if they're still available, GET ONE, it really helps with using the Rotex since you can change your grip, and you have a different leverage point on the tool while sanding with it.

 

[dataz722]

I wouldn't be concerned about the fumes when he's only doing 7 doors worth of work, a respirator could be worn for a big job.  I would be WAAAAY more concerned about breathing in the lead DUST created by the sanding!!

  The OP should be wearing a Respirator regardless. And if he's got that CT -26, he's cut down on the dust to begin with.

I am, with brand new cartridges and a tyvek suit too.  I figure between those, doing it outside, and the ct26 and some extra precautions I should be ok. 

I’m going to try and work on the second door tomorrow.  Hopefully it goes smoother.

 

[Chinski]

You've probably completed the job by now - but I'd recommend looking again at the dipping option and maybe find another cheaper company. When you consider the material cost, labour cost and time taken to complete the job with alternative approaches, I've always found dipping to be by far the most sensible option over the years for painted door renovation. 

There are suppliers on eBay (in the UK at least) who will sell you any combination of sheets for your finishing - yes, at a slight premium over what you'd pay per sheet if you bought 50 of one - but like you say, not many of us need so many of any single grit.

Have fun.