Bristol Finish Stripping/Removal

[bobozinga]

Mike,

Any advice on stripping/removal of Bristol Finish? We applied it to our swim platform, exterior teak trim and bridge steps years ago -- following all the prep and application instructions closely -- and have applied maintenance coats as Bristol specified. Not happy with this stuff. Sanded down the bridge stairs last season and applied Cetol, and we love it. Now it's time to deal with the swim platform.

The Bristol folks have not been helpful on how to strip/remove their product.

Thanks in advance for your ideas.

Bob

 

[Capt. Bill1]

Have you tried a heat gun?

 

[bobozinga]

Bill,

I have not yet started the work, but will certainly consider your suggestion. I can remove most of the Bristol with a sander, but the platform has about 20 thru-slots that are a bitch to sand by hand....

 

[TJM]

Same scenario here a few years back.
Did the "sanding" route. We used a small sanding drum on a dremel tool in between the grooves and this technique.

We made a few dowels about 1/8" in diameter smaller than the slot opening and about 5" longer than the thickness of the platform. Wrap some 60 grit sand paper around the dowel a few times. Place the assembly vertically in the slot. One hand on top and one hand on the bottom, now slide. Up, Down, left and right rolling the dowel to expose new paper. This replicates a sanding block but on a curved surface as my platform was. Wear gloves, Got any kids??

 

[bobozinga]

Tom...you're making me wish I still had kids at home! Thanks much for your advice.