removing paint from 1911 parts

[wayupnorth]

picked up a really nice 1911 but unfortunately the fella i got it off of decided to paint all the controls on it.
(slide lock, safety, beaver-tail and mainspring housing.
i believe the original anodize is still under the paint.
so how do i remove the paint without removing the anodize?

i did a little google-fu and one fella had good success with a small sand/media blaster loaded with table salt.

anyone have any suggestions?

im pretty sure its not Ceracoat and just a Kryon type paint.

would paint remover work - as in not kill the anodizing?

 

[Munkey1973]

Andonizing is pretty tough terms of standing up to chemicals. If it were my project, I would try lacquer thinner or acetone soak. I would avoid and kind of blasting, if I wanted to preserve the randomized finish beneath.

 

[silverfoxdj]

I'd try paint remover on the slide lock off the gun first..

 

[BCRider]

You said "anodized". So I'm guessing that this is a GSG 1911 in .22?

Anyway that implies aluminium parts since we can't anodize steel items. If that's the case then if you use paint stripper be sure it's OK to use on aluminium. Some are not and will corrode the aluminium.

I'd say try the acetone or lacquer thinner soak for 10 minutes or so followed by a good rub down with an old toothbrush. Again if the parts are aluminium you won't want to use a brass or steel bristle brush for fear of scratching the parts.

 

[laurencen]

put the parts in a ziploc bag, add some acetone seal bag and let it soak, most paints will blister up and remove easily

 

[wayupnorth]

its actually a Ruger SR1911 10mm.
i assume the parts are aluminum???

i checked with the fella i got it off of, it is definitely Kryon paint.

parts are probably MIM metal?
might not even be anodizing... its ruger, could be paint?

 

[wayupnorth]

this is the pistol

you can see the difference between it on the right and what they should be on the middle and left ones.
it feels like anodizing on the others if i had to guess, but its probably just a black high gloss.

im thinking that bag with thinner and just remove it, if the black comes off then i can redo it with some black.

 

[wayupnorth]

ya know, now that i think about it, my dad gave me his Hornady Ultrasonic cleaner, ive never used it..... would that maybe work?

 

[BCRider]

For starter field strip the gun and check the black parts with a magnet.

Since we now know that this is a Ruger 1911 it's pretty well an iron clad cinch that the black parts are painted steel. In particular the slide release pin would not survive long if it was aluminium. And the little spur on the thumb safety would similarly not last long. And since the parts need to withstand a wide range of cleaning solvents I'm betting that the parts in question are either Parkerized, iron oxide finished or coated with something like Cerakote to produce the black finish. None of which will be removed by exposure to acetone and likely not to any regular paint remover.

 

[BAAC]

Another trick that sometimes works is Pine Sol. It eats the paint and leaves the metal untouched. Just soak the parts in it overnight.

I've done this a bunch of times over the years when I want to strip paint off metal and plastic models. It turns the paint to goo.

 

[wayupnorth]

For starter field strip the gun and check the black parts with a magnet.

Since we now know that this is a Ruger 1911 it's pretty well an iron clad cinch that the black parts are painted steel. In particular the slide release pin would not survive long if it was aluminium. And the little spur on the thumb safety would similarly not last long. And since the parts need to withstand a wide range of cleaning solvents I'm betting that the parts in question are either Parkerized, iron oxide finished or coated with something like Cerakote to produce the black finish. None of which will be removed by exposure to acetone and likely not to any regular paint remover.

magnet - check!
the parts are magnetic!

ill give acetone a shot if that does not work ill try some paint remover.
worst case scenario it takes the parts down to bare metal and ill just repaint them black or have them cerakoted black by my friend that does that on the side on the long winter nights.

 

[BCRider]

If you're OK with them being black then why strip them in the first place?

Since we know that they are steel now (and the slide stop in particular jolly well HAS to be steel) if the intent is to give them the same finish as the gun itself I suspect that soda or shell blasting will give you the right surface. But take one of the parts which is not legally "a gun" along with the other parts to a blaster and have them tell you what is needed to get a matching finish.

I'm not a two tone fan either. If you can get the controls changed from that black over to a finish to match the rest I think it'll look darn sharp.

 

[wayupnorth]

im actually the opposite.
the fella i got it off of changed it over to match the pistol and i prefer the contrasting black.

 

[JohnnyPython]

Heat gun might lift the paint and then peel it off.

 

[OkayShooter]

Goof off, Graffiti remover. Is what Ive used to remove paint off guns. Never effected the finish under.