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My old boss told me to always strip with lacquer thinner, never chemical stripper
He ran a shop in Tucson for 30 years and swore by it, saying it was faster and didn't raise the grain. I tried it on a 1920s oak dresser and it was a total mess, took three times as long and left a gummy film. Now I only use a good citrus-based stripper for old finishes. Anyone else get some really bad advice that cost them a job?
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wesley8731mo ago
That "didn't raise the grain" part is the real bad advice. Lacquer thinner just dissolves the top layer and drives the old finish deeper into the wood pores, especially on open grain wood like oak. That's your gummy film right there, a sludge of half dissolved varnish and thinner. Citrus stripper works because it actually breaks the finish's bond so you can lift it off. His method only works on simple shellac or fresh lacquer, not decades of built up gunk.
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