Planning and Prepping to Paint

The new muffler arrived this week and I'm prepping it for installation #VWBug

The old muffler rusted through in places and one of the tailpipes fell off somewhere along the way. A replacement kit arrived from California this week. The vendor recommends removing the factory paint and refinishing the muffler with a heat resistant paint.

As you can see in the photo, I started removing the paint with a drill grinder and sand paper. While effective, I think it will take too long and it will be difficult for me to remove the paint in the joints. So I went to the hardware store and picked up a can of indoor rated paint remover and latex gloves.

It's important to read (and follow) the directions on any chemical product, especially something that is eating away a finish. I've sprayed the remover onto one end of the muffler and will wait to see how long it takes before the paint is ready to come off. Once the test area proves successful, I'll move on to the rest of the muffler.