Releathering a Zorki 1

[squirrel$$$bandit]

Well, I got my custom "Zorki Standard" from Oleg today...pretty cool! He removed the rangefinder mechanism from a Zorki 1 and mounted two shoes for me...filled in the holes on the top plate with epoxy, as well, though they still look pretty rough and I will probably cover them with gray tape.

Anyway, the vulcanite on this particular specimen looked terrible, so I ordered some new griptac from Morgan. But I had no idea how hard this stuff would be to remove. Some of it was bubbling up and began flaking off quickly when I took a knife to it. But the rest is impossible! I slathered on some Citristrip and came back two hours later...it barely made a dent. I scraped as much as I could, then added another coat of Citristrip, which I will leave on overnight.

Any tips? A stronger stripper perhaps? I'd like to stick with the relative odorlessness of the citric stuff, but perhaps it won't work...

 

[lkgroup]

I redid a Zorki 1 a few years ago and I remember I had to use a stripper to soften up the cover and scrap it off.

I took the camera apart and taped the edges so the stripper wouldn't take off the black paint. I think if you are careful you wouldn't have to take the camera apart, just mask if off well and them strip parts of the cover little by little.

I used "Aircraft Remove" (Brand) remover to strip the cover. I wore gloves and was careful with the solvent. I just followed directions on the can.

Leo

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

Thanks, Leo. Yeah, I am wearing latex gloves. I'm actually fine with the black paint coming off--it's already pretty worn, and I'm going to paint the trim gray.

I'll let the stripper sit overnight and see where I stand in the morning...

 

[myequation]

I found a great product called "green strip"
environmentally friendly paint stripper.
Lately I can't find this at my hardware store but I'm sure a similar product is around.

It comes in a Gel form, very easy to apply looks like aloe and nearly smells like it.

But it works great if let to set overnight.
I stripped a 1930s Rolleiflex with it.

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

Yeah, that's basically the stuff I'm using, except it uses citric acid. It smells orangey.

 

[myequation]

Nice,

I find that storing it ina sealed container overnigght (or longer) helps greatly.
The stripper will lose its effectiveness if allowed to dry.

But I understand that Vulcanite is a pain no matter what.

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

Wow. Even after letting it sit overnight, I only managed to get off a thin top layer. Still, a few more applications and this should get me down to the metal. Patience, patience...

 

[lkgroup]

If I remember correctly I waited 1/2 hour or so after appling the solvent. I then got what I could off and applied another coat. It seemed like I was able to get it clean in a few hours that way.

Keep working it will get clean.

Leo