Interior makeover... Opinions please!

[BruceH]

Originally Posted by fullthrottle52

I am thinking of having my console painted also. How did you remove the black outer finish off the plastic to get it down to the shiny plastic underneath? Is there a solvent that works well?

Any help would be appreciated.

Originally Posted by shadrach74

I experimented with several solvents (MEK, acetone, naphtha); none of them would remove the top layer without eating into the base plastic.
At the end of the day, I've decided the the best process is to soak the part you're working on in very hot water (so hot that you can barely tolerate reaching into to retrieve the part) for 5 minutes and then rub the "soft touch" plastic with steelwool and or scotchbrite pads.
When you've finally removed all traces of the exterior soft touch, clean it everything with alcohol.

I saw somewhere it was recommended to put it in the dishwasher to soften it up.

[shadrach74]

Originally Posted by BruceH

I saw somewhere it was recommended to put it in the dishwasher to soften it up.

I tried that with the smaller pieces, but As you can imagine, the console will not fit in the dishwasher. I found that a hot water soak produced even better results because you had the added benefit of working for a bit and then resubmerging a part to reheat it. While waiting for the last one to reheat, I could work on a different one...until it cooled and the I'd resubmerging it and grab another. I need to stress that I used very hot water (I live in an old house with very hot water) so hot that could not stand to have my heads in it for more than the half second it takes to pull a new part out...