Best scrapers?

[ashevillian]

Hi,

I am about to close on my next big project...a 1908 Victorian in downtown Asheville NC. It is in near original condition with the exception of many many layers of paint. I've got a Speedheater on the way, but wanted to know what type or brand of scrapers worked best? I know they should be pull scrapers and be made out of carbide, but are there better brands than others?

I will be scraping windows, siding, and interior trim. For the windows and interior trim, I'll be using the Speedheater and scrapers, but for the siding, I'll just be scraping and sanding.

Thanks for the help!

[phil]

look for one with replaceable carbide blades. I have two , one with straight blades that are about 1 1/4 long , the other is triangular. both work well.

[Casey]

This is the one for me: http://www.reddevil.com/index.php?l=pro ... UfhjJNohh4
And its narrower 1" wide brother. They are the only design that will not clog with heated paint/varnish residue, and easy to keep super sharp with a file.
The difficulty with carbide is they do not have the same bite to the edge, which must be sharpened at a blunter angle lest it chip away. So a carbide scraper never really feels very sharp; nothing like a sharp steel bladed scraper. Carbide is necessary for things like sand paint and that dirt+varnish mixture on the edges of tongue and groove flooring.
As a general rule of physics, you can bring more pressure to bear with the narrower scraper blades with less force than with a wider blade.
A flexible putty knife (kept clean and sharp with the file. Sharp like shear blades, not sharp like a chisel) is also quite useful.
I use a long 3/16" wide flat screwdriver to get moldings and corners, etc. Long shaft because it keeps my hands away from the heat gun. Yeah, I still use a heat gun.
Casey

[Mick_VT]

this is the scraper I use for clapboards http://paintshaver.com/paintshaver-pro/ it is quite incredible, extremely powerful and I would not have attempted to strip my house of 150 years of lead paint without it. i also have a speed heater, it gets used occasionally, mainly on the inside. i also still use a heat gun.

I am in no way related to the company that makes those things by the way.

[mattswabb]

My favorite
http://www.amazon.com/Bahco-Premium-Erg ... B000288LOW

They have a few different styles as well.

I also like this one
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000W65L7 ... ref=plSrch

[heartwood]

on our current job, we calculated that we will scrape over 6 miles of paint and 2 miles of bedding putty...our favorite tool is the bahco 625 that matt mentioned...it has a carbide blade that we sharpen numerous times a day with this: http://www.dmtsharp.com/sharpeners/pock ... ini-sharp/ ...bahco also has 2" and 2 1/2" scrapers with longer handles..one has a knob handle that allows you to use two hands...

good luck!
...jade

[ashevillian]

Thanks for all the help! Looks like I'll be buying a few different scrapers.

I haven't thought too much about the a siding up to this point. I figured I would scrape and sand it using an orbital dander. The first floor is clapboards and the second is shingles. Is there a good option between the paint shaver and scraping/sanding?

[ashevillian]

Has anyone used the Festool RAS 115?

[Don M]

Thanks for all the help! Looks like I'll be buying a few different scrapers.

I haven't thought too much about the a siding up to this point. I figured I would scrape and sand it using an orbital dander. The first floor is clapboards and the second is shingles. Is there a good option between the paint shaver and scraping/sanding?

Be careful of lead poisoning using an orbital sander.

[Mick_VT]

Be careful of lead poisoning using an orbital sander.

+1 on that, this is the main reason i sprung for the paint shaver, you can hook it to a vacuum to collect the vast majority of the paint that comes off