The Best Sander For The Job?

[Scott Lemmers]

I just recently purchased an old farm house that has really massive base molding and casing. There seems to be more than a few coats of paint on them with deep looking chips that were painted over. What is the best sander that is flexible enough to get in to the tight corners and crevices?
Any advice short of stripping them :eek: would be appreciated.
I think I can sand and paint one more coat before the walls fall in.
Thanks for the help!!!

[Doug Shepard]

Somebody will know better than I, but maybe removing them and taking a powerwasher to them outside???

[John Hart]

I've never tried one on paint, but what about one of those radial brush things for a hand drill? They look like a radial wire brush, only they have stiff poly bristle instead of wire. I used one to clean brick once...I figure it'll make short work of paint and get in the little corners... 'course then, it might tear up the wood I suppose if you're not careful.

[John Hart]

Ok...here we go. This is the drill thing I was talking about

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=c000bfffs120r>Craftsman 3 Wheel Nylon Filament Brush </TD></TR><TR><TD class=c000bfffs070r>http://content.sears.com/images/layout/pixel.gif
<!--Start Display of Sears item # and Mfr. model #-->Sears item #00964805000 Mfr. model #64805 </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[Mark Rakestraw]

In spite of my loathing of messing with strippers I stripped the paint off the trim in the living room of our old farmhouse to get rid of the lead then repainted. It was pine with plenty of knots and was intended to be painted in the first place. Now, as before, every winter a crack opens up between the 8" wide flat base and the profiled 2.5" cap moulding. It really bugs me. Now, I suppose this is heresy, but for the rest of the house I threw it all in the dumpster and remade the moldings out of MDF. The MDF was cheaper than the stripper I used in the living room, routs well, paints well, and best of all doesn't move--no cracks opening up in the winter. All that and making new molding is much more fun than stripping old.
Mark

[Steve Roxberg]

I would be really afraid of any lead in the paint. Regardless of what you replace it with, I would probably throw it in a dumpster as well.

[Scott Lemmers]

Mark,

Thanks for the reply. I think I have the same exact type of base you are talking about. When you re-made it did you stick to the same type of style that was original to the house?
I attached a not so good picture of the trim that I need to refinish.
Would MDF be a good fit for replacing the entire trim?
Also, did you shape all of your trim out of MDF? I had put some of the MDF crown up in my last house and liked how it cut, but I thought I was going the cheap route and sacrificing quality. It did not appear to be as tough as wood, and with two young kids tough is sometimes needed.
Your suggestions?

[Scott Lemmers]

John,

Thanks for the reply.
I may give this a shot. It seems to be the general thought that there will be lead based paints under the top coats. I certainly wouldn't want to get too much airborne with youngsters in the house. We'll see, I would hate to go through the expense of re-creating the trim. It may be the only route though.

Regards,
Scott