removing old paint from red analine LCW  

Piggyback
Lucky you The Beloved!...well..except for the paint part. I hope you dont mind, but I'm gonna piggyback on your posting. I have an old DCM that is black aniline covered in several coats of black paint. In addition to getting the paint off I'm concerned that whatever stripper I use will dissolve the glue on the plys.

The existence of a primer...
The existence of a primer coat is quite worrying because it suggests the refinish has been done with a degree of preparation - it may well be that the original red surface was also 'keyed' or sanded prior to over painting. Bad paint jobs are sometimes easier to remove because the paint is really just sitting on the old finish and can be chipped off with a blade (messy and very hard work but quite safe). You've also got to ask why it was repainted in the first place ie was it to cover a badly worn or damaged original finish? I think you have to accept that there may not be much 'original' finish to save. Try scraping off (carefully because you're trying to lift the new finish off the old) some of the overpaint to see what you've got and then decide whether you want to continue or go for broke and strip the lot off with a chemical stripper and refinish. It can often be a good idea to dry strip overpainting anyway as it reduces the risk of getting paint embedded in the grain of the wood which can happen with stripper.

Lucifersum - regular diy...
Lucifersum - regular diy paint stripper won't hurt the ply glues. Delaminating only occurs when plywood is 'dipped' in caustic soda.

Paulanna
Thanks.
In my opinion, a badly worn or damaged red analine finish is still way better than a coat of paint. Even for resale value, I still think a bad original finish is worth more than a painted chair. Yes? No?
I'm gonna go for it.

Paulanna
Thanks much! I think I might give it a try as soon as the weather cools down.
Beloved, I'm with you... paint is just gross. I read a bunch about aniline dying when I first got my chair and if memory serves (which it might not) you can redye the surface after the paint has been stripped. Because the dye is waterbased it will blend well with the old dye. I think. I'd recheck before doing it. I hope you post some before and after photos!

beloved
yes definitely - get...
beloved
yes definitely - get rid of that paint! I'm not one of these people to whom 'restoration' is a dirty word - if the original finish isn't viable then competent restoration aimed at replicating the original finish is always best.

My old LCM
This thread inspired me to reading into stripping and refinishing aniline dyes.
The seat of my old LCM is in pretty miserable state. Let me try to post a picture.
*test*

With tags

Links and tips
Now I managed to post a picture, here are some tips I found.
Note: I'm still reading into the subject and don't have any hands on experience yet. Hope this helps, if it doesn't, please let us know.
For stripping analine dye one should look into chlorine wood bleach. This can apparently be made from swimming pool bleach, which is a dry chemical called calcium hypochlorite.
For refinishing it's best to use pure, water based aniline dyes mixed with wood alcohol, and keep away from stains containing added pigments or oils.
Analine dyed wood should be sealed with an oily top coat.
Some links about aniline and finishing wood:
Wiki on aniline
Analyzing aniline dye problems
Woodworking tips
Dry Powdered Aniline Dye

Links don't show up...
So I'll post them one by one.
Analyzing aniline dye problems:
http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Analyzing_aniline_dye_problems.html

Woodworking tips
Woodworking tips
http://www.woodworkingtips.com/etips/etip32.html

Dry Powdered Aniline Dye
Dry Powdered Aniline Dye
http://www.cheyennesales.com/catalog/behaniline.htm

Wiki on aniline
Wiki on aniline
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aniline