Restoration Primer: Making Custom Paint Scrapers

Using custom-made, curved scrapers to remove paint from moldings will cause much less damage to the wood underneath than ordinary scrapers or putty knives. And, it is easy to modify off-the-shelf scrapers into the exact profiles needed. You can even consolidate all the curves and profiles of a particular molding onto one blade, which will save time by eliminating the need to change scraper heads. Shop for molding scrapers with a variety of blade shapes. Some scraper sets have several heads that are mounted on the same handle (see Figure 1). Others come with a handle for each profile. I prefer the blades that attach with a carriage bolt through the shaft and handle. That kind does not