Thunderbolt projector (cone) paint question

[Jim_Ferer]

You've gotta do one of two things now.

1) get Tyvek suits and wear them while doing your scraping. Put the used ones in a bag with the paint chips and your scrub pads and everything goes out during the next hazardous waste day in your town.

2) Wear a set of your oldest clothes when you're working on this; those go in the bag at the end of the job. Don't was them. If you're put clothes through the laundry already, run the washer with nothing in it.

Do the work on top of plastic sheeting. At the end of the job, it all goes in the bag.

Do you have a much younger brother or sister? don't let them near this.

At the end of the job, get yourself tested. (This is starting to sound like sex, isn't it?)

[JasonC]

My t-bolts were made in the 80's. I have to ask though, wasn't lead paint outlawed by then or did I mess up by not using a high quality respirator when grinding/blasting my t-bolts?

[Nelso90]

Good to know, the stripper I use is bad enough (Like chemical burns?) without the lead in the mix, but it's better than sanding. Thanks for the heads-up.
BTW; If you can, strip all the paint off with stripper, sand as little off as possible. Lead paint dust is worse than stripper sludge.

[Jim_Ferer]

Lead paint stopped being used in buildings and such in the early '70s; an '80s Thunderbolt is likely to be lead free. Federal didn't want to expose their workers.

Here's something I don't know: when asbestos stopped being used on wires. In this context it's not nearly the worry that lead paint is.

[jmev]

You don't have to worry at all about lead exposure by stripping a TBolt horn. You don't need a full body suit and all of this other hazmat garbage for a job of this duration.

It takes years of exposure for Asbestos to accumulate in your body to cause harm and lead is the same way. Unless you are eating or inhaling the paint chips, don't worry yourself. Chemical stripper won't cause any harm with lead paint, other than an occasional burn or two. If you sand it and make dust, wear a simple disposable dust mask. Just remember to wash your hands before eating.

(Don't get me started on the scientifically-unprovable farce of radon gas!)

[Siren Man]

I have to agree with jmev, the amount of lead in lead paint is negligible as long as you wear a mask. I've worked with lead paint and came out fine. No chemical suits are necessary.

[Jim_Ferer]

Pay attention to the safety director for the major construction company. ($8 billion).


That's me.

[EL1998P71]

My thunderbolt isn't from the 80's.
It's a series A, possibly from the 1960's.
Most likely from after the 67 riots. since alot of stuff was destroyed durning that time. But i'm not 100% on that.
I guess I would have to ask, when did federal signal go from "FEDERAL SIGN AND SIGNAL CORPORATION" to "FEDERAL SIGNAL", cause the rotor head tag has the older "F" with a lighting bolt logo. and says at the bottom "FORMERLY FEDERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY INC."

[3t22]

My thunderbolt isn't from the 80's.
It's a series A, possibly from the 1960's.
Most likely from after the 67 riots. since alot of stuff was destroyed durning that time. But i'm not 100% on that.
I guess I would have to ask, when did federal signal go from "FEDERAL SIGN AND SIGNAL CORPORATION" to "FEDERAL SIGNAL", cause the rotor head tag has the older "F" with a lighting bolt logo. and says at the bottom "FORMERLY FEDERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY INC."

I don't know the exact dates off the top of my head, but I do know that in the 1940's Federal was Federal Electric as my 1946 5 is labled Federal Electric. In the 1950's they switched from Federal Electric to Federal Enterprises, than in the 60's to Federal Sign and Signal. It was sometime in the 1970's when they switched to Federal Signal. If someone here knows the exact dates, please post. Now I'm curious as to what my T-bolt's tag says (it's caked in a few layers of yellow paint)

[EL1998P71]

The tag I have pictured had several layers of paint on it.
I used so aircraft coating/paint remover in a spray can, leaving it on for a few mins. then wiping it off, it took about 15 mins. to get it this far. I didn't want to go futher, cause it would of made this a blank tag.