Show CLEANING PAINT FROM IRON SURFACES scraping or burning paint from the surface of iron and steel structures previous to the application of a new coat is a slow and laborious process an easier and more rapid way of doing this work is the method used by the united states coast artillery for cleaning the exterior portions of the big guns and gun carriages in their care says the canadian machinist in practice a one pound can of concentrated ly lye e is dissolved in three quarts of boiling water and to this mixture sufficient linie lime is added to emulsify the solution this solution is freshly mixed each time it 11 is to be used and is applied with a brush and allowed to remain until it is almost dry it u is then removed and unless the paint is ary ry old and thick it will come off with it if one application of the mixture does not remove lewe all of the paint the surfaces are washed off and a second coating applied a new coat of paint is put on the surface nace of the metal should be thoroughly lansed with 1 11 the a solution of washing soda proportion of one half gan pound to two gallons of hot by water r and well dried either tion yang of beat with sot soft cloths claths or by the allica |