This follows on from a thread where I asked about using Polycell SmoothOver to cover up a texture coated ceiling that we wanted gone. I received a fair bit of advice about the procedure - most saying don't use the stuff, it's hopeless. Others gave advice about sanding it down or getting it skimmed over.
Well, after the advice here, we abandoned the SmoothOver 'solution'. I had already tried some stuff (forget what it's called, but it's a blue paste and expensive) designed to shift it, but that didn't work either, so decided to try and sand it down. I bought a load of sanding belts for my belt-sander and began the process. After a short while it became quite clear that it was (1) going to take forever, (2) very messy, and (3) not going to produce a very good result.
I was considering getting someone in to skim over it, when I thought about trying my hot-air gun with a scraper - as you would when removing gloss paint. Actually, this works quite well. Time-consuming and laborious, but definitely works. I have almost removed the stuff now, so can can quite clearly say that - for me - of all the methods this is definitely the best.