stripping varnish off chairs

I gave up in the end and took my chairs to a professional stripper where they can use real chemicals. IME, there is noting left on the domestic market that works now that Nitromors has been neutered.

n a pail? Googling indicates commercial dipping uses lethal-looking chemic al methods, but may be there is a milder method using household chemicals w hich H & S haven't banned yet?

Blowlamp? My preferred method for paint, anyway. You used to be able to buy tins of anhydrous sodium hydroxide flakes from B oots back in the day (AKA 'Lye'). I somehow doubt Boots still stock it but you might just get it from a builder's merchants with any luck, if the H&S goons haven't banned it. Since stuff like D-Block has thus far survived the attentions of our wonderful law-makers, there's a good possibility Lye may have done likewise.

Angle grinder.

Good idea. But a *miniature* one like a Dremmel perhaps!

Blimey you lot of wooses, you can buy caustic soda in any supermarket in Australia.

Interesting - non-wusses (note the spelling!) over here buy drain cleaner having read the small print of the ingredients...

Andy

I like wooses in case you lot did not know what a wus was, as I like moozalem. (Phonetic, heard a yank pronounce it thus) We have the drain cleaner next to the caustic, we don't feel the need to hide or ban the caustic

Caustic will dissolve old style finishes (french polish, spirit varnish etc) but won't touch modern spray coatings. Washing soda works just as well