On Tue, 23 Dec 2008 10:01:44 -0800 (PST), MikeSattan
wrote:

I somewhat recently tried my hand at stripping paint off some cabinets
in my bathroom, and I did not do such a good job. My wife is not very
happy with my half-assed attempt at making the cabinets look better.
What I was thinking I could do was take the face off the cabinets and
rebuild a whole new face and set of doors. What I need to know, is
this possible without ruining the framework of the cabinet? Do you
think I would be able to pry off the face? Or am I better off trying
to do a better job stripping these cabinets...or calling in a
professional for a full set of cabinets?

What part of your operation went wrong? Did you just not get all the
paint off? First and foremost is to get the old off, fill all the
various holes and whatever, and sand it to maybe 220 for the new paint
to look good...of course, you have to *apply* the new paint in a
reasonably professional manner. It's easy to get a faceframe off,
just tap it from behind (on the inside of the cabinet)...of course
remove the doors and drawers first...but that's not necessary if you
strip and sand and paint well. I'd do it again, be careful not to
ding the surface too badly when scraping...use 80 grit sand paper,
then 100 or 120 and move up another grit or two, prime and paint.
Doors and drawer fronts get the same, here though you maybe will have
to deal with an edge detail, moulding, or whatever, and you maybe even
want to consider new doors and drawer fronts (that makes finishing
MUCH easier, heh...and you/she gets a new look besides. To a
homeowner/hobbyist these jobs look simple to begin with, but can be a
pain.

cg