Consensus on stripping an old toolbox down to bare metal?

[cludwin]

Hi guys,

This is my first post. Glad I found this site as it has a ton of useful information.
I wanted to ask a question regarding the best way to strip the old paint / rust off of an old box for restoration.
Lets assume for the sake of argument that it's a small toolbox like a KRA-65 so that it could easily fit into say a 5 gallon bucket.

The goal would be to bring the box down to bare metal for prime + paint nothing super fancy but you'd want it to look nice + be functional.
Lets say the box is in good shape but has some rough paint and is a little rusty.

Given the various different options what would be your approach / what has worked best for you in the past?

Thanks!

[bsg]

rough paint and a little rust still makes for a nice collectible. when you strip-n-paint, the piece may look beautiful and the current market value may or may not be affected, but the collectible value now and in the future will be greatly diminished.