Re: stripping with cold, I mean way cold...
Answer: Yes. Liquid nitrogen to blast off the paint from the inside
of the Statue of Liberty (and I've heard elsewhere, especially from
metals). Has to do with quick temperature change, differential
shrinkage, brittle failure of the paint assisted by pressure of the
blast.
Re stripping with heat:
Be careful of sending hot product into the cavity of a frame
wall...as with torches and blowers. Hot irons are one step better.
Also be careful of the gas produced by heating lead and other
chemical components of old paints.
--The Rev.