Homer Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 Any tips on this please folks... There are some very old crusty decals on the car doors which I cannot remove. They are not vinyl, they seem to have a very tough plastic surface which nothing can get through. I've had a search of some old threads and tried the following: - Hairdrier (worked on the normalk Vinyl ones) - Petrol - Spirits - Sandpaper (!) - scraping The only thing thats worked in by scraping them off a mm at a time, but it's scratching the paint and will take days at this rate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liam1 Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 i used autoglym tar remover with a lot of elbow grease and a hair dryer once the stickers warm up they come off a lot easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieren1234 Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 Good old finger nails?? Be careful with the paintwork using sandpaper!! I have used someting before called "goo gone" and worked a treat but they were vinyl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacko Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 heating them up should work. What are they made of if you say they aren't vinyl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baldy Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 give boiling water a go Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 I had some stubborn ones on my last car that came off after pouring boiling water over them from the kettle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigcol Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 i used autoglym tar remover with a lot of elbow grease and a hair dryer once the stickers warm up they come off a lot easier. i did that with mine it worked a treat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 Autosmart Tardis should do the trick: http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/autosmart-tardis-clean.html Sadly only comes in big 5L containers (AFAIK) but it's handy for all kinds of other cleaning tasks later or you could split it down into 1L bottles and sell them off, it's great stuff. Your main issue will be getting the product onto the adhesive rather than the outside of the sticker, I guess you could run a sharp blade over the stickers to create some areas for the product to get under but be careful not to go too deep. If all else fails set it on fire Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacko Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 the best thing to use is pure alcohol, that's what we use at work. But it isnt the easiest thing to get hold of. I could start flogging it if people are interested tho lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glanov Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 as said above buddy prob just heat it up pick it off then just use petrol for the glue stuff!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 Fire Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soop Dogg Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 Boiling water has always worked the best for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 Fire What would be the best way to apply the fire and in what form? Flame thrower or match? I think it's important to elaborate in case Homer gets your suggestion wrong and sues you for damages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 What would be the best way to apply the fire and in what form? Flame thrower or match? I think it's important to elaborate in case Homer gets your suggestion wrong and sues you for damages. Hmm, good point Pete. Thanks for the heads up. I wasn't thinking of anything extreme, soak sticker in petrol and light using either a flame thrower or TNT... u know... the usual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Wilson Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 3M do a dedicated decal remover. I had to remove the Mercury logos on a 10 tonne BT truck I bought and nothing else would shift those. It was expensive, but it also worked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Wilson Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 http://www.ptsgrafix.com/sign_removal.asp It appears 3M also do special abrasive discs for removing decals, I found a US site, no doubt body shop supply houses in the UK can get these too. http://site.mawebcenters.com/signsplusbanners/catalog_i2615963.html?catId=174285 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homer Posted August 16, 2008 Author Share Posted August 16, 2008 Thanks for the advice gents Tried it with some boiling water after seeing the first replies, that worked slightly better than the hair drier, but the hard surface is only coming off slightly easier (about 2mm at a time instead of 1mm ) Fire Funily enough after the petrol attempt failed I lit it to see what what happen. It lit up nicely, but didn't help the stickers come off (My neighbour said she was getting a concerned after seeing me with a petrol can and a lighter walking towards the car!) http://www.ptsgrafix.com/sign_removal.asp It appears 3M also do special abrasive discs for removing decals, I found a US site, no doubt body shop supply houses in the UK can get these too. http://site.mawebcenters.com/signsplusbanners/catalog_i2615963.html?catId=174285 Ahah, thanks Chris, that sounds a little more like it. I really need something that will disolve the hard outer surface, but it seems that most stuff strong enough to do that will also disolve the paint! The razor blade technique in the last link is something I've not tried yet so will give that a go one I buy some blades. The residue thats left is not an issue, it's getting the hardened outer layer off thats causing all the problems Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackie Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 I have a mate who works in a grapics company, He uses stuff called ambersil, I will send you a can if you like or bring a coupld to JAE if you're there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CoolsBlue Posted August 16, 2008 Share Posted August 16, 2008 My neighbour said she was getting a concerned after seeing me with a petrol can and a lighter walking towards the car!) Id of told her to mind he own business or she'd be next Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacko Posted August 17, 2008 Share Posted August 17, 2008 If it was on glass you just spray the sticker with water and scrape it off with a scraper, or a stanley blade in a pair of pliers. We have a special surface cleaner at work, or like i said before some ethyl alcohol, and if that doesnt shift it you just have a quick swig and you dont care any more lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted August 17, 2008 Share Posted August 17, 2008 Funily enough after the petrol attempt failed I lit it to see what what happen. It lit up nicely, but didn't help the stickers come off (My neighbour said she was getting a concerned after seeing me with a petrol can and a lighter walking towards the car!) LMFAO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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