Well folks, it came time to remove my old faded vinyl name decal and replace it with a new one. They had been on there for eight years, and were definitely looking faded and shabby. Simple task, right? So I get out the old heat gun and razor scraper, start heating up the letters, and use the razor scraper to lift up corners of the letters and slowly peel them back over themselves, and off they come. A little slow, but it’s a long name: “Virginia Reel 2” on each side of the cabin in a shadowed fancy cursive. It took about an hour to get them all off.
So, next step, remove the adhesive. Still a simple task, right? Nope, not simple at all. Get out the old Goof Off, sprayed it on a section, let it sit for about 60 seconds, then take the plastic scraper and scrape it off IAW instructions. Well, a little bit comes off, but there is still a lot of adhesive left. Do it again, a little more comes off, but still a long way to go.
Not to be foiled at this point, I grab the acetone, and go to work. Similar result.
Okay, go to the internet and do a search on removing adhesive.
Hmmmm – seems that every boat pundit has a different formula – here is a sampling…
· WD-40
· Goof off
· Goo Gone
· Acetone
· RUST-OLEUM Decal and Adhesive Remover
· Zep Chemicals Big Orange
· Denatured alcohol
· 3M Stripe Removal Systems
· Orange Cleaner that you can get at any Wal-Mart
· Lighter fluid
· Gasoline
· xylene or lacquer thinner
· 3M Graphics Eraser
· Etc. etc. etc.
Well, I tried about everything in my shop after the Goof Off and acetone - WD-40, Goo Gone, alcohol, lighter fluid, gasoline, and paint thinner. In each case, some would come off, but not all. It was looking like a very long day.
Not being quite as stubborn or as dumb as I used to be, I called up the owner of a local sign shop who has done some work for me in the past and just happens to also does boat name decals. I ask him what he uses and how he does it. He said to come on over to the shop and he’d show me.
Off I go. When I get there he pulls out a bottle of something called “Rapid Remover” by Rapidtec.com. Explains to take paper towel, fold it up like a blotter, pour on some Rapid Remover, and liberally dab it on a section of adhesive, let it sit for 30 to 60 seconds. Then take a hard plastic scraper (e.g. something like a Bondo applicator), and start scraping it off. When that is done, take a second folded up paper towel, put on some more Rapid Remover, and wipe down the section to get any stubborn spots. Repeat as necessary. Then spray on window cleaner and wipe with a clean cloth.
I zip back to the boat, follow his instructions, and it worked like a charm – took about 30 minutes.
Finished the job up with 3M hull restorer, which is basically a medium grit rubbing compound.
Now, I’m not saying some of the adhesive removers listed above that I didn't try are as good or even possibly superior, since I have no evidence one way or the other. But, given the stuff I did try, the Rapid Remover was clearly far superior.
Hope this helps any others who may be facing a similar issue.
So, next step, remove the adhesive. Still a simple task, right? Nope, not simple at all. Get out the old Goof Off, sprayed it on a section, let it sit for about 60 seconds, then take the plastic scraper and scrape it off IAW instructions. Well, a little bit comes off, but there is still a lot of adhesive left. Do it again, a little more comes off, but still a long way to go.
Not to be foiled at this point, I grab the acetone, and go to work. Similar result.
Okay, go to the internet and do a search on removing adhesive.
Hmmmm – seems that every boat pundit has a different formula – here is a sampling…
· WD-40
· Goof off
· Goo Gone
· Acetone
· RUST-OLEUM Decal and Adhesive Remover
· Zep Chemicals Big Orange
· Denatured alcohol
· 3M Stripe Removal Systems
· Orange Cleaner that you can get at any Wal-Mart
· Lighter fluid
· Gasoline
· xylene or lacquer thinner
· 3M Graphics Eraser
· Etc. etc. etc.
Well, I tried about everything in my shop after the Goof Off and acetone - WD-40, Goo Gone, alcohol, lighter fluid, gasoline, and paint thinner. In each case, some would come off, but not all. It was looking like a very long day.
Not being quite as stubborn or as dumb as I used to be, I called up the owner of a local sign shop who has done some work for me in the past and just happens to also does boat name decals. I ask him what he uses and how he does it. He said to come on over to the shop and he’d show me.
Off I go. When I get there he pulls out a bottle of something called “Rapid Remover” by Rapidtec.com. Explains to take paper towel, fold it up like a blotter, pour on some Rapid Remover, and liberally dab it on a section of adhesive, let it sit for 30 to 60 seconds. Then take a hard plastic scraper (e.g. something like a Bondo applicator), and start scraping it off. When that is done, take a second folded up paper towel, put on some more Rapid Remover, and wipe down the section to get any stubborn spots. Repeat as necessary. Then spray on window cleaner and wipe with a clean cloth.
I zip back to the boat, follow his instructions, and it worked like a charm – took about 30 minutes.
Finished the job up with 3M hull restorer, which is basically a medium grit rubbing compound.
Now, I’m not saying some of the adhesive removers listed above that I didn't try are as good or even possibly superior, since I have no evidence one way or the other. But, given the stuff I did try, the Rapid Remover was clearly far superior.
Hope this helps any others who may be facing a similar issue.
