Decals????

BrianMcLeod

BrianMcLeod

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I have never taken off a decal before it is on the paint I will post a picture of it tomorrow but how do you get a sticker/decal off of the paint? Is it easy or hard?
 
I have never personally done it but I will assume a heat gun will be involved to heat up the adhesive then peel off carefully.
 
BrianMcLeod said:
I have never taken off a decal before it is on the paint I will post a picture of it tomorrow but how do you get a sticker/decal off of the paint? Is it easy or hard?
Click to expand...
I tried Goo-Gone with a heat gun and got very minimal results. I managed to scrape maybe 1/10 of it off with that method and my thumb nail as the scraper. Not worth it 'coz that took ~1 hr.

Someone suggested a plastic razor blade which I've yet to purchase. However, mine has been on for 3 years which "may" make a difference.

I hope someone will post a sure-fire method (if one exists).
 
I took the decals off my brothers wife's car last weekend. the bmws have the 2 black stripes going from the front to the back of the car. I used a heat gun and a very steady hand to peal it off. you don't want to put too much force into it bc then you will rip it off piece by piece. Heat it up a bit as you go along and try to take it off as big of pieces you can.
then after you got it off wipe it down with goo-gone or any digresser. it's a bit of a pain to do but once you get the feel for it it'll be easy.
 
You can also purchase an eraser wheel for your drill($12-15). I've picked them up at local bodyshop supply houses before. It's basically a round eraser(like on a pencil), that gently removed the decal. There will more than likely be a bit of residue to wipe afterwards, but it's much simpler than pulling it off.

You do have to be careful on plastic bumpers and fiberglass parts. They heat up quickly, and will release the paint easily. Just be sure to set the drill on the slowest setting, and keep the wheel moving.
 
Heat gun works best but be very careful not to heat the paint up too much, you'll be sorry.
A hair dryer works well too, takes a little longer to heat the decal up to remove it but no worries in burning your paint.

If you heat it up enough you should be able to remove it in one piece.
Then a little goo gone and polish and it will look like its never been there.
 
That heat gun process never worked for me....... maybe it's due to the age mine has been on the car.
 
I've always used a heat gun and a credit card or drivers license.
 
That shouldn't be too hard. it's a wide decal. Use a heat gun but make sure you don't over heat it too much. just make sure when you start pealing it to keep it at a 100 degree angle from the car. That worked best for me. And keep a consistent pressure while pulling it off.
 
Or you can pick up an eraser wheel. Google or YouTube a video. It doesn't get much easier, but will make a mess.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using AG Online
 
I can second the eraser wheel. It is much quicker. Although it does mar the paint. So plan on polishing and possibly compounding the area after.

Sent from my HTC One using AG Online
 
I use a heat gun starting at the smallest leading or following edge. Heat about 7-10" (heat until you can barely touch it comfortably). Peel an edge and pull off at really sharp angle. Once you feel the decal is not releasing, start the heating process over. 1 tip-heating the removed decal will make it come off in pieces, so just let curl up and provide a good handle for the next section. The real problem is removing the glue left behind (if you do the heat gun properly most sticks to the decal). Last one I did had no vinyl just the glue backing. 11 years exposure made it very hard. Heat gun, 3M adhesive remover and plastic razor blade got it off single stage paint. After polishing could not tell it was ever there.
 
I have an auto detailing shop and we have clients who want this done on a regular basis.

Make it easy on yourself. Use some fishing line and work it back and forth between the badge and paint surface. The badge will come off with ease. You can use whatever you want to to remove the adhesive residue, however Rapid Remover works better than anything I've ever tried and I'm pretty sure I've tried them all.

There have been instances where the vehicle may be more than a couple of years old and the shadow left behind may not be completely removed through the use of polishing. In that case you can do some light wet sanding and polishing and have an absolutely flawless finish.
Of course, that's worst case scenario.
 
Naphtha is also good for removing glue residues. I use zippo lighter fluid, because it is hard to find pure naphtha where I live. I also like the needle tip the zippo fluid has it, and I always try to spread the fluid over the decal, in a hope something gets inside the edges a bit and starts to loosen up the sticker. And as Tony pointed out, fishing line is part of the equation as well.
I try to avoid anything sharp and heat gun, though sometimes is necessary, especially on old dealerships stickers, the kind that when you try to remove you only get tiny bits at time, PITA.
I also I have plastic blades and pieces of wood.
 
ken tuep said:
You can also purchase an eraser wheel for your drill($12-15). I've picked them up at local bodyshop supply houses before. It's basically a round eraser(like on a pencil), that gently removed the decal. There will more than likely be a bit of residue to wipe afterwards, but it's much simpler than pulling it off.

You do have to be careful on plastic bumpers and fiberglass parts. They heat up quickly, and will release the paint easily. Just be sure to set the drill on the slowest setting, and keep the wheel moving.
Click to expand...
^^^:iagree:^^^
BrianMcLeod said:

This is the decals
Click to expand...
Then this should work just fine:
3M Stripe Off Wheel 07498, pinstripe tape removal


Bob
 
I use a hair dryer and it works well. A heat gun is faster but I am a bit concerned about damaging the paint. So I don't mind taking a few more minutes doing it with the hair dryer.

Once the decal is removed, you will have glue residues most of the time. I use 3M Adhesive remover. There are other products like Goo-Gone but I never found them to be as effective.

After that you will need to compound and polish. Otherwise you will have a color difference between the area that was Under the decal and the area around it.
 
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