Bought a used service vehicle that had decals: decals gone but paint gloss still shows decal outline

chipjumper

chipjumper

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I did a search and I could not find anything related. I am a newbie to this art but I have clayed and waxed cars in the past. I bought a used police vehicle which already had the decals stripped away. I can still see the lettering as the paint behind where the decals were is extremely glossy and the rest of the vehicle is dull. Do you think just a good clay and way job should even this out or should I be more aggressive and run a polish then glaze then wax? If so, what kind of polish would you recommend? This isn't any sort of show truck but I'd like to take it back to 100% OEM if possible.
 
Paint correction compound and polish will most likely remove it or at least lessen the difference so it's barely noticeable.
 
Like stated before you will need to do a paint correction job a combo like meguiars m105 and m205 should do the trick ...good luck
 
yep, what the others have said.
Paint has natural wear due to the elements if not protected by a wax, sealant or coating...or in this case, decals.
The paint under the decals is basically new 'cause the decals were likely installed when the vehicle was new, i assume.
With a compound and polish, you could bring the rest of the paint back to new condition (most likely) to match the paint that was under the decals.
If you dont have "professional" products available, Meguiars Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish are available at your local parts store or walmart and are awesome products and real easy to use. Do a search here or on youtube on them to get more familiar with them.
As always, feel free to ask away!
We were all new at some point and someone helped us too.
 
Wish I knew how to get the stinking decal (dealer) off my trunk lip!!!!
 
Edse30 said:
If you dont have "professional" products available, Meguiars Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish are available at your local parts store or walmart and are awesome products and real easy to use.
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Good combo. I had vinyls on the lower rockers of my car and using this combo removed the outlined that the letters left as well as making the paint look even in terms of gloss.

shagnat said:
Wish I knew how to get the stinking decal (dealer) off my trunk lip!!!!
Click to expand...
If it's vinyl some heat and patience will get it off.
 
shagnat said:
Wish I knew how to get the stinking decal (dealer) off my trunk lip!!!!
Click to expand...

Along with heat and patience, I've used a plastic razor blade. Gently peel a edge of the sticker off the surface with the blade while the sticker is hot.
 
shagnat said:
Wish I knew how to get the stinking decal (dealer) off my trunk lip!!!!
Click to expand...

Credit card...or you can go use the plastic to buy a plastic scraper/razor. Takes it right off and then a little clean up and you'll never know it was there. I make them remove them at the dealership.....unless they are willing to knock off a couple hundred for advertising, then I'll wait until I get home and do it myself.
 
Sounds good guys. I'll follow your advice and report back.
 
shagnat said:
Wish I knew how to get the stinking decal (dealer) off my trunk lip!!!!
Click to expand...

You can use a 3M eraser wheel on a drill like the body shops use.I used one to remove the double sided tape on my door when I replaced the molding.
 
Thanks for your recommendation. Amazon reviews seem very promising. Looks like a must have in my arsenal.
 
Just a warning. I removed stripes only truck after 2years that polishing won't remove. The pigment under the clear had time to fade slightly. I can't promise it'll happen to you, but it's something to look for.
 
You could always do a body wrap and call it a day!

Sent from my SPH-M930 using AG Online
 
I had the same probem with several older police cars that I removed decals on. I ended up using Tarminator and a pastic razor blade to remove the outline of the decals. I then used a orange pad with Megs 105 followed by Megs 205 and the decals were most all completly removed. The decals were reay dried on and had been in the sun for a long time, but the Tarminator and Megs 105 made a great combination.
 
Jeepster19 said:
You can use a 3M eraser wheel on a drill like the body shops use.I used one to remove the double sided tape on my door when I replaced the mold
Click to expand...

I used the AES Smart Eraser Pad from Amazon(same thing, much cheaper) and its awesome. When it ran out, I ordered 3 more for future projects.


Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Tapatalk 2
 
Chip, You didn't say what you had as far as 'muscle' to work the paint. Do you happen to have a PC or GG? Or are you planning to do it all by hand? (That'd be HORRIBLE!!!) :rolleyes:

If you have a machine, I'd grab a bottle of Megs #83, Megs UC & Megs UP, or Megs 205. Many local parts stores will have the Mirror Glaze line so 83 and 205 will be easy enough. I'd say get 101 just because it was a service vehicle and was abused it's entire life, and 105 is so hard to work with.

If you have an Advance Auto Parts in your area you can get Griot's Garage compounds. Forgot what they have in stock (I have all 4) but you'll need some cut to get that thing back in shape. One of their heavier cuts could take the place of 101/105.

I'd *try* an orange CCS pad but wouldn't be surprised to switch to yellow. Then once it's done (compounded), you could go to orange and UC then on to white/blue/green (whatever you have) with UP/205 and it'd finish down right nicely. ;)
 
I know its quite late to respond on this thread but my sister bought as well a service car with decals on it. Now, after removing the vinyls, some were left not detachable. What we did was, find another decals that could cover up the residue.

Found a vinyl 3m sticker it is very durable. It was very easy to take off and it didn't leave any residue. compared to the original decals on the car.
 
shagnat said:
Wish I knew how to get the stinking decal (dealer) off my trunk lip!!!!
Click to expand...

Plenty of ways to do that. Easiest is heating the decal with an air dryer adnd pulling it off. You can also use goo-gone to remove decals. Steam works most of the time... pick your weapon and go at it ;)
 
Is the vehicle white?

If so, a cleaner wax might do the trick.

Try Meguiar's Black Wax. Sound counter intuitive, but the Black Wax verison has more abrasives in it than the White Wax version (according to Megs)

Could save you a lot of work.
 
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