I discovered a very efficient pinstripe/decal remover.

tuscarora dave

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I bought this eraser pad some time ago at a surplus store with the intention of chucking it up in a drill to do some decal removal for a customer but then he sold the truck without removing the decals so this thing sat in a box until this morning.

I was working on my friend's BMW today and knew that I was going to have to remove the pinstripes so I grabbed the eraser pad on my way out the door. When the time to remove the pinstripes came I opened up the package and noticed the 5/16" threaded arbor on this eraser pad so just for kicks I figured I would thread it into my G110V2 and see how that worked at removing the pinstripes. Man I'm gonna tell you it worked very fast and stripped the pinstripes off with no paint marring at all. It did leave a rubber like film on the paint but some light polishing by hand and the paint looked perfect.

My buddy was removing the ground effects and there was some really tough and thick double faced tape where the ground effects were so we used this eraser pad/G110V2 combo and it stripped the tape right off without a problem. Here is what it looks like and to think I was going to spend $500 for some fancy electric decal remover.

Astro Pneumatics makes the eraser pad and it sells for around $10 and screws right into a DA polisher and kicks butt at vinyl stripe removal.

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A rotary, wool and too much pressure going after water spots will remove pinstripes handily too. Don't ask how I know this... :o

TL
 
A rotary, wool and too much pressure going after water spots will remove pinstripes handily too. Don't ask how I know this... :o

TL
Yes TL, I too had learned the value of 3M blue painters tape exactly as you have outlined above.
 
and to think I was going to spend $500 for some fancy electric decal remover.

Now that I found this $10 decal remover maybe now I can justify the $500 cost of this beautiful piece of equipment that I think I must have.


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Yea you should be able to buy those at any body paint supply store. They will try to sell you the kit which includes the pneumatic tool but you can use it on a drill if you don't turn it up too much. Great tool for sure!!
 
you can use it on a drill if you don't turn it up too much.
Screw it into a PC and on speed 6 go to town, no marring at all and no worry about burning the paint as long as you keep it moving just like using a rotary.
 
I've been using those for several years. They work great but wear out quickly. Definitely the best tool for removing decals or pinstripes.
 
Dave,

A simple solution is always the best way to go!!

Good Post!! :props:
 
Yup, I've been using them for years also on a cordless drill. You can get them pretty much anywhere, bodyshop supply stores or your brick and mortar autopart stores.
 
Thanks for the tip, Dave. Do you use the thin side or the large flat area (like a buff pad)?
 
"detailers" at the dealership use to use the pressure washer we use to have :bash::doh:
 
Thanks for the tip, Dave. Do you use the thin side or the large flat area (like a buff pad)?

You're welcome Kimtyson, kind of tip the polisher to a 45 degree angle and allow the outer edge of the face of the pad to do the work. You must keep your eye out for the X's that will appear as the rubber wears away and toss the thing in the trash at that point because if you don't you will wear it down to the metal disc that is inside the rubber pad and that would be disastrous.

"detailers" at the dealership use to use the pressure washer we use to have :bash::doh:

Recently while rinsing away the grit and dirt from a Ford Escape that I was preparing to wash, the stream of pressurized water from my pressure washer got into a chipped area on a rear fender and guess what happened? Yeah:doh: it cost me $331 to have that panel repainted for the customer. It was a not so expensive lesson on pressure washer etiquette. (could have been an Aston Martin)
 
Well if you're going to buy that ^^^^, then I'm going to buy this v v v v.


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Yeah I'd like to buy that too!! Especially after checking out Barry Theal's Festool last weekend. He say's that other than the thread size it's the same machine. I can't believe how light it is.
 
The Festool RAP 150 Shinex?

I've been considering the PE or the RAP and by the design they look the same. The only difference that I could see was the button on the head of the Festool. If they are indeed the same thing I'll get the PE for the convince of finding backing plates.
 
The Festool RAP 150 Shinex?

I've been considering the PE or the RAP and by the design they look the same. The only difference that I could see was the button on the head of the Festool. If they are indeed the same thing I'll get the PE for the convince of finding backing plates.
Yeah that's the one he has and upon looking at images of both they are slightly different but very similar. Barry said that he has to get his backing plates from overseas and if he had it to do over he too would go with the PE.
 
Yeah I'd like to buy that too!! Especially after checking out Barry Theal's Festool last weekend. He say's that other than the thread size it's the same machine. I can't believe how light it is.

The Festool RAP 150 looks nice and it looks similar to the Flex, not to mention they're about the same price. Any idea why Barry would chose that one over the Flex?

Next time, if there is a next time, AG has a sale (15% off or more) with no exclusions, I'll definitely be picking up a Flex.

You have the Makita right? It's a wonderful machine, but something I don't like about it is that the head gets too hot to hold with your bare hand. The Flex seems like it would solve that problem.


Edit: Didn't mean to send your thread off-topic. Sorry.
 
The Festool RAP 150 looks nice and it looks similar to the Flex, not to mention they're about the same price. Any idea why Barry would chose that one over the Flex?

Next time, if there is a next time, AG has a sale (15% off or more) with no exclusions, I'll definitely be picking up a Flex.

You have the Makita right? It's a wonderful machine, but something I don't like about it is that the head gets too hot to hold with your bare hand. The Flex seems like it would solve that problem.


Edit: Didn't mean to send your thread off-topic. Sorry.
Not really sure why he chose the Festool over the Flex.

Yes, I have the Makita and it is starting to show signs of wear such as heating up more than it used to and a slight whining sound coming from it. I really want to have a back up rotary before I tear down the Makita and fully rebuild it. I am leaning toward the new DeWalt rotary. It too is pretty light and is considered a work horse type of machine.
 
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