Removing Ceramic Coatings

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L Gunnar D

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Disclaimer: This post is in no way meant as a diss to any brands of ceramic coating, including the one named. It's just that circumstances have come up that make me believe the product in case does not play well with a certain car. Please don't turn this into a shouting match over different coatings or how stupid I am.

Question: Does anybody have a good suggestion on how to remove in the gentlest possible way Gyeon Mohs from soft, Korean black paint? I was thinking perhaps a soft polishing pad paired with Meg's D300 on a DA (more based on guessing and YT videos rather than real world experience). I have coated several cars with several different brands of ceramic coating with what I deem to be success, just not this one and I want it removed and revert back to sealants and waxes.

Of coarse there's the possibility that I fudged up the prep and application (I'm a weekend warrior), but I am a stickler for following instructions, almost to a fault.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, and I hope I don't receive to much hate for my question.

Lars
 
Any finishing polish. When you want to remove a coating, it's not necessarily about gentleness, it's literally about polishing guarantees removal of Mohs. Other stuff doesn't.
 
I just removed csl and exo with megs 205. Love that coating I just love waxing my car more....
 
In general: polish.

Mohs is pretty tough. Some are tougher and need to be wet sanded. I would start with a light polish such as Menzerna SF4000, Jescar finishing or Sonax perfect finish. Some finishing polish.

Least aggressive first. Test a section. Wipe off all polish residue with IPA or your prep solution of choice and test the wetting properties of the clearcoat. If you've got irregular, flat angle beads and poor sheeting, chances are the coating is gone.

Move up in aggression as needed for the polishing stage.

(Sent via my mobile device...)
 
I removed the Gtechniq C1 Crystal Lacquer ceramic coating by hand. This was a "high spot" or in reality, a streak or smear of un-removed product.

First I tried to gently rub it off with a clean, soft microfiber towel. Mostly because I wanted to see if it could be done. But it wouldn't budge. Just goes to show, once some ceramic coatings set-up... they are semi-permanent.

Next I used a simple foam wax applicator pad, (soft foam), with a little Blackfire One Step, which is a one-step cleaner/wax.

It did take a little gentle rubbing but I was able to remove it.


Hang tight... I took before and after pictures.


:)
 
Here's the pictures...


A ceramic coating high spot

See the rainbow looking patch on the paint?

Removing_High_Spot_01.jpg




Here through the wonders of Photoshop I've cropped out the pertinent section - see it?

Removing_High_Spot_02.jpg




Here through the wonders of MS Paint I've drawn a line around the high spot - Now do you see it?

Removing_High_Spot_03.jpg




And now it's gone...

Removing_High_Spot_04.jpg




I kept it simple, I used a soft foam finger pocket and gently applied a one-step cleaner/wax and with a little massaging, I removed the high spot or excess coating.

Removing_High_Spot_05.jpg




Note: In this example I was able to remove a high spot that had fully dried and cured after a couple of weeks using nothing but a high quality one-step cleaner/wax by hand.

For some coatings it might require less work and a less aggressive product and approach and for other coatings it might require a more aggressive product and approach. The only way to know is to do some testing and close inspection.


I'd also say... try to learn from this example of not fully removing all the coating after the initial installation. The KEY thing with applying a ceramic paint coating is to ONLY apply to an area you can focus on at one time. Don't try to apply a coating to an entire large panel but instead, apply to a section of the panel and then after the recommended waiting time, carefully wipe off the high spots (if any) BEFORE moving on.

It is so much better to take your time and avoid high spots than it is to have to come back and try to remove them.

You also don't want to find out from a CUSTOMER that you left high spots because this means YOU did not do a good enough job inspecting the panel you were applying and removing to before moving on. Your fault.

Slow down. Avoid mistakes.


:)
 
Hey man, thanks for the detailed explanation and pics! I'm impressed you got it off at all using such a "lo-tech" method and no strong compounds. I'll definitely keep this in mind when time comes. Gotta try and preserve as much clear coat as possible.
 
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