How can I remove sticker marks

[thereevos]

Hi, we have recently purchased a boat and after lots of elbow grease she is looking great. The only exception is where the old stickers/decals used to be. The previous owner removed them as they were chipped etc but they have left a mark and we don't want replace them as she looks better without. Has anyone got an ideas for the best way of removing the sticker mark??

[VetChugger]

I take it you have tried some form of cutting agent such as "T Cut"? Or is it the remnants of adhesive? Some form of spirit will usually shift this. I have seen examples where stickers or decals have left a sort of "shadow" on the surface which really does take some shifting short of painting over it!

Trevor

www.normanboats.co.uk

[Jim]

Cellulose thinners is good at getting the old glue residue off and I think you will find that some nail polish removers will also shift it.

As for the gelcoat behind where the stickers were, it is hard to compound out those areas and in bright light, they may stll show...ours do

[senator]

Oxalic acid wil whiten the areas around where the stickers were but if that is not enough you are in to acctually sanding the gel coat with a very fine abrasive prior to using cutting paste and finaly polish, you need something like 4000 grit wet and dry followed by a compound like Farcea G3 and then a fair bit of polishing.

If you do decide to do it you will end up with a very white hull but it is a lot of work. That always assumes that your finish is still original gel coat and has not been painted.

[Brian]

Petrol, is what i use when i de sticker a van before selling it.

[Guest]

I might be wrong, but I think cellulose thinners shouldn't be used on gelcoat.

I've taken a lot of stickers off of my various boats (I hate the damn things !), and I've always teased them up very carefully with a single sided razor blade, then pulled off as much each time as I can.

I've then used Acetone to remove the residue which is left, (it is the previously mentioned nail varnish remover but in much bigger bottles !). It just rubs off easily whilst wet, without any abrasion.

You're only then left with the faded edge of the gelcoat around it. I've never found solution to that, since the gelcoat has actually changed colour.

I read a big argument on a specialist USA boating forum about Acetone "eating" gelcoat. This was refuted by most of the posters, who cited the fact that professionals use it to clean fibreglass boats anyway !

[Jim]

I shouldn't think thinners would be a problem Strowager though the downside is if you use certain types of man made fibre cloth, they may fall apart quickly.

Internationals anit foul stripper is a cellulose based product and it cleaned my hull off perfectly well

[Guest]

ah well, I stand corrected there then Jim, I wasn't sure.

I guess I'm a bit biased against cellulose thinners.

I remember my first car, an old Morris Minor that I bought in 1969. I was tidying it up nicely, and came across some paint on the interior light cover. I thought it was glass, but it turned out to be some sort of hard plastic. When I tried to clean it with cellulose, the whole thing turned to Jelly !

[Happy Jax 3]

Petrol, is what i use when i de sticker a van before selling it.

Put a match to it Brian and you won't need to worry about selling them.

[Guest]

I have just de stickered a taxi and by far the quickest and easiest method to remove the glue residue was tar remover from our local halfords.

[thereevos]

Thank you all for your replies. I went up to the boat yesterday and we now think it is just the difference in colour of the gel coat. But, saying that I think we will try t-cutting it when we get time to see if we can at least "dull" the edges. Can anyone recommend companies that supply and fit decals for boat names???

[Baz]

Hiya,

If you look on EBAY you will find there are companies that supply the vynil names to your own style. They are not expensive, and come ready to apply, just peel the backing off, stick to the boat, remove the top covering, and presto, a shiny new boat name of your choice of Font and Colour.

Baz

[Guest]

Just as Baz says, I bought some via eBay a couple of weeks ago.

Three decals 15" long (my boat has a short name !), in any font and colour, for £5.50 including postage.

Very easy to apply when you follow the instructions exactly, easy to line up perfectly, no creases etc.

http://motors-parts.shop.ebay.co.uk/Boa ... 86.c0.m282

[senator]

You could always have a word with Aquaholic as this is what he does for a living, Take a look in the site shop, it is all his own work.

[Hockham Admiral]

Sorry to be late in replying but I always use a hot-air gun or an hair-dryer to remove stickers. no problems!