I have encountered a wallop of a job involving some Vinyl Letters that were painted over with OneShot Lettering Enamel. In addition, the graphics have been baking on a black Semitractor for about 7 years. This one is a beauty!!
Originally, I thought the graphics were just painted on and I asked my friend Jeff, a Letterhead Resident, what I could do. He suggested that I use a goopy mixture of Rubbing Compound and Mineral Spirits with a cloth and some elbow grease. This worked fantastic on the graphics that were just paint!! Thanks again Jeff! Unfortunately, I discovered some of the vinyl graphics are painted and outlined with Enamel.
I suggested to my client, optimally, that he take his cab to an auto body and have the doors repainted and then put the graphics on. That way we would not destroy the finish.... My client said," I don't care... I work in filthy grim all the time...hauling all kinds of old machinery around from renovated industries.... I just want my name on the sides".
I don't want to ruin the professional paint job. What can be done other than repainting the doors? I thought of wet sanding that old graphics down to a smooth finish so there would not be any ridges and then using a black vinyl panel to cover the old graphics and apply the new graphics ontop of the panel, but that just seems too cheezy.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Respectfully, Craig
Posted by Dave Grundy (Member # 103) on :
IF the original paint under all the other stuff is factory paint, I'd use Easy-off oven cleaner to remove the one-shot. THEN I'd use a heat gun to remove the vinyl stuff. Then use Rapid Remover to get the adhesive off. If there was still one-shot outlines left I'd use more Easy-off.
Wait a day and then apply the new vinyl.
Only to be tackled by trained "Easy-off oven cleaner professionals"
If the guy says he doesn't care...slap the new stuff over the old stuff!!!!!!! Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
tell him you can get .040 alum sheets and screw em to the truck!!!!!!!! some guys expect you do all that work, just for what you get paid to put on the lettering. i get trucks to do and i teel em beofre they bring it to me...TO HAVE WASHED PROPERLY!!! i charged $50 more if i gota wash the damn thing!!!!!
Posted by Checkers (Member # 63) on :
Hiya Craig, I've had a couple of clients like this. Your best bet is to find out how much the want to spend and go from there. I've stripped, sanded & repainted the door w/1 Shot, then relettered with vinyl and I've also laid a sheet of vinyl over everything and stuck decals on from there - offering absolutely no warranty on the finished job. These, normally, are the clients that you get paid in full, up front, in cash.
Havin' fun,
Checkers
Posted by Greg McRoberts (Member # 3501) on :
The best luck I've had on piant is with Easy-Off. Give it a try (carefully). Let us know the results.
Posted by Jillbeans (Member # 1912) on :
Just don't use Easy Off in direct sunlight! (altho that seems a moot point in January in Wiscaaaansin) Test in an inconspicuous place first...like yer armpit! And just do a little bit at a time. Love- JILL
Posted by Ray Rheaume (Member # 3794) on :
Hiya Craig,
Sounds like a job I had this summer. A truck for a construction company that takes a beating every day that they "just want lettered". The customer removed the graphics with oven cleaner and it came off fine, but the result was this...
After a good cleaning with RapidTac cleaner, I masked off and scuffed the door with a scotchbrite pad to smooth out the surface a little. After hitting again with a tack rag and recleaning it, I sprayed One Shot UV Clear on the door and got this...
Less expensive than repainting the doors and not really too time consuming. The UV Clear dried fairly quickly and the new lettering was added just a few hours later.
I'm not too sure the process would work on a metallic paint finish, but for the extra 45 minutes it took to refresh the doors, the customer was VERY happy not to shell out the extra to the body shop.
Hope this helps Rapid
Posted by Kissymatina (Member # 2028) on :
Nice job Ray. I'll keep that in mind for future reference.
Posted by Laura Butler (Member # 1830) on :
Don't forgot about using that rubber-like wheel that mounts to a drill to take the vinyl off. Works real nice without scratching.
Posted by Craig Shaub (Member # 3119) on :
Cool Beans!!
Thanks to ALL of your replies and advice I believe that I have a good plan of action. I am going to use a combination of Rubbing Compound +Mineral Spirits, Easy Off, Heat Gun, Rubber Pad, and One Shot ClearUV. I should get very satisfying results.......... :-}
... I could swear that the photos in Ray's post are of the truck I am working on. I already started to remove the painted graphics and the dullness, on the door, is exactly how it looks in his photos.
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Dunno]](graemlins/dunno.gif)
