posted March 15, 2010 04:12 PM
I have a customer that just bought a used semi with painted customer name etc. which needs to be removed. It is already fading so it is far from fresh.
The customer is going to remove it himself and I've never done it so I'm looking for the proper method, type of oven cleaner, rubber gloves, application, and how long to leave it on before washing off.
-------------------- Dave Sherby "Sandman" SherWood Sign & Graphic Design Crystal Falls, MI 49920 906-875-6201 sherwoodsign@sbcglobal.net Posts: 5396 | From: Crystal Falls, MI USA | Registered: Apr 1999
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posted March 15, 2010 04:17 PM
It should be a breeze being it is old. The only thing to be sure of is that it is not a repaint. Oven cleaner is only good on factory paint jobs. Bill
-------------------- Bill Riedel Riedel Sign Co., Inc. 15 Warren Street Little Ferry, N.J. 07643 billsr@riedelsignco.com Posts: 2953 | From: Little Ferry, New Jersey, USA | Registered: Feb 1999
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posted March 15, 2010 04:30 PM
This is what it may look like afterwards. Also tell your guy to cover up any metal or aluminun. It will turn n it white,,,,forever.
-------------------- Signs by Alicia Jennings (Mudflap Girl) Tacoma, WA Since 1987 Have Lipstick, will travel. Posts: 3814 | From: Tacoma, WA. U.S.A. | Registered: Dec 1999
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posted March 15, 2010 04:41 PM
Ouch Alicia. Is that on base / clear? Can that be buffed out? We need to apply his logo on the doors and it won't come close to covering the old graphics.
-------------------- Dave Sherby "Sandman" SherWood Sign & Graphic Design Crystal Falls, MI 49920 906-875-6201 sherwoodsign@sbcglobal.net Posts: 5396 | From: Crystal Falls, MI USA | Registered: Apr 1999
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posted March 15, 2010 04:52 PM
Sorry Dave. if it gets to looking like that,,,it's forever. That was a metallic paint job. It seems that on metallic paint job without a clear coat, gets damaged that way. It sometimes happens on regular paint jobs. But like Bill said, factory paint usually, 98% of the time, isn't damaged.
-------------------- Signs by Alicia Jennings (Mudflap Girl) Tacoma, WA Since 1987 Have Lipstick, will travel. Posts: 3814 | From: Tacoma, WA. U.S.A. | Registered: Dec 1999
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posted March 15, 2010 05:11 PM
OOOOh...that sounds like trouble brewin'.
Many good thoughts shared, Dave. Unfortunately, none of them too good either, success-wise. Lots of variables; and chances are, if the truck's over 3 or 4 years old, it's been repainted.
You may want to consider having your customer have the door repainted. These days, with computer color matching, they can even match faded colors pretty well. Might be an option, considering the time and effort "the other way" might involve....and the possibility of a mess on your hands.
Or get his logo printed on a piece of solid vinyl that will compliment the color of the door and just lay it over the top of what's there.
posted March 15, 2010 05:23 PM
Tell him to take it to a body shop and have it removed! They know how to get it off and have the proper equipment. DON'T do the oven cleaner! Or at the very least make sure YOU don't recommend the oven cleaner. Then he might come back to you and blame you. Here's OUR story. Years ago, we had a trucker stop one day and want to know how to get the lettering off himself and he had heard about the oven cleaner removal. Bill told him he had done it once but didn't recommend it for others to do it, as it was sort of unpredicatable with it's results. Did he listen. No. A week or so later he was back wanting US to REPAINT his entire semi because we had told him to do it. WHAT?!? We told you NOT to do it!! This was the nearest I have ever seen Bill coming to hitting someone. The guy was really loud and cranky with me first and then when Bill came out and asked what was going on he got lippy with Bill to. Bill told him to get off our property and never come back. We worried about him for a while but we never saw him again, luckily! ;)It hasn't hurt our truck trade.
-------------------- Jane Diaz Diaz Sign Art 628 W. Lincoln Ave. Pontiac, Il. 61764 815-844-7024 www.diazsignart.com Posts: 4102 | From: Pontiac, IL USA | Registered: Feb 1999
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I have had mixed results as well. BUT if I were to do it. I would cover all the paint around the lettering as close as possible with plastic wrap and tape it good, that way you minimize the over spray and dripping. Then I always applied the easy off to just the painted lettering, let it sit for 15 minutes, wipe with a terrycloth towel and rinse. Repeat as necessary. Every time I went beyond the 15 minute window I got unwelcomed results. Oh and wear rubber gloves, protective eye wear and don't breath in deep lol.
After all that, I do what Jane suggested now, that's some good advice.
[ March 15, 2010, 05:40 PM: Message edited by: Bob Rochon ]
-------------------- Bob Rochon Creative Signworks Millbury, MA 508-865-7330
"Life is Like an Echo, what you put out, comes back to you." Posts: 5149 | From: Millbury, Mass. U.S. | Registered: Nov 1998
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-------------------- Jack Wills Studio Design Works 1465 E.Hidalgo Circle Nye Beach / Newport, OR Posts: 2914 | From: Rocklin, CA. USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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posted March 15, 2010 08:52 PM
I've done it with good ol' rubbing compound.
-------------------- John Arnott El Cajon CA 619 596-9989 signgraphics1@aol.com http://www.signgraphics1.com Posts: 1443 | From: El Cajon CA usa | Registered: Dec 1998
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posted March 15, 2010 09:11 PM
It's been years but that was our favorite process. We would fold up several layers of paper towels, sprinke a couple of spoon fulls of Bonami in on the towels and saturate with windex. This makes a slurry. Then spray lettering with oven cleaner. Give it a couple of minutes and scrub away. It may take a couple of applications.
Once finished, the whole door needs buffing with compound.
It takes a little patience.
-------------------- Joe Crumley Norman Sign Company 2200 Research Park Blvd. Norman, OK 73069 Posts: 1428 | From: 2200 Research Park Blvd. | Registered: Sep 2001
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posted March 15, 2010 09:34 PM
Come on Joey ..... tell us your secret.... pretty please....
I have used the oven cleaner, but not on a repaint and I always test it somewhere that doesn't show. I do not recommend it to doityourselfers. I have seen guys use brake fluid but that is pretty scary too. Most times I will use lacquer thinner and rubbing compound together on a rag. Years ago you could block sand and rub it out, but the paint film is not thick enough these days.
The BEST way is to have the customer take it to a body shop and have them sand, seal and repaint the doors...!
-------------------- Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass... It's about learning to dance in the rain ! Jim Moser Design 13342 C Grass Valley Ave. Grass Valley, Ca. 95945 530-273-7615 jwmoser@att.net Posts: 488 | From: Grass Valley, Ca. | Registered: May 2006
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posted March 15, 2010 09:34 PM
With oven cleaner ... if you are lucky and don't destroy the paint ... you will usually wind up with a color change in the paint.
Oven cleaner is a very strong alkali.
-------------------- Si Allen #562 La Mirada, CA. USA
(714) 521-4810
si.allen on Skype
siallen@dslextreme.com
"SignPainters do It with Longer Strokes!"
Never mess with your profile while in a drunken stupor!!!
Brushasaurus on Chat Posts: 8827 | From: La Mirada, CA, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted March 15, 2010 11:01 PM
Like Si says, it's a dicey technique. During Okla summer heat, it's best to work fast.
I gotta laugh at some of the things we used to do. Trained by an old billboard fellow, James Snow, we never used paint thinner. It was gasoline and there was a blue haze over the letters. And he trained me good to never put a lid on the paint. It would skim over just the way mother nature intended.
Those were the good days when paint had lots of lead and over cleaner worked great.
Back then,Oven cleaner didn't scare me a bit.
-------------------- Joe Crumley Norman Sign Company 2200 Research Park Blvd. Norman, OK 73069 Posts: 1428 | From: 2200 Research Park Blvd. | Registered: Sep 2001
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posted March 15, 2010 11:19 PM
I know what Joe, knows...
I have a few paragraphs in the book and will make this charge now. It's about fishing in southern Indiana.
[ March 15, 2010, 11:21 PM: Message edited by: jack wills ]
-------------------- Jack Wills Studio Design Works 1465 E.Hidalgo Circle Nye Beach / Newport, OR Posts: 2914 | From: Rocklin, CA. USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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posted March 15, 2010 11:50 PM
And then there's the nice method. Tape off where the lettering is at. Take some 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper. Tear off a small piece, about a 3"x3" square. Wet it and with two or just one finger, gingerly sand the lettering. Keep it wet. Stay off the paint, off the paint. When it starts to get a bit transparent, then you take out the red rubbing compund. Start rubbing on the lettering only, two fingers. Now you're still gonna see some lettering paint on the truck. Then you take a nice electric buffer with the big sponge pad. You put some white compound on it and get the rest of the lettering off. Then you put some 3M Perfect It compound on the buffer and buff some more. You will still see a ghost image of the old lettering, can't do anything about that. If the truck is worth over 50K, it would be worth it to just get it repainted. To repaint a couple of truck dorrs might run about $700.00.
-------------------- Signs by Alicia Jennings (Mudflap Girl) Tacoma, WA Since 1987 Have Lipstick, will travel. Posts: 3814 | From: Tacoma, WA. U.S.A. | Registered: Dec 1999
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posted March 16, 2010 01:10 AM
So_many_variables. I would discern whether the customer was one who could comprehend the idea of plan A - plan B, or if he was like the guy Jane described. So many like that. Anyway, if he is reasonable, try a removal first, then the idea Dale suggested. It's possible to make a nice oval, rectangle or whatever to cover the old lettering, so long as it looked like an intentional part of the design, not just a cover up. It could be bordered by a pinstripe that continued along a body line, or something simple but creative.
-------------------- James Donahue Donahue Sign Arts 1851 E. Union Valley Rd. Seymour TN. (865) 577-3365 brushman@nxs.net
Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what's for lunch, Benjamin Franklin Posts: 2057 | From: 1033 W. Union Valley Rd. | Registered: Feb 2003
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posted March 16, 2010 01:25 AM
I owned a body shop for ten years. I tried many different ways to remove One Shot Lettering and Easy Off was not the cure at all. Affected too many different types of paint. Sometimes over factory finish, just lacquer thinner did the trick, but rarely did the subpaint stay untarnished. Even tried mixing acetone with alcohol in various combinations to no success. The only sure fire way was to block sand it down and repaint.
Another idea might be to simply overlay it with a graphic in vinyl? I see there are rivets and the date on the pic says almost three years ago? I would say repaint is the only reliable way at this stage.
If Joey has some trick up his sleeve about it, I hope he does mention it in his soon-to-be published book? Then one of us with deep pockets can buy it and share it with all of the rest of us, like the rest of us share our tricks, freely. Good writing aside, I recall this is a 'shared information' website and I think it should always be that way. Got a secret? Keep it to yourself, unless you want to share. Coercing us to buy a book is a bit off base, IMHO.
-------------------- Preston McCall 112 Rim Road Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501 text: 5056607370 Posts: 1552 | From: Santa Fe, New Mexico | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted March 16, 2010 11:48 PM
Jack mate. Would that be a STANLEY steamer?????
-------------------- Bill'n'Annie Davidson Heathcote, NSW, Aus. my Aussie wife, a Toohey's Old, my Holden Ute, Retired from the rat race! Posts: 309 | From: Heathcote, NSW, Australia | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted March 16, 2010 11:57 PM
Bloody well cotton picker...
-------------------- Jack Wills Studio Design Works 1465 E.Hidalgo Circle Nye Beach / Newport, OR Posts: 2914 | From: Rocklin, CA. USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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posted March 16, 2010 11:57 PM
Bloody well cotton picker...
-------------------- Jack Wills Studio Design Works 1465 E.Hidalgo Circle Nye Beach / Newport, OR Posts: 2914 | From: Rocklin, CA. USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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posted March 17, 2010 08:45 AM
The best way I've found is to block sand the lettering with 1500 wet/dry sand paper and then buff. A local body shop used to do it that way and the results were as good as you could get.
The Easy Off that contains lye (yellow can) is the one that takes off 1 Shot, but it more than likely will turn out like Alicia's photo -- especially on metallics.
Incidentally Easy Off won't touch urethanes like HOK as we have had calls from folks wanting to remove our lettering done with HOK and by using Easy Off. That's why all our lettering for sometime on vehicles has been in vinyl. I still stripe them with urethanes.
-------------------- Bill Diaz Diaz Sign Art Pontiac IL www.diazsignart.com Posts: 2107 | From: Pontiac, IL | Registered: Dec 2001
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Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity. — Charles Mingus Posts: 6713 | From: Mendocino, CA. USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted March 17, 2010 01:32 PM
I guess I'll tell the customer about grog. I advised him about not using oven cleaner. He's a very nice guy and a friend so I'm not worried about any liability.
The old graphics are all over the entire door and his logo is just some lettering so covering the old graphic is out of the question. It is definitely a factory finish base / clear with metal flake in it.
Thanks to all those with advice.
-------------------- Dave Sherby "Sandman" SherWood Sign & Graphic Design Crystal Falls, MI 49920 906-875-6201 sherwoodsign@sbcglobal.net Posts: 5396 | From: Crystal Falls, MI USA | Registered: Apr 1999
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![[Applause]](graemlins/applause.gif)
and I've never done it so I'm looking for the proper method, type of oven cleaner, rubber gloves, application, and how long to leave it on before washing off. ![[Thanks]](graemlins/thanks.gif)
n it white,,,,forever.
![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
We worried about him for a while but we never saw him again, luckily! ;)It hasn't hurt our truck trade.
![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
Oh and wear rubber gloves, protective eye wear and don't breath in deep lol.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
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