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Removing boat name lettering...


domino
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Acitone which comes within the group of solvent cleaners will get both the adhesive off really really easily and will also clean up the fibreglass for you.

 

Basicly its a very strong nail varnish remover and can be bought at chemists.

 

Its fine used when poured on to a cloth and rubbed over the boat but don't let it sit on the fibre glass as it does melt some plastics if left.

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Acetone WILL desolve the resin that holds the glass together. But you can use it to clean some adhesives off GRP providing you wash the residue off with soapy water after it's done its job. Most GRP suppliers sell it at a lower cost than the pharmaceutical grade.

 

If the name is stuck on vinyl then a gentle application of heat (heat gun on low) and peel or scrape them off with a WOODEN scraper. Then petrol will do the do on any sticky residue.

 

If it is painted on then cellulose thinners should do it. But do it a letter at a time and wipe off any residue with a damp cloth with Cif on it.

 

Both Acetone and Cellulose thinners can make you ill (as in unconsious) so work out doors and make sure you are not inhaling the fumes.

 

Mad Mike

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When I sailed for the 1st time in the summer the owners of the fleet of charter yachts in Southampton use a company to provide the graphics for the boat for the day. Basically they make the logo - (could be a 10' long Coca Cola banner for example) they arrive in the morning, slap it on the hull of the boat, and when the boat docks for the night, they arrive again and whip it off ready for the next day.

 

What did they use?.....a red Stanley razor blade scraper! I was astounded as I would imagine it to damage the gel, so I asked how they did it. Basically it just slides along the gel and under the graphics removing them in the process!

 

When I did new decals on BW, I used the same tool - worked perfectly in one go with no chemicals. Easy, quick and cheap - I would recommend this method.

 

PS: a quick blast with a little T-Cut removed the 'shadow-effect'

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(What did they use?.....a red Stanley razor blade scraper! I was astounded as I would imagine it to damage the gel, so I asked how they did it. Basically it just slides along the gel and under the graphics removing them in the process!)

 

Fine may be for freshly applied graphics on a warm day, but for old hard graphics that are brittle you are a braver man than me using a metal blade on gel coat. Plastic or wood is safer by far.

Mad Mike

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I used the same method on BW's old graphics on a cold (ish) april day and they worked fine.

 

Agree that plastic or wood are safer, but the cutting edge isnt as sharp, therefore you need to press harder and therefore risk damage - the Stanley blade just glides underneath with minimal effort. The effect of a razor blade on gell is similar to the effect when using the Stanley scraper on glass - which is what it is designed for. Gel is actually pretty hard stuff and by keeping a shallow angle on the blade it will do no damage.

 

A case of suck it and see I suppose?

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