Removing stripes and glue ?.

[shadow]

All of the stripes on the exterior are either peeling off or cracked. What is the best way to remove the stripes and dried on glue
with out damaging the exterior ?.

 

[wagoneer]

are you able to provide a photo?

 

[SternWake]

A heat gun/ hair drier, and a razor blade scraper.

https://www.amazon.com/Lisle-52000-Razor-Blade-Scraper/dp/B0002SR88C

Go slow, and use GooGone to clean up any glue residue. Use rubbing alcohol to remove goo gone. Use gloves.

Waxing the paint with normal car wax next to the stripes will help prevent the razor blade from sticking, causing the angle to increase, and perhaps gouging the paint. If paint is oxidized then use rubbing compound to make it smooth and slippery.

The Lisle tool linked above has no equal. Nothing else that can hold a razor blade comes close, but my search ended after the Lisle, and many other failures before it.

My buddy had a Harbor Freight clone of the Lisle and was using it on a similar task to yours. The head snapped off and he gouged the paint to bare metal just after claiming how the HF tool was 'Just fine".

It was hard not to laugh as I trotted off. I did not succeed.

 

[shadow]

Thanks for the link, I will give that a try.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Here is a thread covering the same issue:

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-removing-decals-and-residue-from-fiberglass-roof

 -- Spiff

 

[highdesertranger]

yep x2 on what stern said. highdesertranger

 

[DannyB1954]

Somewhere I have a decal remover made by Snap-on. it used a rubber disk to warm up the decal using friction. Here are similiar items. http://www.ebay.com/bhp/decal-remover-tool

 

[shadow]

I have seen those eraser wheels, but I don`t think they would work for me. Most if not all of the stripes on my rv are dried on in place, or there is just the dried on adhesive were they used to be.

I just ordered some 3M adhesive remover, it is supposed to dissolve the dried on adhesive. I hope it works.

 

[Marginalsanity]

The wheel is a mild abrasive so it heats up and peels it. There is a trick to using them, but they work really well once you get the hang of it. Nothing beats them. Buy the good stuff from a suplier. This is what the professionals use. Don't forget the paint under the decals will look like new paint since the sun couldn't reach it so the gel coat should be wet sanded.

 

[Kmmech]

We recently had the same issues on our 40' Alfa 5er. And we too thought we would tackle the job of removing the decals. We did it, but its something we will never do again. We used a heat gun to soften the decals, then removed them with plastic razor blades. Found those at the local auto parts store and they fit a standard razor blade holder. After that, we had to get all the left over residue from the adhesive. Tried numerous things, but the best we found was called Rapid Remover I found on Amazon. It worked wonders. Just spray it on, let it sit 60 seconds, and wipe off the melted glue. Didnt harm the fiberglass or paint or gelcoat, or whatever it is they put on the thing. It took a few weekends, but we conquered the thing.

 

[Mobilesport]

This tool goes on the end of a power drill , it's a rubber wheel and when it spins on
the decal it generates heat and decals come off really easy

 

[shadow]

I wish it was as easy as you guys make it sound, but in my case its not.
My rv is 32 years old, and the exterior has never been taken care of at all. In some places the stripes are peeling off but the glue is still
there, and its baked on. In other places the stripes are still in place, but they are baked on.

I have been using a single edge razor blade scraper and goo gone to remove the stripes and glue, and it has been doing a good job at getting the stripes and glue off.