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Old 11-24-2011, 03:00 PM   #1
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1969 27' Overlander
Albuquerque , New Mexico
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Wally's ghost haunts my trailer!!!

Wally's ghost haunts my trailer!!!
In the form of that damned blue sticker, front and rear!
What adhesive did they use, and how do you remove it?
I've tried everything, and I can't get that circular area clean and shiny.
I got the old decal off, but the adhesive remains.
I thought it might be etched into the aluminum, but it only shows up when I buff it with rubbing compound. I'm sure it's on the surface of the aluminum, but I can't get it to shine/polish up.
I've tried every chemical I can think of.
I've used stainless steel wool, and fine emery cloth.
I've buffed the area for 1/2 an hour in the same area with heavy compound. It won't budge!!!
What is it. How do I remove it?
Do I have to simply apply another BCCI decal over it?
Where do I get one, if I have to?
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Old 11-24-2011, 05:05 PM   #2
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Try heat. A hairdryer, or better still one of those heat guns.
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Old 11-24-2011, 05:20 PM   #3
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Originally Posted by edglenn View Post
Wally's ghost haunts my trailer!!!
In the form of that damned blue sticker, front and rear!
What adhesive did they use, and how do you remove it?
I've tried everything, and I can't get that circular area clean and shiny.
I got the old decal off, but the adhesive remains.
I thought it might be etched into the aluminum, but it only shows up when I buff it with rubbing compound. I'm sure it's on the surface of the aluminum, but I can't get it to shine/polish up.
I've tried every chemical I can think of.
I've used stainless steel wool, and fine emery cloth.
I've buffed the area for 1/2 an hour in the same area with heavy compound. It won't budge!!!
What is it. How do I remove it?
Do I have to simply apply another BCCI decal over it?
Where do I get one, if I have to?
I suggest you find another circular sticker with design or message you like.

Ken
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Old 11-24-2011, 05:46 PM   #4
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Check into the WBCCI. Maybe you would join and they will send you two new decals and a set of numbers. We just joined and look forward to their many activities.

doug k
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Old 11-24-2011, 08:16 PM   #5
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a rubbing compound called 3M super duty rubbing compound (gravel in a bottle) But the others with replacing the sticke idear are the better bet...huh?
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Old 11-24-2011, 09:06 PM   #6
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Does GLOCK make an oversized sticker?
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Old 11-24-2011, 09:27 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by edglenn View Post
Does GLOCK make an oversized sticker?
Hi, I found this:

It is 3 3/4"s
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Old 11-24-2011, 09:36 PM   #8
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That's close! But bigger!
BIGGER!!
I want a bigger GLOCK!
Wait, that didn't sound right....
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Old 11-24-2011, 09:38 PM   #9
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Does GLOCK make an oversized sticker?
Here's a duck.
That sounds close.

Ken
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Old 11-25-2011, 08:36 AM   #10
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Talk to a car dealership. They're always removing the stickers from other dealerships. There is a buffing wheel designed for removing decal adhesives.

Other ideas - mineral oil - spray on, cover with saran wrap, and leave for 1/2 hour, then use a plastic razor blade or a credit card to scrape it off. Plain old vegetable oil, same technique as mineral oil.

Duct Tape - put it on and leave one end free by folding over - go away for an hour. Slowly peel off. The theory is that the new adhesive and old "meld" and the new glue will pull the old off with it. All contact tapes get tighter over time and generally don't reach max adhesion for 24 hours, so it may take longer.

A hair dryer can help - I'd avoid the heat gun as it's a bit too much of a good thing.

Paula
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Old 11-25-2011, 09:01 AM   #11
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Check into the WBCCI. Maybe you would join and they will send you two new decals and a set of numbers. We just joined and look forward to their many activities.

doug k
Great advise. Red numbers look great on Airstreams.
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Old 11-25-2011, 09:03 PM   #12
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Mmmmmmmmm.....duct tape......great stuff!!
That just might work.
Or I'll cover it with a Glock sticker.
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Old 11-25-2011, 09:10 PM   #13
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As seen on another thread in the Airforums... have you tried an eraser wheel?

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Old 11-25-2011, 09:22 PM   #14
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I haven't tried the eraser wheel.
It looks pretty aggressive, and might work.
Is it just a rubber wheel? Uses friction to remove the adhesive?
I would prefer a solvent rather than mechanically removing the adhesive, but whatever works, at this point.
I'm still stumped about what solvent works best. I've tried everything I can think of.
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Old 11-25-2011, 09:31 PM   #15
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Yep, its just a big eraser.... wheel will disintegrate as u use it, won't hurt the aluminum and probably less aggressive than some of the chemicals you've been trying... I have no experience with it personally but as it's designed to remove decals and is relatively cheap (local auto stores around you may have eraser wheels as low as $8) not 3m but others..... worth a try!! I have one on order...
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Old 11-26-2011, 04:24 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by edglenn View Post
Wally's ghost haunts my trailer!!!
In the form of that damned blue sticker, front and rear!
What adhesive did they use, and how do you remove it?
I've tried everything, and I can't get that circular area clean and shiny.
I got the old decal off, but the adhesive remains.
I thought it might be etched into the aluminum, but it only shows up when I buff it with rubbing compound. I'm sure it's on the surface of the aluminum, but I can't get it to shine/polish up.
I've tried every chemical I can think of.
I've used stainless steel wool, and fine emery cloth.
I've buffed the area for 1/2 an hour in the same area with heavy compound. It won't budge!!!
What is it. How do I remove it?
Do I have to simply apply another BCCI decal over it?
Where do I get one, if I have to?
I hope you find a solution. I have seen this same decal do what you describe many times now. We have a trailer in for a polish right now and on the back someone actually tried a grinding wheel. (NOT being suggested by any means) It succeeded in removing parts of the decal along with many mils of metal. The last one we dealt with we couldn't get that round decal off either. It is now looked at as "history"
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Old 11-26-2011, 06:54 AM   #17
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Ed-

I had the same problem with a decades-old Good Sam Club sticker. It was the kind that had cut-outs, so the ghosting showed behind areas that were covered and the uncovered areas matched the rest of the trailer. The PO used sandpaper with a pretty aggressive grit, so I had a bit of work to do.

Here's my theory of the ghosting:

Aluminum is much more porous than most people realize. As a result of that porosity, our trailers have oxidation far deeper into the skin than we would expect. We all know that aluminum oxide is a different color than pure aluminum.

The sticker slows oxidation of the metal underneath it. After decades, that subtle slowing will result in enough difference in the oxidation that you can see the difference. After "only" 1/2 hour of compounding, you haven't gone deep enough to get to a layer of aluminum that has equal amounts of oxidation in the protected versus the unprotected parts -- thus the ghosting.

I was able to get rid of most of Good Sam with 3 compound passes with F9, followed by another set of F7. I don't dare go too much further for fear of going through the AlClad layer. At this point, I think I'm the only one who can find Sam. I did see it slowly but progressively disappear.

John
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Old 11-26-2011, 08:00 AM   #18
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Thanks to everyone for the help!
I'm still inclined to believe that the "ghost" is residual adhesive, plus there would be some oxidation/etching, too.
Mechanically removing the material with an eraser wheel may be the only solution, but I'm still wondering if there isn't some adhesive remover out there.
As strange as it sounds,...peanut butter removes chewing gun and other gooey adhesives like price tags... I might actually try that.
(I just can't let the nosy neighbor see me smearing peanut butter on the trailer! He already thinks I'm nuts.)
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Old 11-26-2011, 08:19 AM   #19
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Have you tried Goo Gone? Works for a lot of household stuff.
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Old 11-26-2011, 10:53 PM   #20
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I've tried everything, including Goo-gone, etc.
The peanut butter actually removed quite a bit of the old adhesive, and seemed to remove some of the oxidation, too!
Lot of black residue on the cloth when I wiped it off. I'm leaving another coat on overnight. Will see in the morning.
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