So, in high school i had an image i thought i needed and i put a bunch of TRD stickers on my truck, which i now think are retarded, since i don't have a single TRD product on my truck. What is the best way to get rid of these stupid things? I'm pretty sure they are vinyl, if that makes a difference. I Just don't want to have to scrape them off. Thanks

 

i took off some old decals off a friends truck by using a heat gun to heat the glue to ap oint we could peel it off easily. hopefully the decals havent been sun beaten to a point you cant heat the glue... its a total PITA!

 

heat gun or a blow dryer ... then some goof off to remove adhesive


some instances a pressure washer

 

This might be a bit overkill for your situation but..
I just took off the oem stripes on my 4runner using a pinstripe eraser pad. Just attach it to your drill and take it right off. Got it at a local paint and laquer supply place for about $15.
It should get everything off but really drains your drill...have several batteries ready for anything big if you decide to use your cordless.
Towards the end of my removal I was trying to speed it along and missed a bit of the adhesive so just used a little WD-40 and a rag, then washed the area pretty good. WD-40 shouldn't harm factory paint, but I'd wash it off right away just in case.

 

Sweet. That drill attachment idea is a good one. I'll start charging the Batteries now. Try to get that bit. I have a heat gun, but i think the sun has killed any chance of having that work. We'll see. Thanks guys

 

Yea, I have done both methods and I think as old as your truck is the wheel will work best. It takes off the glue and decal in one step for the most part.

 

Ironically i was just at Maaco (auto paint shop) today and the head guy there told me the best and quickest way is to use the eraser attachment on a drill.

btw, anybody know if their "premium" paint job, ($1199 i believe) is worth it far as quality and durability goes?

 

Don't do Maaco...they are quick and overlook alot of small dings that only the experienced veteran body shop guy would catch. I used to do paint and body work and we always made fun of maaco...mainly because they are so cheap and fast that they miss some minor details and their taping expertise isn't that up to par...would be good to just take it to an independent body shop with plenty of up-to-date tools so they can give you a quality job rather than quantity...like maaco and the paint will blow off in like 6 months going at speeds over 60mph lol

 

hmm...yea i did go to a few independent places and they want $5,000 (nothing less) for a paint job!
I know Maaco is cheap and cheesy but this one i went to is in an upscale area and they gave me a full tour of the place, showed me 3 different cars with 3 different "paint packages", showed me the half way sand job they do, and also saw a masking tape job which seemed to be pretty good.
Im only looking to get my '92 repainted the same color and fix the few dents is has. There "premimum package" (the best one they have) uses a base and clear coat which has a 5 year warranty. Also, im not going so much for looks since my Runner will see a lot of off-roading.

Would you still not recommend them based on what i said?

 

Heat and patience for the stickers. Ditto on the WD40 for the glue. Works wonders.

 

If it was me..no...but if you think you are getting a good deal then you are more than welcome to try it out. But if you aren't looking for a quality job then why not do it yourself in a garage? I was always pressed for quality in the body shop I worked in for 4 years. So dual action sanders and such were out...and we did everything by hand as far as final sanding dry and wet. If you got quotes for over $5,000....then either you got alot of rust that requires panel replacement or they are ripping you a new one! We used to do jobs for half that price but we had a quality finish that was long lasting. But like i said...won't knock ya for going there and if it lasts for a year then you found a great shop! After they do it....look at it under fluorescent lights...you will be able to tell where sand marks are from a da sander. just my 2 cents..

 

Thanks, I planned on doing the prep work myself with a DA sander and by hand (garage isnt suitable for painting) but when i have questions on what i should do, i'll know who to ask that is if you dont mind.

 

Don't mind at all...but watch out for DA's and their gummed up paper swirl marks...it happens especially on old clear coat. The way we always did it...was looked down the side of a car under fluorescent lights and marked the little dings with a marker. We used a filler...and it has been so long and i wish I knew the name of it but I don't...but it was a filler and glaze combined so that way you only lightly sanded a spot before applying it and the scratches were minute when finished and took a finer grit sandpaper to sand. Prime...then sand...prime...then wet sand for final before taping. We always used PPG paint and it worked very well and had a great finish. Anything else you can email me personally at jernsam@adelphia.net and I will help ya out the best I can so that way you will be like "WOW" instead of...well it will work for now.

 

wd-40 is the bomb for sticky stuff like decals.

 

I had to take the woodgrain sticker off an old station wagon one time. Best thing in the planet is 3M Woodgrain and Stripe remover. It's weird stuff - kind of blows out in a foam, but it sure does work. Available at most body shop supply stores.

http://multimedia.mmm.com/mws/mediaw...eee3tOqhEEEE1-

 

This is the BEST product for removing anything taped/glued etc. The product is called "Desolve-It" and it's sold at Walmart in the cleaning section. I've never seen anything work like this. It is completely safe when in contact with the skin, it is citrus based. Everyone should have this product in their house. You would not believe the uses it is capable of. A friend that does vinyl lettering told me about it, he uses it to take off old lettering, off vehicles. It works so good, I went out and bought a half dozen bottles because whenever I find something that works that good, they usually take it off the market. THIS STUFF IS MAGIC!

Koz

 

I had an old chevy wagon painted there, when I went to pick it up it looked like they painted it in a sandstorm. Soooo I made em repaint it then there were the runs I'D paint a car with a spray can outside before I'd let maaco paint anything of mine

 

A DA sander and a torch works well!

 

speaks from experience....theres some pretty inexperienced guys working there so they don't know what it truly takes to make a nice looking finish.

 

what type of glue do you use to apply emblems?