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A clay bar and qwik detail will remove overspray, bird doo, dried concrete, tar, you name it. Just make sure the metal is cool, otherwise the bar will streak.
FTE sponsor Danese Detail sells a clay bar that is heavier duty than one can buy in a parts store. Be very careful using any of the so called scratch removers, they remove a bit of the clearcoat every time you use it. Apply with fingers, rub gently. The harder you rub, the more clearcoat is removed.
If you've never used a buffer, practice on something other than your favorite ride first. A buffer can easily get away from you and will take off anything in its path, like wiper blades, radio antennas, etc.
NEVER use a silicone based wax on clearcoat paint, and NEVER spray silicone near clearcoat paint. Silicone will strip off the clearcoat!
Last edited by NumberDummy; Jul 21, 2007 at 03:39 PM.
I am taking you are talking about the double stick tape which is what usually attaches side mouldings these days.. I remove it by balling up and removing what I can, and then soak a rag with lacquer thinner to soften and remove whats left. Again lacquer thinner shouldn't hurt if its a factory or modern finish. They won't resoften like lacquer and enamel finishes do, which is why the lacquer thinner should remove the overspray without hurting the factory finish underneath. A cheaper lacquer thinner will have impurities and leave behind a film on the surface, but that is easy enough to fix with a wash and possibly a hand glaze. You could also try using a wax and grease remover, don't think it would cut as eaxy or fast. I am sure there are other things like goo gone people use and will suggest here, but there is always wax and grease remover and lacquer thinner on hand in a bodyshop, so thats what we use.
Acrysol is used by car dealers to remove tape, bumper stickers, labels, etc from paint. It's made and sold by Kent Industries, and also carried by automotive paint supply stores (example >> Thompson Lacquer in SoCal), where body and paint shops buy their supplies.
I am taking you are talking about the double stick tape which is what usually attaches side mouldings these days.. I remove it by balling up and removing what I can, and then soak a rag with lacquer thinner to soften and remove whats left. Again lacquer thinner shouldn't hurt if its a factory or modern finish. They won't resoften like lacquer and enamel finishes do, which is why the lacquer thinner should remove the overspray without hurting the factory finish underneath. A cheaper lacquer thinner will have impurities and leave behind a film on the surface, but that is easy enough to fix with a wash and possibly a hand glaze. You could also try using a wax and grease remover, don't think it would cut as eaxy or fast. I am sure there are other things like goo gone people use and will suggest here, but there is always wax and grease remover and lacquer thinner on hand in a bodyshop, so thats what we use.
Thanks for your help, That link you sent to Detailcity really helped also....WOW! those guys on that forum really know their stuff!! Used the LT and a whole lot of rags and the OS came right off It was prettty good quality LT I guess because it didn't leave any haze or anything on the truck. Put a good coat of wax on it and the paint looks as good as it ever has!!
As far as removing the trim on the side I used a little heat and most of the adhesive came off with it. then I used cleaner wax to get the rest off....It looks great I wish I could post a pic.
Once again Thank you & everyone else for the advice
Glad you got it looking good, and those guys over there were able to help you out. Like I said, detailers will deal with that sort of thing often enough. I normally just have to buff after or paint job, or when I mess up, so I guess you could say I got plenty of practice, but not real up on newest products detailers are using. I still usually look for meguires or 3m stuff. I don't pity some of those guys jobs, some might be doing well, But I use wash and clean cars at a dealer when I was young, and occasionally buff one out, and was fairly hard work for crappy pay. Wetsanding and Buffing out after a paint job is more then enough work, but usually a necessary evil. Wiping with lacquer thinner was what I was talking would leave a haze, cheaper stuff usually has impurties and will leave a hazy cloudy look, until washed and maybe hand glazed. If you want to leave a pic, put it in your gallery, and either link to it, or click the image button above where you type your reply when you post, and give the address of the image location, and should show in your post.
Last edited by kenseth17; Jul 22, 2007 at 09:43 AM.