Howdy. My black '95 Jimmy SLS 4X4 came with some options that included some sweet gold trim decal stripes about 6 inches wide running along the bottom edge of the truck. Over the last 11 years these multi-layer decals have unevenly delaminated to a large degree and they're looking pretty shabby. So, now I would like to somehow strip them off because it would make my Jimmy look a heck of a lot better. The decals are pretty brittle and you can't peel up more than about a millimeter at a time before it breaks off and I would rather work smarter and not harder, so does anyone have any recommendations for chemicals I can spray on there to help get it off and that won't harm the pristine black clearcoat that's hiding underneath the decals?

 

Try an eraser. The rubber might speed up the peeling process and shouldn't damage the clearcoat. Try a vey small area in an inconspicuoius area (if there is such a spot) as a test.

Hey, just a thought.

 

i always used lighter fluid (really eats up adhesives) or vodka to take off stickers, emblems, ect off my cars. I never noticed any problems with the paint, but i never really paid much attention to it either. There is also this stuff called "goo gone" that i have used a couple times that worked fairly well.

 

I've used baby oil to eat up the glue, but I think generally that would work after the decal has been removed.

 

I don't know if this would work for you or not. I always use Goo-Gone to take dealership stickers off, it also worked on my mustang. It had those rocker panel vinyls that say mustang. My sister wrecked it and I had to take the vinyl off of the good door so they could put new ones on..... just start to peel back the edge and squirt the goo-gone on it as you peel.... Also if the coating is worn off of the sticker, mix up water and dawn dishwashing liquid like 2 parts dishwashing liquid to one part water and soak the sticker with it. It should come right off, it also works well on wallpaper glue.. haha

 

I've taken Decals/stripes off before, on older cars like your 95, and a word of caution, the black under the stripe has a good chance of being noticably less sun faded and scratched than the already exposed paint. I seemed to notice it especially when i waxed the car, the wax really likes to stick on the edges of where the decal was. use a sponge soaked in something like goo gone or some other adhesive remover,and run it across the whole piece of decal until its saturated and it might peel off. becareful not to let it run or drip, as this can leave stains below the decal that are a big hassle to get off and cause you more work.

 

Thanks for all the suggestions. I was looking at the "Detailing" and "Appearance" forum topics (where I probably should have started this thread...whoops!) and I saw someone suggest a hair dryer for a similiar task. I will probably give that and shot and then try the goo gone if the hair dryer doesn't pan out. I did think about the possibility that the paint underneath is going to stand out more because it's been protected by the decals but I've come to the decision that it can' t look any worse than the decals in the condition that they're in. I'll let you know what worked best by the end of the weekend.

 

You can get an "eraser" from a body shop supply place, I do believe NAPA has then, they chuck up to a 3/8" drill, they run around 15 bucks each.

 

fishing line to take the decal itself off and then use zippo fluid or BRAKEKLEEN to get the gooey **** off worked like a charm for me

 

I talked to a painter today and he said to use the bodyshop eraser that fits in a drill. Make sure to keep the speed of the drill down or you will build up heat and melt the clear coat. If you have a light colored paint and you build up to much heat it will turn yellow.