Surf Decal removal

[steve s]

i was told its the colour that gives it its name .and i had never used one before the only thing i found is that you need a good battery powered drill or a mains drill you kill a battery in minuets .i didn't damage any pain on my car .

[darkdezigns]

ive been using them for years,they dont damage paint,only thing to watch for is wear line,and u will get messy

[wishbone]

I used a caramel wheel to remove my side decals and it did indeed damage the paint. It has left orange peel type marks on the doors that do make them look crap (though not as crap as the decals)

Here's the thread.

The paint itself is good but it looks like it has damaged the laquer.

So if you do go this route be very very careful....(gentle)

btw if you want a cheap caramel wheel I have a brand new one in box. Brand is Sealey I think and it's the one I never used (I bought 2)

Rob

[MattF]

Ive heard that they can damage paintwork quite badly if your not familiar with them, like me.

Only if you attack the vehicle with it like a complete nutter. As with any tool, let it do its work at its own pace instead of forcing it to do it at your pace.

[wishbone]

I went quite gingerly at mine tbh Matt, and only noticed the damage later. I've a feeling they're a bit like sandpaper and are very aggresive brand new then mellow.

Have you used a brand new one ?

Rob.

[Maverick]

I can only think that you exceeded the max rpm, and burnt the paintwork.

It took one and a half brand new caramel wheels to remove all the decals on my truck. They did the job well only leaving behind all that dust.

[wishbone]

Well you didn't read the linked thread I posted where I stated that my drill only does 3000 rpm and the max printed on the wheel was 4000 rpm.

To remove both big side decals took 1/2 of one wheel. Maybe the Sealey ones are a lot harder than the ones you used ?

Rob.

[fonecrusher1]

To be honest with you chaps all this talk of the thing doing damage to paintwork has put me right off.
Since ive learned how to remove decals fairly quickly using a certain method whats the point in going into unknown territory again with a different technique that will takes hours/days to master.

[steve s]

as i said in the beginning of this thread my surf dacles came off with a hair dryer but the isuzu was a pig and i couldnt see any way to remove them i was told on here i think bdt2 and others to use a caramel wheel i didn't damage any paint but you need a battery drill with a fast charger as an 18 volt battery only lasts a few mins i found after using about 4/5 different drills that a dewalt was best and it charged the 2nd batt very fast perhaps if you use a mains drill that might burn the paint but i think you d be hard pressed with a batt drill.have you tried a h/dryer ?

[Shalershasker]

This is a job I have yet to do on my surf but I've only got a dirty great SDS drill so the petrol route sounds like the one for me. Don't fancy me surf looking like the victim of a drive by.

[fonecrusher1]

Hey steve s theres no doubt the caramel wheel is the best tool for the job but I would have to get one posted over from england (like everything 4x4 related) so i couldnt be bothered with the wait/expense.
Tried using a hairdryer & found it to be very underpowered. Heatgun & atm/credit card for scraping works very well.
Shalershasker petrol (thanks ava bananna) & an old tea/drying towel & some serious elbow work will do the job if you cant get your hands on a caramel wheel.

Ive finished removing the passenger side decal & people are telling me how much better it looks.