Removing glue from under numbers

Mudisox

Mudisox

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Having removed the old numbers from a dacron sail, I am left with sticky goo, which is soluble with acetone but is this the best way of removing it?
I have new numbers to go on in their place.
 
Numbers have been removed and acetone applied but the whole area is now sticky in a more uniform manner. Do i now just apply the new numbers and a. hope for the best, b. apply talc to the remaining area of stickiness, or c, continue applying acetone?
 
"Sticky stuff remover" might do the trick. Most hardware shops and diy stores should have it
 
Oooh! Oooh! I have a cruising chute from a Sadler 29 that has S29 (go figure eh?) on it ... sticky letters, not stitched. As I actually have a Hustler 30 the S29 does not match. I would have just lived with it but if there WAS a way of safely removing the sticky residue left behind if I peeled the letters off then I would do so. Rather than guesses (albeit well-intentioned) , has anyone actually done this successfully? If so... how? :confused:
 
KevO said:
ORather than guesses (albeit well-intentioned)
Click to expand...

Sticky stuff remover is my serious suggestion to the OP. Not a guess. It is very effective on hard surfaces and according to the label on the bottle can be used on china, glass, plastic, fabric, paintwork skin and hair.
 
Anyone done the round the island race? Those advertising panels that are supplied for sticking onto the bows are hideous to get off - takes longer to remove than to complete the race. The Sticky Stuff Remover is very good for removing and to clean up.
 
VicS said:
Sticky stuff remover is my serious suggestion to the OP. Not a guess. It is very effective on hard surfaces and according to the label on the bottle can be used on china, glass, plastic, fabric, paintwork skin and hair.
Click to expand...

VicS, I genuinely wasn't being critical of you or anyone else but have occasionally seen firmly delivered advice given on here that is plainly b8llixs!! Given that if I was to disolve the fabric of my cruising chute I would be unable to afford a replacement, I wanted a 'I've done this and it worked with no problem' response rather than a 'I reckon you could...' type offering. :rolleyes:

I will now check out the sticky stuff remover as you suggest. Thanks.
 
Please allow me to resurrect this thread.

My present boat came with a North Sails spinnaker which appears to be in an excellent condition. Unfortunately it still has the Italian sail numbers from the previous (late) owner. As I would like to use this sail next summer, preferably without the numbers, I have searched the North Sails site (http://www.onedesign.com/SailFaster/OneDesignFAQs/tabid/19138/language/en-US/Default.aspx) to see if there is some way of removing them safely. This is what they advise:

"Answer: Soak the number from the backside with Laquer thinnner. Acetone works fine if used a little more sparingly. This will help loosen the loosen the glue up..Then peel the number off. Scrap the glue off with a rag soaked in laquer thinner or acetone. When pulling the number off, pull gently and mostly in the direction of the yarns in the weave (ripstop) and it'll be very easy- the number will come right off."

I have, so far, not seen "Sticky Stuff Remover" available locally. I am rather reluctant to use acetone on the flimsy spi fabric because, should the sail be damaged, replacement is definitely not an option.

Am I being overly cautious or is acetone safe to use?

TIA.
 
I used the sticky stuff remover from Amazon and it did the job. Took a while and several goes to get all the glue off but it worked ok and the sail wasn't damaged. I'm not brave enough to have gone down the acetone route.
 
KevO said:
I used the sticky stuff remover from Amazon and it did the job. Took a while and several goes to get all the glue off but it worked ok and the sail wasn't damaged. I'm not brave enough to have gone down the acetone route.
Click to expand...

The problem is that I live in Malta and I don't believe that Amazon would be likely to put a 250ml container of liquid through the mail (unless the restriction has been lifted?)
 
If you intend to race you probably need your number on the spinnaker. I had a similar problem in that my boat was originally registered in Italy. Luckily the actual number was available from the RYA (you can try RORC and CYCA as well if the RYA have allocated it already) so all I had to do was remove the "I" and add "GBR" and "T". No matter how well you remove the adhesive, and I found toluene good for this, you are likely still to have a less faded witness of the old numbers.
 
awol said:
If you intend to race you probably need your number on the spinnaker. I had a similar problem in that my boat was originally registered in Italy. Luckily the actual number was available from the RYA (you can try RORC and CYCA as well if the RYA have allocated it already) so all I had to do was remove the "I" and add "GBR" and "T". No matter how well you remove the adhesive, and I found toluene good for this, you are likely still to have a less faded witness of the old numbers.
Click to expand...

I don't race - other than the usual 'race' when one sailing boat is in sight of another that is going in the same direction ;) - but I like the possibility of 'converting' the existing number. In my case it would mean that I would have MLT-10283 instead of I-10283. I shall keep that in mind. Thanks.
 
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