Hi All, Has anyone any experience of removing sail numbers from sail? Thinking about buying a second hand racing sail but need to get the numbers off and new ones on pretty quickly.
thanks
Pete
I used to peel them off cold (though the heating suggestion may be better). The main problem is removing the sticky mess that remains. I used to use carbon tetrachloride and a copious supply of kitchen roll. Even then, some of the mess remains.
If you warm them gently as VicS suggests and be patient, peeling off just the immediately warmed area you stand a good chance of not having tons of adhesive left behind.
With a pad of cloth behind the sail cloth use lots of small pieces of soft absorbent cloth (old tea-shirts are good) moistened with the solvent you choose, turning the cloth frequently and discarding it when you have no part of it uncontaminated with glue. I use acetone or a solvent used for cleaning off resin from tools but test a small area first if uncertain. Don't try to clean of a big area at a time, completely cleaning each bit as you go.
When finished leave to evaporate off a little and then wash with lots of water, initially with a little washing up liquid in then fresh water. Allow to dry thoroughly and check for any bits you've missed.
It takes a while but only gets messy if you slosh too much solvent around.
Carbon tetrachloride is dangerous stuff! Its use for the removal of oil-spots in the apparel industry was banned way back in the early seventies; IIRC, it had something to do with liver problems.
I regularly use lighter fluid (e.g. Ronsonol) for cleaning off the sticky residue left after peeling off the leatherette from old camera bodies during restoration. I do not know how it works but the goo quickly becomes non-sticky and may be easily rubbed / pulled off in strings.
Might be too expensive, however, for large numerals.