Tips For Safely Removing Auto Emblems To Prepare For Paint
Posted on: 17 October 2018
Doing some of the prep-work to get your car ready for body work or a paint job will help to decrease the overall cost of the project. When you take your car in for something like this, you are charged an hourly rate for the services being provided – so, if you do some of the work yourself before you take the car in for service, you'll cut the cost of the service. Here, you'll find out how to remove the emblems from your car so that it's one step closer to being ready for paint.
Here's what you'll need:
- Heat gun – or hair dryer with heat
- Plastic putty knife
- Masking tape
- Camera
- Measuring tape
Move the car somewhere that you'll be able to work comfortably and have access to a power outlet. You'll need electricity for the heat gun.
Take a picture of all of the emblems that you'll remove. This will help with placement later after the painting is done.
Choose one emblem to begin working on first – choose one that you wouldn't miss if something should happen during your attempt to remove it.
Use the heat gun to slowly warm the emblem. If you work too quickly or get it too hot, you will damage it, or the paint around it. As the emblem warms up, so will the adhesive that is holding it onto the car.
Once it's warm, use the plastic putty knife to begin peeling it off of the car. Work slowly and carefully so that you don't crack it by bending it too far.
After you've removed it, mark the exact location of the emblem with a strip of masking tape. Continue working to remove all of the emblems and marking the locations with tape.
After everything is removed, get your measuring tape, a sheet of paper and a pencil. Find one starting point – the rear, top left is a good place to start since you have the brake-light to use as a starting point for measurements. The goal at this point is to measure the distance between each emblem so that you can get them repositioned exactly where they are meant to go. As you measure, you can draw up a map that shows you the exact position where they came from.
Talk to your local automotive body shop professionals to learn more about what you can do to prep your car for paint to cut the cost of the service.
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