25 year old Masking Tape adhesive removal.

[Jgaz]

This 70’s vintage SK box originally held (I believe) a 1/2” drive socket set.


At least 25 or 30years ago I labeled the empty box for some other treasure.
I did a hack job and just used masking tape.
Im trying to remove the mess and repurpose the box.

I was able to soak and peal off the top layer by applying a mineral spirts soaked rag overnight. That method didn’t touch the adhesive.
Tried the same method with goo gone. No help.

Full strength simple green applied for a couple hours on the paint on the bottom didn’t seem to hurt the paint. Maybe a bit of color showed up on the towel but not bad. Haven’t tried it on the adhesive yet. Thought I’d ask first.

Any suggestions from the experts on this thread?
Thanks!

 

[Mintgrun]

I recently brought a box home with ancient masking tape and am going to start with naphtha. I just googled for a comparison with mineral spirits and the AI reply said this-

For removing old tape adhesive, naphtha is generally considered more effective than mineral spirits as it is better at dissolving adhesive residue while being relatively gentle on most surfaces, including finishes, making it a safer choice for delicate items; however, mineral spirits can still work for most tape adhesives, especially when dealing with less sensitive surfaces.

 

[geneg]

This 70’s vintage SK box originally held (I believe) a 1/2” drive socket set.


At least 25 or 30years ago I labeled the empty box for some other treasure.
I did a hack job and just used masking tape.
Im trying to remove the mess and repurpose the box.

I was able to soak and peal off the top layer by applying a mineral spirts soaked rag overnight. That method didn’t touch the adhesive.
Tried the same method with goo gone. No help.

Full strength simple green applied for a couple hours on the paint on the bottom didn’t seem to hurt the paint. Maybe a bit of color showed up on the towel but not bad. Haven’t tried it on the adhesive yet. Thought I’d ask first.

Any suggestions from the experts on this thread?
Thanks!

Actually GOO GONE works pretty well

 

[Dixie_Flatline]

Why not just use an eraser wheel?

 

[Mintgrun]

I think of those as being more for gooey residuey, as opposed to the hardind kind. I've only used one once, though, and that was on auto paint, which is considerably tougher than the thin coat on the box I'm working on. I'd be hesitant to reach for power tools.

I did reach for a (sharp) razor blade and tried some naphtha. Naphtha didn't touch the old adhesive either. It did soften the old paper tape enough to peel the last of it off and then it made a nice lubricant as I shaved the remaining glue with the razor.


Once that was done, I scrubbed it with Rubbing Compound and washed that off with Simple Green, then gave it a spritz of "auto wax" to make it look reealy cleean; in spite of the weathered condition.



I see that your paint has more texture than this box, so the razor blade won't work quite as well. Thanks for starting a thread that motivated me to do a project I'd have otherwise put off for a while.

 

[RegeSullivan]

Try it before you laugh at this suggestion, Johnson Paste Wax if you can find some. Minwax might do it to. Some say it's the same stuff but I've not tried it. Anyway, work it in with a brush, let sit for a while go at it with the brush... rinse and repeat.

 

[four.cycle]

Meguiars Cleaner Wax

about $12 bucks for a bottle at O'Reilly's Auto Parts

you can thank me later.

 

[Jgaz]

Goo gone didn’t do really anything soaking overnight.
I have Johnson’s Paste Wax and the Meguiars cleaner wax “in stock”
Ill get some naphtha and try that as well if the waxes don’t work.

Thanks everyone, I’ll report back with results

 

[Dixie_Flatline]

I think of those as being more for gooey residuey, as opposed to the hardind kind. I've only used one once, though, and that was on auto paint, which is considerably tougher than the thin coat on the box I'm working on. I'd be hesitant to reach for power tools.

I did reach for a (sharp) razor blade and tried some naphtha. Naphtha didn't touch the old adhesive either. It did soften the old paper tape enough to peel the last of it off and then it made a nice lubricant as I shaved the remaining glue with the razor.


Once that was done, I scrubbed it with Rubbing Compound and washed that off with Simple Green, then gave it a spritz of "auto wax" to make it look reealy cleean; in spite of the weathered condition.



I see that your paint has more texture than this box, so the razor blade won't work quite as well. Thanks for starting a thread that motivated me to do a project I'd have otherwise put off for a while.

I removed some old dried out vinyl decals from the fiberglass side of our camper with the eraser wheel. I was only disappointed that the surface under the decals looked better than the surrounding surfaces! Trick is to not use too much speed and not too much pressure, otherwise fun things happen to your paint. In my youth I may have scorched my clear coat a little bit trying to remove one of those metallic dealership decals they love to stick on your car.

 

[paulsomlo]

WD-40, Isopropyl Alcohol.

 

[The Cobbler]

I have had luck with WD 40 soaks to remove adhesives. it may not be a fast solution, maybe a few days .

 

[Beerhippie]

Old, fossilized masking tape seems resistant to every solvent known to mankind.

Mechanical means (scraping) and some heat from a heat gun are the only things that seem to work for me.

 

[Jgaz]

Update:
I’m a dumb ***. My first soak of simple green was a diluted mix (4 to 1) !
A four hour soak at full strength allowed me to scrape off another layer of adhesive.
I gently used a razor blade, on edge like a cabinet scraper, to scrape the soaked adhesive

The lid is soaking again as I write this.
I have WD 40 at the ready and will apply it before I go to bed tonight depending on the current simple green application.

I forgot to mention above that Isopropyl Alcohol didn’t seen to do much.

Will try heat as well. Thanks to all

 

[RTM]

WD-40, Isopropyl Alcohol.

My tape problem laughed at those after a multiple hour soak.

Also acetone, mineral spirits, Windex, Simple Green, Krud Kutter and something else I had at hand. edit: (Probably Goo Gone)

Heat gun and torch if the naptha or Johnson's doesn't work.

 

[four.cycle]

Undiluted Simple Green will remove paint. Real-world example.

If that were mine, I'd try "Goo-Off" first.
If that didn't remove it: I'd grab the Meguiars Cleaner Wax.
If it still didn't come off, I have an old can of Turtle Wax "rubbing compound" in the garage that takes everything off.

 

[Jgaz]

My tape problem laughed at those after a multiple hour soak.

Also acetone, mineral spirits, Windex, Simple Green, Krud Kutter and something else I had at hand.

Heat gun and torch if the naptha or Johnson's doesn't work.

This naphtha linked below seems to be all I can buy in Phoenix.

Sunnyside VM&P Naptha Specialty Thinner 1 qt Mfr# 80032 - Ace Hardware

VM&P Naphtha is an excellent thinner for oil based paints, stains, varnishes and enamels. Has a higher strength and faster evaporation rate than paint thinner (100% mineral spirits). Follow the paint product manufacturer's instructions for the proper amount of paint thinner required; do not use...

www.acehardware.com

Is this same solvent as what you have used?

 

[RTM]

This naphtha linked below seems to be all I can buy in Phoenix.

Sunnyside VM&P Naptha Specialty Thinner 1 qt Mfr# 80032 - Ace Hardware

VM&P Naphtha is an excellent thinner for oil based paints, stains, varnishes and enamels. Has a higher strength and faster evaporation rate than paint thinner (100% mineral spirits). Follow the paint product manufacturer's instructions for the proper amount of paint thinner required; do not use...

www.acehardware.com

Is this same solvent as what you have used?

Have not tried naptha yet, and not sure I can buy it in CA either.

 

[Jgaz]

Have not tried naptha yet, and not sure I can buy it in CA either.

We seem to adopt some CA. VOC rules.

In the late 90’s I couldn’t find solvent based contact cement to do some Formica.
We seemed to have come to our senses as I see its now available.

It also could be a Maricopa county thing.
Don’t laugh, I spend a lot of time up north and buy my -20*F windshield washer solvent in Flagstaff!

 

[Jgaz]

More adhesive removed after a 4 hour Simple Green soak.
I quit when I started to see some of the green paint being removed from the hammered paint.


Im getting close. This isn’t a museum piece as the rest of the paint isn’t perfect.

Edit: Forgot to add the latest picture.

 

[Beerhippie]

Next step: Needle scaler.

 

[The Cobbler]

20 years to petrify won't be undone in 20 minutes . patience is golden here.
I would claim that fast evaporating solvents don't last long enough to break into the dried adhesive .

 

[d42jeep]

I used this 3M product and it had some effect after using the razor blade. I used Meguiers cleaner wax to finish it up.

-Don

 

[Jgaz]

I used this 3M product and it had some effect after using the razor blade. I used Meguiers cleaner wax to finish it up.

-Don

Nice!
Any idea if the meguires liquid is different than the paste product?
I have the paste on hand

 

[d42jeep]

I don’t know about the paste wax. I have liquid medium cut cleaner, fine cut cleaner and the cleaner wax which helped with removing the black circles using plenty of rubbing. I’m sure that it wouldn’t hurt to try the paste wax.
-Don

 

[autobon7]

I used this 3M product and it had some effect after using the razor blade. I used Meguiers cleaner wax to finish it up.

-Don

That turned out really nice

 

[four.cycle]

Any idea if the meguires liquid is different than the paste product?

Completely different.
I used to represent Meguiars when I was working as an independent sales representative.
They use some fancy language about "polymers" and "emulsifiers" - I don't understand the science behind it, myself - that's not how I sold it. (You sell it by doing a demonstration on the hood of the prospective buyer's car.)

Paste wax - pure paste wax like "Mother's" carbnauba wax - is pure wax. No cleaners, no abrasives.
The Meguiars will usually remove all that **** (including felt marker!) from tool boxes.

@Smokeshow69 's PROTO box that he received for Christmas looked a LOT different before I spent about 20 minutes on it with the Meguiars.
Somewhere here there's another "before and after" of another box I cleaned up with Meguiars. (Mostly felt marker on that one.)
And somewhere there's another thread where a new member cleaned up an old "Rally" box that had been all covered with stickers using the Meguiars.
Something anyone doing "restoration" should have in their arsenal.

 

[WillyBoy]

As mentioned by others, I've had "reasonable" luck with oil. almost any kind, WD-40, 3 in 1, or whatever is available. I agree that some solvents evaporate before the paper can absorb. Partially tearing the paper so that the fibers are exposed helps the oil to soak in. This will get the paper part of the tape removed. For surfaces that can't be placed horizontally, smearing with peanut butter after scoring the paper works pretty well. Then there's still the dried adhesive. Plenty of good advice above covers that.

The lesson learned, friends don't let friends use the old-fashioned tan adhesive tape. There are lots better choices except when you're stuck with fixing someone else's mistakes.

 

[Beerhippie]

As mentioned by others, I've had "reasonable" luck with oil. almost any kind, WD-40, 3 in 1, or whatever is available. I agree that some solvents evaporate before the paper can absorb. Partially tearing the paper so that the fibers are exposed helps the oil to soak in. This will get the paper part of the tape removed. For surfaces that can't be placed horizontally, smearing with peanut butter after scoring the paper works pretty well. Then there's still the dried adhesive. Plenty of good advice above covers that.

The lesson learned, friends don't let friends use the old-fashioned tan adhesive tape. There are lots better choices except when you're stuck with fixing someone else's mistakes.

Don't forget that the blue/green "fancy" painter's tape ALSO gets hard as a rock and leaves behind indelible. petrified adhesive if left long enough.

Masking tape, of any kind or color, is for temporary use only.

 

[whateg01]

Looks like you made pretty good progress. For future reference, when scraping stuff off of paint, get some plastic razor blades. They are much less likely to gouge the paint than metal. I used them to help peel decals off a vehicle and it barely left a mark on the paint.

 

[bonneyman]

Have not tried naptha yet, and not sure I can buy it in CA either.

A good alternative is lighter fluid. I think that's mostly naphtha, and will fly under the radar.

I, too, have had difficulty removing tape adhesive. The older it is, the harder it is to get off. Might be the older stuff was better, or has just chemically changed over the years into something like superglue.

 

[Beerhippie]

A good alternative is lighter fluid. I think that's mostly naphtha, and will fly under the radar.

I, too, have had difficulty removing tape adhesive. The older it is, the harder it is to get off. Might be the older stuff was better, or has just chemically changed over the years into something like superglue.

Lighter fluid and "naptha" are essentially the same as Coleman or Camp fuel--white gas.

 

[alinc100]

Bestine is another choice. We've used it getting paper/laminations off acrylic sheet goods. Warning it's nasty and a respirator and rubber gloves minimum PPE. The wax above is probably way cheaper, less toxic and easier to get. https://www.google.com/search?gs_ss...IIsAIB8QVJC-TVGE-lEw&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

 

[Jgaz]

Final results. I really believe that most of my problems were because the petrified glue was down in the low spots of SK’s hammered finish.
The box actually looks better in person than as photographed under my work bench lights.
As I said, the box is far from perfect. This whole exercise was a learning experience.
You all were a big help.


I used my homemade buffer motor with a fine rubbing compound to finish the box lid

It removed much of the adhesive from the low spots in the paint.

 

[no704]

Maybe toothpaste and an electric brush to get into the cavity’s?

 

[Mintgrun]

Try using scissors to chop toothbrush bristles down short. Make one with 1/4" bristles and another with 1/8". They make awesome scrubbers!

Rubbing compound is nice and gritty, so it takes paint too, but the adhesive is usually softer, so as long as you're careful, you can scrub it off with that. I find terrycloth towels work well with compound, since they hold more than old T-shirt fabric and get down in the pits a bit better.

Bamboo skewers make great little tools for rubbing and scrubbing. You can use the pointy end with compound to work the adhesive out of the pits and for smoother surfaces, I like to cut the skewer into a chisel-tip. As it gets dull, it turns into a brush and it's useful that way too sometimes. I keep a chisel handy to chop a new tip on it as needed.

I also keep a sharpening stone near by when using razor blades, to make sure they don't have nicks that will cause scratches.
(photo repeat)


That Metabo grinder was a recent purchase and it's still on the bench after getting cleaned up. It had old masking tape on it with sharpie pen yard sale pricing from some time ago. It was hard to get off, but not rock hard, like on that box. It was the gooey old kind that leaves icky-sticky stuff on anything it touches, once peeled off. Naphtha did dissolve that residue. The other stuff was removed "mechanically."

Generally speaking, I like what the coarse rubbing compound does to old boxes and follow that with something like car wax if I want it shinier. I don't actually 'restore' much stuff, but really enjoy making things look a bit nicer.

 

[The Cobbler]

good on the results . thanks for sharing

 

[senlow]

Bestine is another choice. We've used it getting paper/laminations off acrylic sheet goods. Warning it's nasty and a respirator and rubber gloves minimum PPE. The wax above is probably way cheaper, less toxic and easier to get. https://www.google.com/search?gs_ss...IIsAIB8QVJC-TVGE-lEw&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

That's really good to know. I have quite a bit of 1" clear acrylic sheet that I got a few years ago, and the protective paper refuses to come off. I'll definitely try using Bestine on it. Thanks for the tip!

 

[NYBODYMAN]

Eraser wheel or Goo Gone and a plastic razor blade.

 

[WillyBoy]

Try using scissors to chop toothbrush bristles down short. Make one with 1/4" bristles and another with 1/8". They make awesome scrubbers!

Considering how long I've been using old tooth brushes in the shop for all kinds of things, this never occurred to me. Great idea!

 

[alinc100]

That's really good to know. I have quite a bit of 1" clear acrylic sheet that I got a few years ago, and the protective paper refuses to come off. I'll definitely try using Bestine on it. Thanks for the tip!

Try hot water first. Bestine is pretty nasty stuff.