Yes I searched but I couldn't get a definitive answer.

I hate the damn gold pinstripes down the side of my car and I would like to remove them.

Has anybody here successfully removed theirs?

I've read that using a hairdryer and/or a heat gun is best since the pinstripes are held on using an adhesive. Is this true?

 

I took mine off first thing when I got the car.. Heat gun on low.. I found if you get it too hot the striping stretches when you are peeling and breaks. If it isn't hot enough the stuff chips off in tiny pieces. You will find the right temp. It took me a fender and a door to figure it out.. Then you will have a slighty shiny place that your stripes used to be. They protected your paint from the car wash etc.. Just a quick once over with some good cleaner/wax and you're all set.. Good luck and have patience.. it takes a little time.. It's just a long skinny decal..

 

Not all pinstripes are the adhesive type. Some are painted.

Check to see if it is the adhesive type, that would be step one. You should be able tell if you look up close and if you can pick away the edge with your finger nail.

 

use a heatgun and continuously spray soap/ water mixture onto the spots

 

i put in "remove pinstripe" in the search and came up with these threads:

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...move+pinstripe

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...move+pinstripe

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...move+pinstripe

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...move+pinstripe

the last thread linked above discusses pinstripes that are painted on.

 

If you need a heatgun, Harbor Freight sells for $10.

 

This is about the best .. you need to watch the heat gun as it can get hot enough to bubble the paint .. even a hair dryer at the right distance from the surface will do it.

If you have residual adhesive left over use Rubbing Alcohol or Goo Gone then the cleaner wax.

 

Thanks for the responses everybody. I usually quote everybody and then type back, but I'm too lazy

It sounds like I need a heat gun. I would like to buy one so I don't have to deal with borrowing one and such, but I'm not sure I would use it ever again. It sounds like I may have to get out a hair dryer and sit out there for a while.

And I looked at my car once again this morning and it looks like the pin stripes are the sticker type, not paint.

 

Hair dryer isn't going to take that much longer .. you'll be ok .

 

Keep us posted.

 

I forgot about the Goo Gone..I did have to use that as well.. Just go to Harbor Freight and get the cheap heat gun. You will find many uses for it later.. Like anytime you want to remove a sticker. Good luck..

 

I removed mine last Fall. Let it sit in the strong sun for a bit, then hit it with a hairdryer. It takes some time and patience, but they will come off. As mentioned earlier, Goof-Off, Cleaner/wax will remove the lines in the paint for the most part. No need for a heat gun---let the sun and the hairdryer do the work for you.

 

youll find plenty of uses for goo gone later on also

 

I have a huge bottle of Goo Gone that I'm sure I'll put to use.

It sounds like I need to wait for a warmer day and then put the hairdryer to work.

 

I would do something like this:

- Eraser wheel on a drill at low speed, or die grinder at low speed
( this will remove the stripe very quickly )
- Wipe with wax/grease remover solvent
- Clay bar
- Machine polish

 

Hm, never heard of an eraser wheel. That sounds a lot easier than picking it at it with my fingernail.

 

^don't clip your nails for a week before you start. Get some nail polish while at it to make the them stronger for the pinstripe.

 

As much as I want that pinstripe gone, there is no way in hell I'm putting on nail polish and shit like that. If I have to, I'll get my mom and my girlfriend out there

 

Use a hair dryer in the p.m., after the car has been sitting in the sun for the day; do NOT use any grinder or eraser wheel, esp. if you've never used one before.

FWIW, the proper way to put on tape pinstripe in the old days was to lay it onto the car, then put a coat of clear nail polish over the ends of the stripe sections to keep the ends from coming up due to heat, etc.