“Sticker” removal

[Simon Potter]

Hi

I have recently acquired this loco, at a bargain price. My long term idea on this is to completely rebuild the loco and make it into more of a UK looking loco. But that’s for a few years time!! All I would like todo at the moment is just remove the “stickers” which are making it look very Christmassy. Does anybody have any ideas how this can be achieved without having to repaint all of the “red” parts. As I’m thinking a different (red/ silver) livery make look quite nice running on my outside layout.

Many thanks

Ps I am fully aware they are not stickers on the loco, just unsure how to describe them.

 

[Paradise]

Specifically for that particular item, I'm not exactly sure. It depends on the base paint and what was used in the printing. I would think LGB use something fairly resilient for their graphics. Some people have used brake fluid or SuperClean to remove lettering on cars gently rubbed with a cotton que tip. I tried that on an LGB Ice cream caboose and it was very stubborn but I did finally get it off (I think may have used other methods too but can't remember) It had a base of white plastic so there was no underlying paint to mess up though. Most LGB is painted but yours maybe not being a cheaper item. Thinners will probably work but be very careful as it will also effect the underlying paint or plastic itself. I have used thinners on a fine clean rag with a few quick wipes and that's all, letting it evaporate before it messes the base up then having another go later. What ever you do, first test it in a spot that you wont notice for the effects of solvents, underneath for example.
You could possibly block down the graphics with very fine wet n' dry on a small perfectly flat glass block with rounded corners being careful to not go into the underlying paint too much then do a finishing top coat of clear. A bit hit n' miss though if painted. If just plastic, it would just be a bit duller but could be polished a little to match the rest.

 

[playmofire]

It'll take some time, but try T-Cut and then polish. You can get red T-Cut and that would help hide where the work has been done.

 

[PhilP]

The problem with the likes of T-Cut, Brasso, etc. is you will end up with a glossy area..
If you paint over, you get a 'ghost' of the original graphic..

You may finally end up sanding it off, and fully repainting..

 

[Paradise]

The problem with the likes of T-Cut, Brasso, etc. is you will end up with a glossy area..
If you paint over, you get a 'ghost' of the original graphic..

You may finally end up sanding it off, and fully repainting..

Yeah, that's pretty much how it goes. Patchy polished parts look awful, you can't get into the corners. It looks like it's just plastic underneath the graphics from the picture. That's why blocking it down with 600~1200 wet n' dry may be the go. If it's going to get a later mod it won't look too bad in the mean time. Perhaps just a quick rub to get rid of the dry look.