Removing Stripes from Trojan International.

yorklyn · Post by **yorklyn** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 1:32 pm

Has anyone removed the stripes from a Trojan international? If so what's the best technique? I'm going to be preping my boat for a new Awlgrip paintjob so I plan on sanding everything. I was under the impression the stripes were decals that had a clearcoat over them but when I tried to remove a piece to see how difficult it would be it almost seems like they are painted on.
Any Suggestions?
Thanks

RWS · Post by **RWS** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 7:20 am

Todd,

The bootstripe and transom on mine are painted, as well as those onthe sides.

We repainted those stripes during the refit.

We still have to redo the stripes that run from the radar arch and then forward and will use tape for those. They appear to have been tape from the factory, but I cannot yet confirm that.

There are devices that can be attached to a drill for stripe removal, however I have read that a good industrial heat gun or strong hair dryer will do the trick with a smooth putty knife.

RWS

ltbrett · Post by **ltbrett** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 12:37 pm

I just finished a complete repaint on my 10M. My first question to you is why would you put yourself through that? I stopped counting at 500 hours of labor. The project started in February and finished last Thursday. I don't think anyone should take on a paint job without really understanding the time commitment.

To answer your questions on the stripes--mine were painted on. I didn't sweat the horizontal boot stripes too much as I painted a solid boot stripe over where they were. I sanded with 150, primed and painted. The vertical stripes are a different story. I used a linear sander to remove them. They don't show through my final paint. The stripes on the radar arch were sanded off with a dual action sander and 150 grit, as were the stripes just above the rub rail. I tried two different types of drill attachments with no luck: a big eraser looking thing and something that looked like a rubber buffing wheel. Both were ok for getting off sticky residue from other areas, but were nowhere near as effective as sand paper on the stripes.

Brett

yorklyn · Post by **yorklyn** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 10:43 pm

Thanks guys,
I tried the heat gun and putty knife with no luck. I couldn't tell if the stripes were a decal or paint. I didn't want to try to sand a decal and make a mess. If their painted it sounds like the sander would do the trick.
Bret, What type of paint did you use? I was leaning towards Awlcraft 2000. Was ithe prep really that bad? I have my boat in my warehouse and have it completly gutted. I just finished replacing the stringers and was actually looking forward to working on the paint (Doing the stringers Sucked!) I'm hoping to have the bow rail and windshield off before the end of month and start the prep by the end of summer. I was told a duel action sander was the way to go. I figure I'll probably never have the boat inside for this long again so what the heck I might as well paint it.

Thanks!

RWS · Post by **RWS** » Sun Jul 06, 2008 8:25 am

Todd,

It's good that you are removing the bow rail.

I took mine loose 4 years ago to reseal the bases as the sealant had dried up and was allowing small water seepage around some of those bolt holes.

I plan on scraping the remaining loose striping off mine and simply restriping her to factory original with vinyl to match the paint (maroon, black& silver stripes.

RWS

yorklyn · Post by **yorklyn** » Sun Jul 06, 2008 10:50 am

RWS,
I just figured after 21yrs It was about time to rebed everything. I figured if I was removing everything to rebed it I might as well repaint her. I thought about wet sanding the hull and trying to work with the origional gel coat as its not in bad shape but I'll never have her apart like this again (I Hope!) so for a few hundred more hours and some paint what the heck.
I'm going to do the prep myself and am hiring the guy who helped me with my stringers to do the spraying.
I am however leaving off the factory hullside stripes and simply going with a painted boot stripe.

ltbrett · Post by **ltbrett** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 9:41 am

Todd,

I used both Awlgrip and Imron. The shop prefers Imron because it is easier to blend should you need to repair it. Awlcraft 2000 is a softer paint. If you are spending the time, seriously consider applying the toughest paint out there. Either Imron or Awlgrip are rather easy to use and stick to any clean surface. Feel free to email me offline and I can tell you all about the prep you'll be doing. bwd at ategrafinancial dotcom

Brett

LHFixer · Post by **LHFixer** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 10:15 am

If they do turn out to be vinyl. I used what is called an eraser wheel. It's basically a brown eraser shaped like a hockey puck and bonded to a bit. I put it in a drill and it rubbed the stuff off like magic. It, of course, gets hot so you have to keep it moving. I couldn't believe it. It rubbed right though the thick vinyl pinstripes and rubbed off the adhesive from where I scraped them off as well. It didn't do a bit of damage to the gelcoat in the process. I was so very impressed. A worthy purchase, you can get them from paint supply stores that deal with automotive paints. Here is a link.

http://store.autotoolexpress.com/sgt17900.html

Eric