Removing Olive Drab from information plates

[Gyrotechnics]

Hi all,

I think I have found the ID tag under about 4 layers of olive drab paint on my '68 2A GS (172 294). Removing the paint but leaving the black silk screen artwork is giving me nightmares. Someone has evidently already had a go with something sharp, probably a screwdriver (and it looks like they tried to pinch it too!!) and damaged it.

I have seen paint removed by sticking in an airtight container with thinners and letting the fumes slowly remove the top layers, I was going to try this first. Any thoughts or does anyone know of a sure-safe method.

Restoring it would make re-registering easier I suppose, plus it would be handy to prove she is who I say she is without crawling under the back to look at the chassis number (plus if I am correct it has the census and contract number which would help me complete my REMLR entry)

The photo I took really shows the numbering, which is almost imperceptible to the naked eye, and it matches the chassis number - no surprises there thank god.

Anyway, any suggestions would be appreciated.

Cheers,

Gyro

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[Tins]

Hi all,

I think I have found the ID tag under about 4 layers of olive drab paint on my '68 2A GS (172 294). Removing the paint but leaving the black silk screen artwork is giving me nightmares. Someone has evidently already had a go with something sharp, probably a screwdriver (and it looks like they tried to pinch it too!!) and damaged it.

I have seen paint removed by sticking in an airtight container with thinners and letting the fumes slowly remove the top layers, I was going to try this first. Any thoughts or does anyone know of a sure-safe method.

Restoring it would make re-registering easier I suppose, plus it would be handy to prove she is who I say she is without crawling under the back to look at the chassis number (plus if I am correct it has the census and contract number which would help me complete my REMLR entry)

The photo I took really shows the numbering, which is almost imperceptible to the naked eye, and it matches the chassis number - no surprises there thank god.

Anyway, any suggestions would be appreciated.

Cheers,

Gyro

168355 168356

Hmm.. In my RAEME days, from '72, that plate was not usually painted over. All I mean by that is that the paint ain't as old as the car.

Personally, I'd try a hot air gun first. It should be non-destructive. The evaporating thinners trick next, which obviously means removing the plate from its location. If you do that even vinegar might work, but I'm not sure what that would do to the screen print.

I'd love to know the history, as it's possible I worked on it. For your sake I hope not. Us Adult Trades guys weren't all that well trained.

As for the damage done previously to the plate, it would be less authentic if it was pristine. These cars saw hard service, even if they never deployed to 'Nam. We gave them heaps, and the Tac Corps gave 'em worse.

[JDNSW]

Are they screen printed? I thought they were anodised aluminium, which will be unaffected by thinners.

I would also point out that the registration authorities will be uninterested in the data on the plate - they are only interested in the number stamped on the chassis itself.

[Tins]

Are they screen printed? I thought they were anodised aluminium, which will be unaffected by thinners.

I would also point out that the registration authorities will be uninterested in the data on the plate - they are only interested in the number stamped on the chassis itself.

Good points both.

[Gyrotechnics]

Thanks for the replies, unfortunately I don't have any more history on the car other than it came from Victoria a few years ago. I bought some thinners at Bunnings today, so now I'm going to rub that on one of the old, faded plates to see if it removes the anodising/paint. That will give me some baseline to the safety of the process. I'll document the whole thing and stick my results in this thread or if its successful, in the forum for tips and tricks.

If I understand the anodising process correctly, especially for a car this age, the dyes used were organic as were the paint pigments. I suppose this is why they all fade.

Cheers,

Gyro

[Gyrotechnics]

So, long story. first off, removing that plate is a little annoying. Screwdriver on one side and a nut driver on the other. Corroded threads made those four little screws a two man, half hour task. Anyway, its off and time to try some paint removal techniques.

I hit it with a hot air gun, no response. Hot enough to sizzle spit but no more

I filled a jar with little enamel thinners, put the plate in, suspended above the surface of the liquid, sealed the jar and placed it in the sun. Nothing. A full day of Feb sun, nothing. So I decide to knock it up a notch and wrap the plate in toilet paper, pour on the thinners and stick it back in the hermetically sealed jar. Three hours of direct contact - nothing.

Looking at the plate, because it was bolted over a hole, there is olive drab on the back over the black anodising. A nice circle of green on the black plate. I paint on some paint stripper to test for colour fastness of the black (its actually deep purple) but as I am applying the paint stripper, the paint starts shedding immediately. I moved it around a bit and rinsed it off straight away. No paint and I don't think any significant change to the original surface.

So I moved to the front. A thick layer of paint stripper, moved around and agitated constantly. Seconds later I was rinsing off the paint stripper. I could read all of the text that I expected to see. Even the very fine printing on the 3/4 and contract number was fine and undamaged. I did a second application as there was a little paint left that was stubborn. it stuck more where there was damage to the plate by my guess. Still only a few seconds, maybe 30 seconds of exposure to the paint stripper before rinsing and washing.

There is still some paint left on the plate, but as has been said before, if it was pristine, it would look odd! I am very happy with the result and can now confidently fill in the gaps on my REMLR entry.

I would not recommend leaving it unattended as I have no idea what would happen over a longer period of time, but as it only takes seconds, that shouldn't be an issue. It might be that the thinners exposure helped, but I cant be sure if it would take longer on a surface that hadn't had about 36 hours of exposure to thinners or not.


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