How to remove 25 year old Gaff?

[Futureman]

Any Tips?

Presently restoring a bit of kit to former glory.

The Gaff has now turned to concrete.. I'd like to remove it without destroying the underlying paint.

That orange oil based stuff is good, but it is pretty hard core, and in the past has stripped otherthings as well.

Cheers
Mike

[Chris H]

Just off the top of my head, using a hair dryer as heat can soften the stuff or maybe eucalyptus oil can work for the gaffa.

[toadmark]

Butanone, also known as methyl ethyl ketone or MEK is a fairly potent solvent.
I have used it to remove 2 yo gaffa. If you're not careful it will remove paint too.
It's not available in normal hardware stores generally, as it is an industrial solvent.

It is nasty stuff - you want to wear gloves etc. when you use it.

[stosostu]

I've had success with citrus oil, the stuff you put in anti-mosquito oil lamps. It softens the adhesive but doesn't touch ths paint. Then I use thinners to remove the sticky residue.

[vanderlae]

Oooh this is a handy thread. When I moved recently I stupidly wrapped up 80% of my cables with cheap brown packing tape from Officeworks and upon pulling it off - you guessed it, the sticky part stayed on.

Once upon a time I was a screenprinter and we used acetate (I think) to strip glue of the old screens. Not the kind of stuff you can buy at your local IGA, though.

[wez]

Once upon a time I was a screenprinter and we used acetate (I think) to strip glue of the old screens.

i think you mean acetone? i.e. nail polish remover... readily available at chemists etc.

how about isopropyl alcohol? i've used it on just about everything with good results.

[Futureman]

I guess as I'm restoring a old drum machine I don't want a solvent that'll strip the paint or melt the plastic or cause cancer.

I think I'll use the citrus based stuff at first.. it has worked well for me in the past, but this gaff is a new breed.. it's matured and aged into a new substance altogether...

I may even try and scrape it off with a razor or scapel first to ease the workload.

Keep the ideas coming...

[DarkSky]

Oooh this is a handy thread. When I moved recently I stupidly wrapped up 80% of my cables with cheap brown packing tape from Officeworks and upon pulling it off - you guessed it, the sticky part stayed on.

Once upon a time I was a screenprinter and we used acetate (I think) to strip glue of the old screens. Not the kind of stuff you can buy at your local IGA, though.

David, most specialist paint stores carry cans of acetone, as it is required as a thinner and solvent for various paints (and some sealants etc).

For which reason... you should not assume that acetone won't dissolve paints. Or cable sheaths. There are certainly some (of each) that it will. Best to try a small portion on an out-of-the-way section to see, before applying it more liberally.

[Futureman]

Acetone is pretty hardcore... it'll strip the oils from anything, including your skin.. and will easily dissolve most paints & plastics.

I'll try some isopropyl alcolohol.. thats basically meths right? (But more distilled)

[Mazystar]

I used wax and grease remover from super cheap to get rid of hardened glue from a plastic bumper without any drama's? As soon as it started soaking in it started coming off with a little elbow grease! Just a thought?

[The Tasmanian]

Citrus oil is great - Tea Tree oil is even better - don't go the chemical's - there is good stuff that is non toxic

[SYOS]

I generally start with eucalyptus oil before trying anything more potent. I've found it great on sticky tape residue and with a bit of elbow grease can gently remove harder old tape like Gaff and masking tape without damaging the surface or screen printing.

[graemeh]

+1 Eucalyptus oil, but the smell hangs around for days...

[DarkSky]

Bear in mind that some vinyl or plastic products are dissolved by eucalyptus. It's not safe on everything.

[rob]

tea tree or eucalyptus oil. But leave it to soak in for a day or two. Aged gaff gum is very hard to remove if you are in a hurry. Let time be your friend and soak it, then a plastic scraper.
Acetone will do it real quick but will take paint and plastic with it
MEK will do it too but can take paint off.
if you want to go down the petrochemical path, RP-7 is pretty good, but really not much better than eucalyptus oil