Side Chrome Trim Removal
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Side Chrome Trim Removal
Hello All, just thought I'd share this as I was absolutely dreading removing the chrome trim running along the sides of the car. Removed my "blue efficiency" badges a while ago and it was an absolute PITA, so I figured the side trim would be far worse. Did a little research and found an item from 3M that made it really easy. Its called the 3M stripe off wheel, basically a giant rubber eraser you can attach to a drill. Worked really well. Thought I'd do a quick write up for anyone who was in the same boat I was.
First I removed the trim using old fishing line. Just snake it behind the trim and then "saw" it back and forth along the length of the trim piece. Make sure to clean up the area before doing this with some detailer or soapy water.
Now use the rubber wheel to gently remove the residual tape. Wipe down the area again before doing this.
Wipe off the excess rubber and go over any spots you missed a second time. In the pic above you can see that the outline of the trim was still visible. Not sure if this was residual adhesive or just crap that had built up between the trim and paint over the years. I was able to scrape it off pretty easily with a wet fingernail, so I switched to using my buffer and a light cutting compound to remove that instead of continuing on with the rubber wheel. Sure you could get the same results by hand with clay or compound and a little elbow grease. Some adhesive remover might have also done the trick. But I have a buffer at my disposal so that was my weapon of choice. The whole process only took about an hour.
Then enjoy your new chromeless look!
First I removed the trim using old fishing line. Just snake it behind the trim and then "saw" it back and forth along the length of the trim piece. Make sure to clean up the area before doing this with some detailer or soapy water.
Now use the rubber wheel to gently remove the residual tape. Wipe down the area again before doing this.
Wipe off the excess rubber and go over any spots you missed a second time. In the pic above you can see that the outline of the trim was still visible. Not sure if this was residual adhesive or just crap that had built up between the trim and paint over the years. I was able to scrape it off pretty easily with a wet fingernail, so I switched to using my buffer and a light cutting compound to remove that instead of continuing on with the rubber wheel. Sure you could get the same results by hand with clay or compound and a little elbow grease. Some adhesive remover might have also done the trick. But I have a buffer at my disposal so that was my weapon of choice. The whole process only took about an hour.
Then enjoy your new chromeless look!
Last edited by crazy00c230k; 03-26-2017 at 05:56 AM.
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SuperChargerE55 (08-02-2019)
#2
Senior Member
Have you thought about wrapping or plastic dipping the rest of the silver trim, grill and badges?
#3
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Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: East Bay, CA
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Mercedes E550 Coupe
Nice write up. Thanks for the info.
I've been debating doing this as well.
Does the 3M rubber strip off cause any damage to the paint? It sounded so harsh in the video..
And your wheels are very nice, wild combo, but looks great.
I've been debating doing this as well.
Does the 3M rubber strip off cause any damage to the paint? It sounded so harsh in the video..
And your wheels are very nice, wild combo, but looks great.
Last edited by hotwheels_; 03-25-2017 at 10:46 PM. Reason: Edit
#4
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Last edited by crazy00c230k; 03-26-2017 at 01:20 AM.
#5
Hello All, just thought I'd share this as I was absolutely dreading removing the chrome trim running along the sides of the car. Removed my "blue efficiency" badges a while ago and it was an absolute PITA, so I figured the side trim would be far worse. Did a little research and found an item from 3M that made it really easy. Its called the 3M stripe off wheel, basically a giant rubber eraser you can attach to a drill. Worked really well. Thought I'd do a quick write up for anyone who was in the same boat I was.
#6
Senior Member
Thread Starter
#7
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#8
Senior Member
Dammit, I wish I knew about this wheel before I did mine. Mine was a 2-day process. One for each side and a night between for arm recovery from scrubbing the 3M with Goo Gone lol.