Outboard Decals - Removal And Replace

[Titleman]

                  I'm about to remove and replace my outboard motor decals and was curious whether anyone here has any advise. This  will be my first time. Appears to be simple enough. This is how I plan to do it.

Remove old decals using a hair dryer to soften the old glue being very careful not to get it too hot. The old decal will become brittle if too much heat is used. Peel slowly and should come off with very little effort. Use just enough heat to peel off the old decal. 

Clean cowl with alcohol, wet both cowl and backside of decal surfaces with a dishwashing detergent and water solution, position decal and tape in place using one piece of masking tape down the middle, peel paper from half of the backside of decal. Now slowly lay it down on the apppropriate spot using a squeegee and working from the center out to the edge. Don't allow decal to touch cowl until you go to smooth it into place Smooth out all water, soap and bubbles from the center out and wipe and dry surfaces. Repeat same for the other half, Small decals can be done as a whole. Wet, apply, squeegee, from center out to remove soap, water and bubbles. Finish by then peeling the top protective film at a sharp angle being careful enough not to undo your decal.

Am I missing something or does that about cover it?

Thanks 

[Fishes in trees]

Why are you so worried about replacing motor decals?   The only time anybody I knew had to do that was when they had to replace a 40 HP decal with a 10 HP decal so that on a casual inspection they would seem to be in compliance on various horse power restricted lakes.

 

These days, in Missouri, in the vast majority of horse power restricted lakes, you can run your larger motor at idle speed, you just can't have a wake.  I only know of a few horse power restricted lakes where they are really anal and won't let you putt around on your big motor.  I've never been on a lake where they wouldn't let you start  your motor to put your boat back on the trailer.

 

I don't know about Florida though.

[jhoffman]

Take the back of the sticker, spray the backside with the dishsoap/water mix and the cowl. Lay it on, adjust, smooth it out and done

[mudkart]

I used a heat gun on it's lowest setting for this purpose and it worked great (the old cowl and decals were toast). Get an edge of the old decal up, grip the edge then pull with steady pressure.  New decals are from Iguana Grafix.

 

[Titleman]

Why are you so worried about replacing motor decals?   The only time anybody I knew had to do that was when they had to replace a 40 HP decal with a 10 HP decal so that on a casual inspection they would seem to be in compliance on various horse power restricted lakes.

 

These days, in Missouri, in the vast majority of horse power restricted lakes, you can run your larger motor at idle speed, you just can't have a wake.  I only know of a few horse power restricted lakes where they are really anal and won't let you putt around on your big motor.  I've never been on a lake where they wouldn't let you start  your motor to put your boat back on the trailer.

 

I don't know about Florida though.

Thanks for the reply. I like my stuff to look as good as possible and replacing decals will help keep it looking great. I've always tried to keep anything I've spent after-taxes dollars on in the best shape I can. Just makes me feel better. Know what I mean. It has zero to do with trying to fool the local authorities and everything to do with feeling good and looking good while enjoying a day on the water.

[Titleman]

Take the back of the sticker, spray the backside with the dishsoap/water mix and the cowl. Lay it on, adjust, smooth it out and done

Got it done already and used the method I described above. No problems and looks good. Thanks to you and mudcart for the input. Maybe I can help you and others in the future.

[Traveler2586]

I had to replace my Merc decals because of UV deterioration, Merc did not support their product, they wanted $250.00 for a new set. 

 

 

 

So I said GTH, and found better decals. 

 

[Titleman]

Kicker, that's exactly how mine were doing. You are a very wise man. Looks great and so does your cover. Where did you get it from? Looks like something that will last more than a couple of years, like the ones I've been buying. The one I have now was purchased from Gander Mountain and is holding up fairly well. Thanks for the pics and info. 

[Traveler2586]

Kicker, that's exactly how mine were doing. You are a very wise man. Looks great and so does your cover. Where did you get it from? Looks like something that will last more than a couple of years, like the ones I've been buying. The one I have now was purchased from Gander Mountain and is holding up fairly well. Thanks for the pics and info. 

I got the decals from Glenn at the 2012 Road Trip; and the cover in the pic is Ranger OEM, it's the original 2003 cover that came with the boat. We got a good ten years of daily service out of it, but I just retired it due to thread disintegration ( I think using a mildew cleaner with bleach on the under side was the problem ) With service like that I went with a Ranger cover again.