Cleaning painf overspray off plexiglass

[CraigH]

Just got my bird out of the upholstery shop, and they managed to get a little oversprapy on the top corner of the windshield. Very light, but noticieable in the right lighting conditions. The guy at the upholstery shop suggested getting a rag damp with thinner, cleaning the overspray and then immediately cleaning that portion of the plexiglass with Simple Green. I'm hesitant to put thinner on plexiglass.

Any ideas or suggestions?

[Dave Clark]

No thinner. No simple green. Use a clay bar with lots of lubricant. If you have been using a windshield cleaner that has any kind if wax in it it should come off easily. You can get a clay bar kit from most auto paint stores. Really handy to have around.

[CraigH]

Thanks Dave!

Not much wax because the overspray is on the inside. I'm guessing it's from when they painted the door pillars.

[Dave Clark]

Craig

Be sure the airplane has a lot of ventilation to let the interior paint dry. I bought a 195 from a fellow who had replaced his windshield then painted the instrument panel overlay. He let it dry for a few days then put it in the plane. Outside in Boise it cooked some remaining solvents out and in a week his new windshield was crazed and he had to replace it. Tough job too on a 195!

Dave

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

Do a google search for "plastic model paint remover" and you will get plenty of home remedies like the following link: http://www.bonediggers.com/1-3/strip/strip.html

I used a commercial plastic paint remover that I bought at a train show to remove the paint which covered the Plexiglas overlay on my dash panel. I'll have to get the name later. Some of my favorite stuff to remove these types of things is a product called Goo-Be-Gone. This is a citrus base product and there may be different varieties of it. You may find 100LL works as well as anything.

The longer the paint has to dry the harder it will be to remove so I hope it's fresh.

What ever you do test it on another piece of plexi first then on a VERY VERY small spot on you actual windshield up in the corner where it won't be a catastrophe if a mark is left.

[alaskan99669]

I've been wondering if Brasso would work to clean and remove scratches / stains from the windows. It works great on plastic watch crystals and scratched CD's. The 1981 Cessna 152 manual says it's okay to use a soft cloth and Stoddard solvent to clean it's windshield and Brasso is 65% Stoddard solvent.

[cessna170bdriver]

I've been wondering if Brasso would work to clean and remove scratches / stains from the windows. It works great on plastic watch crystals and scratched CD's. The 1981 Cessna 152 manual says it's okay to use a soft cloth and Stoddard solvent to clean it's windshield and Brasso is 65% Stoddard solvent.

If I'm not mistaken, Brasso also has some abrasives in it. As with anything you try on your windshield, try it in an inconspicuous area, or better yet, another piece of clear acrylic.

For scratch removal there are several kits on the market that I've seen demonstrated, but I have no direct experience.

Miles

[sphillips]

Last summer one of our summer line boys fueled our 172 trainer, then grabbed the can of plexiglass cleaner to do the windscreen. He didnt realize it was a can of white spray paint until it was too late. When I got to the plane he wa shaking like a leaf. I pulled out a bottle of denatured alchohol and a clean dry cloth and proceeded to clean the paint right off. He was relieved to say the least. to this day we dont know why a can of white spray paint was in the avgas truck.

[GAHorn]

Craig, there are two solutions that are "safe" for plexiglas. One: If the paint is recent, ordinary Isopropyl alchohol, preferably 100% will likely remove it. You can usually find that at paint/hardware stores (or at aircraft windshield/window installers who use it regularly for their own mistakes.) Just don't make it a regular habit becaue alcohol will eventually evaporate out plasticizers and over long-term use can contribute to drying/cracking, ... or so I'm told.

If the paint is thoroughly dry however... the best solution is a product called "MicroMesh". It is sold by Spruce under their catalog PN 09-24700 for about $18. It consists of a pad, a series of special abrasive cloths, and a special liquid for removing crazing, scratches, paint, etc from the surface of aircraft windows. I've used it for years and found it very good.

[CraigH]

Update:

I tried Dave's clay bar idea and it worked great. Took about 15 minutes of spraying and rubbing to remove the majority of the overspray. Due to time constraints I wasn't able to finish the job, but it shouldn't take too long to wipe out the few remnants. Thanks!!!!!!!

[Dave Clark]

Craig
Good to hear it worked for you. Next try the clay bar on your car or airplane paint prior to waxing. You won't believe the difference it makes.

I had missed mentioning the alcohol so George got one in on me It's usually my first try but with over spray clay bar usually works easier. There is also a paint prep called Acryli Clean that I've used but very carefully. It won't solvent etch the plex but I don't know the long term consequences. I've used it to remove a buildup of Maguires Plexiglas cleaner, a product I no longer use.

[blueldr]

Just be sure you don't use any product like most glass cleaners. They generally contain some ammonia which is bad stuff on acrylics.

[trake]

Dave,
Whats a clay bar kit? Is it like rubbing or polishing compound-an abrasive? Or a cleaner of some kind?

[Dave Clark]

Tracy

Since I can see you're from Virginia I'm pleased to answer

It's a special type of "clay" about the size of a bar of soap and a spray bottle of lubricant which is water with just a little special soap to make it slippery. What you do is wet the surface and slide the bar over it. You can see the material being picked up on the surface of the clay bar and when it's dirty you pull it apart like silly putty and fold it back on itself giving you a new surface to work with. The clay bar is often used by auto detailers to remove brake pad residue and other foreign objects that get embedded in paint and commonly to remove overspray. See:

http://www.zainostore.com/Merchant2/mer ... ore_Code=Z

[170C]

Did I see that a source for this is auto paint stores? What does it cost?