Removing old boat letter decals
My wife and I just removed our new boat's old name (the name had been on both sides for the hull for 10 years). We used a hair dryer to heat the lettering (not too hot to touch) and then gently used our fingernails to pry up the letters. (By the way, the boat was out of the water.) Some peeled right off in big strips, others came off a bit at a time. You'll get the hang of it quickly. For problem letters, we used a plastic putty knife to help lift the letters. We did not use any metal tools or razor blades for fear of damaging the gel coat. The slight remaining residue came off fairly easily with 3M Adhesive Remover. The whole project took the two of us about three hours. Unfortunately, our boat's old name was v-e-r-y long (a beautiful but long Hawaiian name) and each letter had two decals because it had a shadow effect. It was very satisfying to finish the project without damaging the hull. The hull under the letters was a bit brighter than the rest of the hull, but it surprisingly is very difficult to see the outlines of the old letters. And I think even that slight effect will disappear when we wax the hull. Good luck.
