Ink Sail numbers, Removal advice requested

ewagman

Member
I just got a lightly used white race sail that has 5 digit numbers inked into both sides of the sail with a black magic marker or something similar. Since they are not my numbers, I need to remove or cover and replace at least the last three numbers, first two are same as mine. Without doing harm to the sail. I'd appreciate advice on this.
 
1) For free, you can cut out the last three numbers from adhesive vinyl. (Contact paper).

2) Better, but pricy: There are places that will prepare pre-spaced adhesive vinyl numbers on a waxed paper roll.

3) Alternative: Mask off the existing numbers as a rectangle or oval—spray-paint both sides with white Rustoleum. Apply your five new numbers as desired. (Large stenciled numbers permanently sprayed on?)

One downside is that the white Rustoleum patch will appear dark on the sail (on the shaded side—away from the sun) so half the time, your number won't appear especially "contrasty".

Downside Two: This is a permanent change! :confused:

So...there's a start. :)
 
spray-paint both sides with white Rustoleum.

Have you ever done this or is it an idea that just popped into your mind?

Ed, except for following L and DWIs advice of getting a piece of vinyl or much more preferably some stick on sailcloth and putting numbers on those, I don’t think there are good options. Magic marker isn’t coming off!
 
I've remove ink like that from a white dress shirt with a mixture of mineral spirits and turpentine. My grandmother told me about it. Not sure if it works on sail material. "I caint gaarantee it"
 
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Have you ever done this or is it an idea that just popped into your mind?

Ed, except for following L and DWIs advice of getting a piece of vinyl or much more preferably some stick on sailcloth and putting numbers on those, I don’t think there are good options. Magic marker isn’t coming off!
Yes, I've sprayed Rustoleum on a sail. Rust spots were to be hopefully covered, and, while Rustoleum did cover them, the "repair" was opaque to sunlight, so the solution was worse than the problem. :confused:

If somebody would make a metal cookie-cutter of a 2-inch Sunfish emblem, I'd cut them from sail-repair tape.

Blue would be nice. :)
 
A tiny problem with paint and marker.

It turns out that a Sharpy marker will not allow paint to cover it. I learned this doing body work on my 1931 model A Ford. I sprayed fancy auto paint and it would not stick on the marker. I cursed quite a bit.

Later some sharpy marker was used to mark a window position on a wall during home renovations. We changed the position later. The latex paint would not stick to the Sharpy either!!!

So keep that in mind.

I would try denatured alcohol in a spot to see if it will remove the marker. There is also goof off, just do not know which will hurt the sail. Possibly citrus remover might work?
 
Yes, I've sprayed Rustoleum on a sail. Rust spots were to be hopefully covered, and, while Rustoleum did cover them, the "repair" was opaque to sunlight, so the solution was worse than the problem. :confused:

If somebody would make a metal cookie-cutter of a 2-inch Sunfish emblem, I'd cut them from sail-repair tape.

Blue would be nice. :)
Hi shore fun, something over the years I've found that I know for a fact works on rust stains, both on fiberglass as well as carpet, boats, seats, and most other surfaces without harming them. Its sold by the gallon at lowes hardware and it's called "rust aid". Just buy a empty spray bottle while there and label it (because you WILL use it again) and spray it on the spot. No scrubbing. Let stand for a bit and rinse off. Reapeat if necessary. It has never failed to work on my anchore deck spots on my big boat or when someone leave something metal on a carpeted area in the cabin or fish hooks in a bait well. It completely removes the stain. Btw I dont own stock in the company. Lol
 
I have pondered this problem all day. Here is my simple solution. Unless the person you’re bought the sail from will be in the same races as you, just use the number that is on the sail. Even at championships they are ok with that as long as the number isn’t being used by multiple boats.
 
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When I first read ewagman's post, I thought, like beldar, why not leave this alone?
For most racing, the, presumably ugly, numbers won't matter, although I certainly wouldn't take this sail to the Nationals.
 
Thanks for the tips. I'm ordering some adhesive sailcloth to cover the wrong numbers. Turns out I only need to change the 3rd and 4th number, so I'll cover them and put my numbers on top of those two. I'll order two pair of numbers to match my old ones. Might look a bit odd with the difference, but what the heck. Plus I can remember those numbers, had 'em since my second new Sunfish in 1994.
 

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