Removal of wall letters..............................

[Gino]

Over the years, we've had to go into various stores/buildings to remove gatorboard or pvc letters from walls. Usually never had to do many of them, so we used wire to fishing line held firmly in both hands with heavy duty gloves and just pulled down, kinda the same way you would floss your teeth. Back and forth. We need to keep as many of these letters in good condition as possible. well, yesterday, we recieved an order to remove some 230 of them from a store and we need to salvage as many as possible. Using gloves and wire just ain't gonna do it.

Anyone have some ideas of a really good wire to use ??
Anyone have pointers on where to buy any kind of tools for this very application ??


I was thinking about taking a dowel about 5" or 6", drilling a thin little hole down the the middle. Firmly attaching a cup kinda thingamajig to both ends and tie the wire off at both far ends.... one for each hand. Using the end caps so-to-speak as leverage handles for all the pulling motion. Perhaps, there's something already made, that I'v never seen.

The letters are about 10" tall with silicon glue and double sided tape holding them on the wall. We have permission to slightly deface the wall, but if we get crazy, we'll just have that much more to clean off them, later.



So, anyone have any ideas ??

Gino​

 

[CreatedDesigns]

I think your idea of the dowels with some sort of Spiderwire type fishing line would work best, Sadly your arms are going to fall off. What is the wall? Drywall, Fiberboard, Tile?
If it is just drywall I would use the GPLR (Gino's Portable Letter Remover) to remove everything off the wall, Repair and repaint depending on where the wall is located. If out in the public eye, Work would just go slower to do a better job of salvaging the wall.

The only thing that sucks about doing it that way, Is cleaning the rest of the residue off of the walls and Letters.
But I'm not sure of a better way.

 

[GAC05]

Gino

If you want to stick with the wire idea Google windshield cut out tools.
There are a lot of options for wire tools with handles that are cheap and should do the job.
http://www.harborfreight.com/professional-windshield-removal-kit-96339.html

We used to have a pneumatic tool that did the same thing, is was a thin flat "L" shaped blade that vibrated back and forth in a small arc.
There is probably something similar out there in a cordless rechargeable model.
Running one of these at slow speed seems like it could work without messing up the wall or letters too much.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-JobMax-3-Amp-Multi-Tool-Starter-Kit-R28600/202672276?N=5yc1vZc2b2

here is a link to a DIY page if you want to build your own:
http://loadoutroom.com/779/the-garrote-wire/
(could also be useful if they don't want to pay after you have finished removing all the letters)

wayne k
guam usa

 

[visual800]

I have used a long handsaw, believe it or not. Damn you are going to be worn out after all that

 

[Sign Eagle]

We have used a bread slicing knife with a long, flexible blade.

 

[NateF]

If they're held on with foam tape, would a hot wire setup work - something similar to what is used to cut styrofoam?

Some woodworking stores might also have a Japanese flush cut saw. Not sure if they come in a large enough size to be useful to you, but they have a thin, flexible blade that usually works well for delicate cuts.

 

[Moze]

I would tell the customer that the wall is going to need patch and paint. If they expect you to do this without damaging the wall, I would walk.

Two guys with some windshield removal wire/handles should be able to blow through them. One guy holds pulls the wire through, the other guy holds the letter so it doesn't fall. Take turns when the guy doing the wire work gets tired. If there is tape and silicone on the backs of the letters, it shouldn't be an issue. Typically there's enough clean space to apply new tape and silicone.

 

[James Burke]

How about a cable saw? It's similar to what you're proposing, only the wire has been embossed to create small teeth...like micro-fine barbed/razor wire.

http://www.atgstores.com/hand-saws/...gclid=CIGRoeDw78ICFc1_MgodQ1EA7A&gclsrc=aw.ds

or

http://www.armynavyusa.com/Rothco-C...RTC-8313.htm?gclid=CPWtp-Hw78ICFeY-MgodZ1AAGw

or

http://www.google.com/shopping/prod...src=17588969&gclid=CJmOqZ7y78ICFYJzMgod-mcATg

 

[phototec]

Over the years I have used the classic PVC Cable Saw to remove letters and graphics glued to the wall. They are cheap ($6) and have a fine tooth like quality to the wire (more like a spiral) and padded handles at the ends. It does a good job and does not cut into the wall as you pull back and forth and down at the same time.


When you notice the work is getting harder, just start using a new one until it the work slows down again. I keep one in my install tool bag all the time.


http://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-PVC-Cable-Saw-TUO0002J/204284854?keyword=PVC+Cable+Saw

 

[phototec]

Another idea is to put a long flat blade into a replicating saw (with no teeth), and let the saw do all the work starting at the top and letting the weight of the saw do the work as you move down the wall.

The pre-made is a little pricy ($400+), however we all have a replicating saw, so all we need is a blade, even if you have to cut the handle off the manual saw and grind the end to fit into your replicating saw. This would be the fastest and easiest way to remove so many letters.

[video=youtube;sia-_yd0C8o]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sia-_yd0C8o[/video]

http://www.sprayfoam.com/npps/story.cfm?nppage=1861

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Spray-Foam-...345?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35acd4f1b1

Good luck!

 

[Gino]

everyone. These are the ideas I was looking for. I'm probably gonna do a few of them and whatever works best for them will become the shop standard.

As I said earlier, I won't be responsible for repairs or fixing any walls we damage, but we are supposed to keep it to a minimum. It's all in writing.

​

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

I like the cable saw but instead of the tooth blade as this might damage the wall more just use a small guitar string.

 

[Billct2]

Great thread, some suggestions I wouldn't have thought of.

 

[J Hill Designs]

yep. garotte wire.