Removing old tape glue from antique toy box

August 7, 2021 3:46 AM

My great-grandfather made this toybox for my father when he was a little kid, so it dates from the early-to-mid 1950s. It's painted with a semi-gloss paint, and is decorated with several decals or stickers that date from the 1950s—all of kids' mascots and characters like Roy Rogers.

My dad was going to throw the toybox out because the lid had become brittle and actually broke apart in one place, but I had a workworking friend repair it. The only thing is my dad had taped the lid back together at some point, probably back in the 1990s, and so it has old masking tape and packing tape residue on the lid. My woodworking friend said to use goo gone to remove the tape residue, but I'm worried about removing the stickers/decals. I'm also worried about damaging the paint.

Suggestions?

posted by Martienne to Home & Garden (7 answers total)

Is the tape residue sticky or crunchy? If it's crunchy you might be able to scrape it off with a razor blade or even a credit card. If you can't remove it mechanically, I would recommend starting with a cotton swab and some rubbing alcohol; if/when that doesn't work move through other solvents you have around then house (nail polish remover, cooking oil, dish soap, bike degreaser). Try them on a small area so you can see whether you're damaging the stickers.

It may not be possible (or at least not an amateur job) to remove the tape adhesive without removing the sticker adhesive.

Also remember that the old paint probably has lead in it so be sure to wash up well afterwards, and don't let children play with the box (besides the lead paint, it probably has a lid that can slam on kids' fingers and no ventilation in case someone hides inside).
posted by mskyle at 4:54 AM on August 7, 2021 [1 favorite]

A friend ran a used bookstore. His preferred solvent was zippo lighter fluid. It'll often take old labels and adhesive off and leave the printed cover untouched.
posted by AugustusCrunch at 6:29 AM on August 7, 2021 [2 favorites]

Seconding lighter fluid for removing sticker residue, and I would definitely follow mskyle's advice of starting with gentle physical scraping (maybe with a plastic putty knife) and doing a "test run" on a small area with a cotton swab for whichever solvents you try (rubbing alcohol would be worth a shot too.)
posted by soundguy99 at 6:47 AM on August 7, 2021

Before you break out the arsenal of organic solvents, try a white vinyl drafting eraser: Staedleter makes a nice one.

Take the drafting eraser and rub it gently in a single direction over the surface. It may take several applications. You will get some residue on the surface and the eraser, and take that off with each application by rubbing the vinyl eraser on a bare clean surface like untreated wood.

The final layer will be really thin and difficult to lift, and you can buff that off with a noile (rough texture) silk or linen cloth. A light spritz of soapy water may work as well, but minimize water exposure.

The surface will be more receptive if you can gently warm it by leaving it in the sun for a bit or in a warm ambient temperature area.

I hope this method is helpful. Good luck!
posted by effluvia at 6:49 AM on August 7, 2021 [4 favorites]

A clay bar (used for automotive paint before waxing) is used for lifting off all sorts of debris from paint. Work small and gently.
posted by artdrectr at 4:44 PM on August 7, 2021

I have had a lot of luck using tape to remove sticky residue. Press the tape on the sticky residue and gentle lift, it may take some time to get it all off.
posted by tman99 at 6:51 AM on August 9, 2021

Response by poster: Sorry it's taken me 5000 years to get back to this. Some of the adhesive residue is sticky and some is crunchy; I've been working a little at a time with a credit card to remove both. I have some lighter fluid we bought for a camping trip so I intend to try this first once I get the residue scraped off. The lead paint is an issue I hadn't thought of. Since the point was to keep the toybox in the family, I'll probably repaint the whole thing with polyurethane or something that will seal it when I'm done rehabbing it.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions! I'll check back in and let you know how it's gone when I finish.
posted by Martienne at 5:58 AM on September 29, 2021