How to remove dried masking tape from ....
 

............ old treadle veneer without damaging the finish.

I have a nice later model treadle sitting here to get ready to deliver to my SIL. There are some pieces of masking tape on the under side of the lid. What is the best way to remove it without damaging the finish?

Joe

Have you tried "Goo B Gone"? Maybe alcohol?

No, I haven't tried anything yet. We just got the machine home last night and in the house a little bit ago.

I know of many things that will take it off, but I'm paranoid about damaging the original finish. It's still in really nice shape.

Joe

not alcohol, may soften finish if shellac. I would see if I could roughen it a little and then WD-40 or sm oil or liquid wrench. Or goo-gone but not the concentrated spray.

Blow Dryer, plastic scraper, and a lot of patience.

I don't think any kind of softener or remover will help on dried tape. Try some fine sandpaper...just a little rolled on your finger and gently rub it off.

i have some plastic "razor blades" and shards of plexi I use sometimes, but they will scratch thru old clear finishes. I use ggauze soaked w WD-40 held on w plastic wrap and lwt it soak for a long time.

***
*** Lighter Fluid will take off sticky tape & stuff, but
*** don't know what it will do to the finish.
***

lighter fluid (natha) is probably ok on SM's. No experience on wood finishes.

Try baby oil, works great on removing pine tree pitch from hands and other things.

I am not sure that there is much difference between baby oil and sewing machine oil

I removed old, dried masking tape from the machine bed itself on a treadle 66 machine without any damage. Although I haven't had to remove dried tape from a wood cabinet I would try the same procedure since I haven't noticed any adverse affects of sewing machine oil on the cabinet wood. I soaked the tape with sewing machine oil and let it sit. Once the oil softened the tape I was able to scrape gently with my fingernail to remove all of the paper and goo. It did not harm the machine finish at all. I don't remember how long I soaked it but I wouldn't be surprised if I left the oil on it several days and worked on removing the tape slowly over several days of applying additional oil.

yes, just use oil. any oil for that matter. in fact i even will use cooking oil if that's the nearest to me. i've done this so many times. just need a lot of patience.

We use WD 40 to remove sticky goo. So far it's removed the goo left from prescription labels off the pill bottles. There have been other things, too, just can't remember. So far we haven't had any damage. Spray on, wipe off without waiting. May be worth a try. Hope you find something that works.

Since I had some baby oil handy I used that. Let it soak for a bit and then used my fingernail to help it off. It came off with minimal damage. I can easily fix what damage is there with some Bri-Wax.

Joe

I removed tape residue from a cabinet with WD40. Didn't harm the finish at all.

I used rubbing alcohol. After I cleaned it up I switched to painters tape

I never use tape on wood finishes. This was there from who knows when. My SIL who gave us the 9W-7 Treadle a couple years ago wanted one that used common components and had a back tack on it. We saw this 66-14 on on GW and she bid on it. Miriam was kind enough to pic it up for us and hold it till she trecked through IL and we could meet up with her.
I'm cleaning it up for my SIL. So far I've found very little this machine/cabinet will need. Just that piece of tape and some general cleaning and a new belt.

Joe

Rubbing alcohol on shellac finishes isn't recommended. Thought I'd put that out there! :)

I have used peanut butter to remove labels, just keep the dogs away so they don't lick it off. It is thick to stay in place and has oil in it to loosen the label.

Peanut butter ........ I wish I'd seen this before I used the baby oil. I would have tried it.

Joe

Peanut butter? Just a thought that popped in my head when I read the post. The oil in peanut butter might loosen the tape enough to make it possible to gently scrape it off.

Mind you, I have no experience at this, so the idea may be wacko.

I took ice cubes and froze the residue and used a plastic scraper to remove the frozen glue - it took a while but it all came off without any damage. You could also use those lunch box freezer packs. I recently acquired an old wooden desk -the masking tape had been on there so long that it turned to dust as I was removing it-of course the gluey crap stayed. Using any kind of new cleaning chemicals on old varnish can and will ruin the original finish 99 times out of a 100. This tip comes from a book my MIL gave me and if you don't have one put it on your list of GottaGet's--- Household Hints from Heloise

I have good luck with plain old mineral oil. Takes a little rubbing, but it works and no chemicals to be wary of.

Olive oil!

that will work also but olive oil is more expensive so I just use canola oil or any cooking oil.

Goo B Gone.

Wd 40 works well...

Pill bottle does not equal sewing machine table or sewing machine

My hubby reaches for the WD-40 in just about any instance - he buys it by the big gallon-type bottle. I laugh at him when he grabs it but he hasn't disappointed me yet! :-)

Marysewfun

I agree with "Farmquilter"........I have had the best results with Peanut Butter. It stays put and really softens the masking tape and won't damage the surface.

I use sewing machine oil to get rid of old dried up masking tape. I squirt some oil on and let it sit overnight.

Oil seems to be the consensus. Cooking oil is also good for cleaning nasty black grease like from working on a car off your hands enough so you can use soap and water after.
Rodney