Decals + Polish

[Parksy]

Finally got around to changing the decals on the van last weekend.
The van has been treated with the paint seal product so I have never had to polish it, but as its been there for five years now
and I want to protect the new decals does any one know the best polish to use, I have got a new bottle of Auto Glym Resin Polish
so am hoping to use that.

Not quite an exact match but OH is happy so thats what counts

 

[Gagakev]

oopps photo's are a bit big but then it is 6.4m in length

Parksy; it wont let me edit (normally I can) to reduce the size, presume this is to do with the forum as it is at the moment

Can you do it from your end?

 

[SirRogerFFS]

Hi Kev. Super Pictures.Now Autoglym would heve been my choice but I think Parksy has a favorite in Mcguires probably not spelt right but it does seem to be popular.
Sir Roger

 

[Parksy]

I've edited the pictures to make them just a wee bit smaller Kev

Youve made a lovely job of the decals, the caravan is a beaut!
Polish will remove any signs of grime or fading and bring up the paintwork to a nice shine by using a very mild abrasive action.
To preserve the lovely shine it's best to add a coating (or two) of protective wax which will help to preserve the shine.

Autoglym Super Resin Polish is good stuff, used by many caravanners and to preserve the shine you could go over the surface with Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection, a polymer based sealant which will protect the shine and make the caravan easier to wash after a trip.
Two thin coats are always better than one thich coat and you will have no need to polish (which will remove the wax coat) until towards the end of the year if you wash the caravan and re-apply a coat or two of sealant afterwards when you've got time.
Sir Roger FFS is referring to the Meguiars step 2 polish and Step 3 Deep Crystal Carnauba Wax, a long lasting wax which does pretty much the same thing as the Autoglym Sealant. It's a matter of choice, if you wash your caravan regularly, and I know that you do Kev, then the Autoglym Sealant is fine with their polish, it will act in a similar way to the original protective coating that you had but you just need to re-apply it regularly.
My caravan is stored 12 miles away and I have to bring it home to clean it, so it doesn't get done as often.

 

[Dustydog]

Great job Kev

Next time we meet please bring your polish and rags. I have a little job for you

 

[Gagakev]

I've edited the pictures to make them just a wee bit smaller Kev

Many Thanks Parksy
Sir Roger FFS is referring to the Meguiars step 2 polish and Step 3 Deep Crystal Carnauba Wax,

I purchased a bottle of that to do the roof abut 6 months ago and due to all the terrible weather never got around to doing it
And now I cant for the life of me remember where I put it

 

[Gagakev]

Great job Kev

Next time we meet please bring your polish and rags. I have a little job for you

Dusty, only if you are on EHU--- electric buffer for me

 

[Parksy]

.........I purchased a bottle of that to do the roof abut 6 months ago and due to all the terrible weather never got around to doing it
And now I cant for the life of me remember where I put it

I know where my polish and wax are but I can't for the life of me remember whats happened to my electric buffer

 

[AbbeyOwner]

for my personal choice, i use super resin polish to polish it, but don't press too hard on the decals as the paint comes off. I finish off by using a auto glym perfect polishing cloth and some ultra deep shine to lock in the seal.
Good luck polishing all of it

 

[Sproket]

Kev
Did you use wash it with your new toy ?
I use one of these as it is 12v & runs off the van battery

& a couple of spare polishing bonnets makes life easy .....

 

[Gagakev]

for my personal choice, i use super resin polish to polish it, but don't press too hard on the decals as the paint comes off. I finish off by using a auto glym perfect polishing cloth and some ultra deep shine to lock in the seal.
Good luck polishing all of it

Thanks for the tip about pressing on the decals think I will go gently to start and may even resort to doing the decal area by hand.

 

[Gagakev]

Kev
Did you use wash it with your new toy ?
I use one of these as it is 12v & runs off the van battery

& a couple of spare polishing bonnets makes life easy .....

I certainly did Sir Sprocket it is actually in the 2nd photo by the wheel and the snow is in the bottle on the top step, brilliant bit of kit.

 

[Clive-Cardiff]

Smashing decals, Where did you get them?

 

[AbbeyOwner]

for my personal choice, i use super resin polish to polish it, but don't press too hard on the decals as the paint comes off. I finish off by using a auto glym perfect polishing cloth and some ultra deep shine to lock in the seal.
Good luck polishing all of it

Thanks for the tip about pressing on the decals think I will go gently to start and may even resort to doing the decal area by hand.

It only takes the paint off if you apply a lot of pressure to the decals, I usually do them by hand which doesn't take the paint off the decals

 

[Gagakev]

Smashing decals, Where did you get them?

Hi Clive, got them from here
I started the search on fleabay and then went to his contact details and emailed him and did a deal,
got three differant sized sets (120,90,and 60cm) for the price of two, but I havent told you that

 

[fez716]

Hi I am new to the forum, I have a 2007 fleetwood symphony sonata an want a new set of decalsm. Other than the decals he van is extremely idy and I want to keep it that way. Any help in finding a new set of decals would be greatly appreciated

 

[Parksy]

Hi Fez, welcome to the forum.
Click Here for replacement sonata graphics

 

[fez716]

Thanks for that. That company is very close to me and I will contact them. My only concern with them was there were only 3 reviews about them online all of them not great, would like to hear from people who have had good experiences with them there will undoubtedly be lots as I always seem to find people love sharing bad experiences more than good ones

 

[SirRogerFFS]

IF all else fails you could try Fleetwood owners club They have a few in hand depending on the ones you have but do have somebody that is doing one offs

 

[JamesH]

You could try this company for decals :-
http://www.caravanstickers.com/Caravan-Stickers/fleetwood-caravan-stickers

 

[Gagakev]

Thanks for that. That company is very close to me and I will contact them. My only concern with them was there were only 3 reviews about them online all of them not great, would like to hear from people who have had good experiences with them there will undoubtedly be lots as I always seem to find people love sharing bad experiences more than good ones

Fez the link in Parksy's post are the ones I got for my van from them, they did not have the originals so I sent them a picture of every letter and they copied them to a tee, So the ones in the link are actually from my van and if you go to the link and also type in Symphony that will also come up.
If you contact them they will send you out a shrunken version about 150mm long and you can do a comparison,

I wish I knew of them a couple of years earlier when I changed the picture decals as I would have sent them a picture of the originals of them, and got to copy them as well. The picture ones I have are not of original design, but close enough. (from another company)

Just a tip when changing make sure you mark out the van exactly where the old ones come off, if you dont in certain light you will see where the old ones came off, one of mine is slighty out and it bugs me!!!!

By the way I have nothing to do with the company except to praise them for all there help, nothing was too much trouble, Good luck.

 

[Keefanmaxx]

As a reply to the original question, I'd go with autoglym super resin polish or a canauba wax.
My own 'van is autoglym polished and there has been no effect on the decals.

 

[fez716]

Still haven’t got any yet, will try again for spring