Taking sticker glue off of sayas

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mhlee

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I've bought a few wood sayas from Korin and the stickers they use leave a film of glue after you take them off. I want to try and stain them eventually, but I imagine I would need to take the glue off first.

According to the Korin website, they're made from Hinoki wood. Has anyone here had success taking sticker glue from price stickers off of these wood sayas?
 
I always heat and humidify stickers on anything when I am removing them. Either with a pot/kettle of water, or just very patiently with my breath.
 
I always heat and humidify stickers on anything when I am removing them. Either with a pot/kettle of water, or just very patiently with my breath.

You need a job where you work around people...
 
I always heat and humidify stickers on anything when I am removing them. Either with a pot/kettle of water, or just very patiently with my breath.

Crap. I already took them off. I guess I can still try doing this but I'm a little worried since the wood is light and seems to be porous, this may cause the wood to warp.
 
You could try sticking some painters tape on the leftover adhesive, then try removing as Eamon suggested.
 
Mineral oil is good for removing glue residue, and if you use it all over the saya it will help the later stain to absorb evenly.
 
If I use mineral oil, I'm assuming I will have to still scrape off the glue, right?

Will mineral spirits or acetone stain the wood?
 
I just peel them off. Whenever glue residue remains I just sand them. I sand them anyway just to give em a nicer finish so it's not like I'm doing anything extra.
 
I've bought a few wood sayas from Korin and the stickers they use leave a film of glue after you take them off. I want to try and stain them eventually, but I imagine I would need to take the glue off first.

According to the Korin website, they're made from Hinoki wood. Has anyone here had success taking sticker glue from price stickers off of these wood sayas?

I have been at war with retail glue for years. I've found that moist, dirty hands, and a little patience works without affecting finishes.

Cheers,

Jack
 
Thanks for the info guys. I have several, so I can give a couple of these methods a shot.

For those of you guys that eventually sand your sayas, can you recommend a good brand of sandpaper and grits that I should use for removal of the glue AND finishing?
 
I wanted to revive this thread because I'm expecting a new BoardSmith board this week and some board butter. I was thinking of using the board butter (or mineral oil first, then board butter) on the sayas to protect them from stains after I sand them down.

But first, I wanted to see if any of you could recommend a sandpaper progression as I haven't done any woodwork since junior high. :slaphead:
 
Masking tape always works for me. Put some masking tape on the residue, rub on it with a fingernail, and then gently peel it off. You may need to repeat a few times to get everything off.
 
400 might be a good starting point in that case. Wipe with damp cloth. Follow with 600 and 800 and you will get nice smooth shiney finish
 
It depends on how smooth it is to start with. You don't need to go beyond 220. 100, 150, and 220 should do the job, with a tack cloth to remove the residue at the end.
 
I go to 600 on all of my saya, then work in some hot board butter.
 
What knives are you using and how is the fit? I need a few sayas but without test fitting, I'm scared they'll be ill-fitting which would just annoy me every day.
 
I put a 240 Kanemasa Yanagiba into the 240 yanagiba saya from Korin. Fits fine, perhaps just a little loose.

I've also used the Korin 240 Gyuto saya for a 240 Hiromoto AS Saya. It fit very snugly. The Martell 240 Western fits snugly, but is too long; you can't use the saya pin.

Thanks everyone for the info. I'll be taking a look at some sandpaper this week! I'll also try to post before and after pictures as well.
 
Hi everyone,
I was never aware the sticker glue on the sayas were such a problem. I know we switched stickers a while ago, because it was so hard to get the sticker off. Does anyone have any recommendations for stickers? The stickers we use currently don't leave residue what I can see, but it leaves a shadow... This always bugs me.
 
I can personally attest that they still leave residue; this might be what you're referring to as a "shadow." I bought these sayas during your March 2012 accessories sale. I tried taking the stickers off within a day or two of receiving the package. I still couldn't get all the residue off; you can feel it.

A sticker that doesn't leave any residue would be great.
 
I can personally attest that they still leave residue; this might be what you're referring to as a "shadow." I bought these sayas during your March 2012 accessories sale. I tried taking the stickers off within a day or two of receiving the package. I still couldn't get all the residue off; you can feel it.

A sticker that doesn't leave any residue would be great.

I'm so sorry it's still not coming off. I spoke to the manager and we will definitely look for alternatives. Apparently, we've gone through several different types of labels and it's slowly getting better. It's hard because we're putting labels on wood and goo seeps into the pores. (x___x)
 
Some sort of cling wrap under the sticker?
 
I can personally attest that they still leave residue; this might be what you're referring to as a "shadow." I bought these sayas during your March 2012 accessories sale. I tried taking the stickers off within a day or two of receiving the package. I still couldn't get all the residue off; you can feel it.

A sticker that doesn't leave any residue would be great.

I have never had a saya with a sticker, but I use "Goof Off" to get all the stickers everything else.
 
Has anyone tried Goo Gone?
See thats what we use at Korin to take residue off of other things, and it works pretty well. I don't know how well it would work on a wooden surface, but it's worth a try.
 
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