Removing Polyurethane Bedliners?

[Apache'71]

I have '71 Fleetside that I had Rhino Lined over ten years ago. Of course the premise to do this is because this stuff is impervious to everything caustic. Can this stuff be stripped off, possibly buy having the bed acid dipped? You may ask, why would you want to do that? Well it is has been ten years since I completed my first cab-on restoration back when I was in high school, the truck has been sitting without an engine for 5 years now and is yearning to be lovingly restored again...only problem, the truck is dark green and so is the bedliner. It now wants to be pearl white...but what to do about the green rhino lining. How about spraying over it with another color? Anyone done this?

A side note about the box I found back in the early nineties...it was to be the third box during the restoration. I scouted junkyards every weekend, pealing parts off of these old trucks...(good luck finding even a truck that resembles anything from 67 thru 72 today!). My brother and I had a pretty good relationship with one of the yards, as my brother was always interested in "builders". Anyways an original 67-72 (can't remember the year) rolled into the yard and we spotted it before it made its way to be stripped, etc. It still had its camper on it that was vintage 1970s. Low and behold, opened that camper shell and bed floor was near perfect! I paid for the bed and both doors before the truck was even catalogued into their system, nor had the sheet metal been coded with the corresponding part numbers. Believe me, this bed is primo (and ten years later, still no-one is selling a complete steel panel to replace steel bed floors).

Hindsight, I should have gone neutral on the Rhino lining color...

[cdowns]

call a rhino dealer and see what they recomend or go to a auto paint supplier and see if they have a remover for bedliner

[Misled]

Apache71,
Go to http://www.vortexsprayliners.com/map/index.asp and find a Vortex dealer near you (the parent company is in Foothills Ranch). They can get you (or apply for you) a custom topcoat in a myriad of colors. The topcoat is called Granitex. It is designed for UV protection as well as being used on garage floors. It will make the surface more slippery than the regular bedliner material.

Take care,

Misled

[neonlarry]

My best guess would be soda blast or some other media blast.

[jhow66]

It will peel off-my son removed it from his Blazer floor front and back. Took awhile but peeled off in chunks.

[Apache'71]

Thanks for responses...I've called Rhino and they just laugh..."Why would you want to take it off...nope can't be done, but good luck anyways..."

My concern about being able to peel it off is that prior to my resto, I had the entire truck media blasted, inlcuded the bed interior. So with Rhino's epoxy primer and the poly, I bet it would be a bear to try to peel out...

Perhaps going with a two-toned paint sceem is my best bet.

Anymore ideas out there?

Thanks again for the replies...I will definitely look into Vortex and see what they have to offer.

[krue]

Welcome to the board from South Mississippi! I would try to topcoat it myself. Maybe black which would pretty much go with anything (but wouldn't be anything special ).

[Apache'71]

Hey thanks krue. I've been an avid web crawler for anything 67 thru 72 and I can't believe it took this long to find this site. This is absolutely amazing...

My '71 was my first vehicle and I am proud to say still own it...I will never part with it...When I moved to California four years ago, it was left behind in eastern Washington, it wasn't till I could afford a house with a garage that I had the opportunity to trailer it done. I can't wait to drive it again...it's been about 5 years now since it was running...

I don't thing Rhino can be top coated with more Rhino...anyone now about this? I just checked out the Vortex site and will have to give them a call to see if that can be used to top coat it...

Thanks again.

[truckdude239]

i dont see why you can ocat it again with mor rhino

[72MARIO]

Or even paint it body colour ?

[wibilly]

i would try an etch or tie primer like for por or just a light abbrisive blast to ruff it up a little for some bite and epoxy prime and paint to match

[N2TRUX]

It has to be compatible to some type of top coating. If the bed was damaged in a collision they would have to remove the old liner and blend in the new liner after the body damage is repaired.

No matter what it's not going to be an easy fix....

[Igotachevyor2]

i thought rhino could be repaired if you were to scrape some off they preeped the surface and reshoot that area ? if you can repair then why not respray will it not stick to it self

[tim m]

What I did was score it in strips and grabbed it with a pair of linesman pliars, and it peeled right off.