Another obscure skill learned

Guys, I thought I’d share a little trick I learned yesterday with the help of the nice people at Auto City Classic. I am working on installing my windshield for my XL convertible and wanted to do the Carlite etching before putting the glass in for good. The new windshields always seem to have a very conspicuous marking on them (unlike the side glass that seems to print the required information discreetly on the outer perimeter where it is hidden when installed). In the past I’ve just lived with this imperfection, and ended up with windshields with two etchings on them in different spots. I tried heat, solvents, scraping with a razor blade. Nothing seemed to remove the stubborn and durable black transfers, so I was literally stuck with them. I reached out to Auto City Classics to see if they had any tips for removal of these. I understand they will date-code your class for you on request, so I thought maybe that had figured out a way to get this done. Well, they were nice enough to share with me that muriatic acid is, in fact, the secret solvent for this ink. Well, I just happened to have some on hand, and what do you know, it worked great. They also mentioned that a faint “ghost image” would still be there, but would polish off. I used some super duty rubbing compound, and removed all traces…check it out…






…and now for a “proper” etching…



Now, I know most guys don’t care about such things, and I also know it is federally mandated that this information is printed on glass. I have exactly zero times looked at a glass etching and felt a feeling of safety and security wash over me once I knew it was AS1 or AS2 glass. I feel like these logos and fonts just don’t fit the esthetic of a vintage car. Some day another weirdo may come along who is interested in removing one of these, so here’s to you, future traveler, glad I could save you some trouble.