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@jakem avatar
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Vespa Sprint Sport S 125cc
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Very strange one and not sure what to do...

I had a plastic banner in front of my vespa, and some water has sat for an extended period behind the banner, on the paintwork itself... and has caused these large blemishes.

I believe it's water, rather than friction that has caused these marks, as you can see where it sat above the "V" and "e" on the badge in particular.

I've tried washing this off as normal, but there is no difference.

I live in a "hard water" area, but I'm not sure if hard water is caused by minerals in a reservoir that then come out of the tap, or whether rain itself can also carry hard water minerals.

My initial thoughts are:

I can't use anything abrasive on a matte paint, so I must try and fix this with something chemical...

Do I try some white vinegar to dissolve it? Assuming it is essentially a large water spot?

The other option I thought to is the descaling tablets that people use in their coffee machines - but I don't know if this will cause damage? And I also need to be 100% sure this is a water mark?

Any ideas / thoughts?!
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descaling tablets and vinegar are basically the same, if it is calcium a mix of 1 vinegar to 1 water and a microfiber cloth should do the job
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Perfect. I've got some white vinegar so will give this a go later.

Any guess as to how long this will take? Do I leave a soaked microfibre cloth on for a few minutes to soak?

Or should I try actively wiping it with the cloth? Thanks

(Once I'm finished, I'll be sure to hose everything down so no vinegar is left on the paintwork).
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Give it a wipe over first to see how thick and stubborn it is, the weaker the vinegar solution the longer it takes, I find 14° diluted to 7° works well
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Sometimes water will absorb into paint a cause clouding. For a first try I would park it in the sun and let it dry thoroughly.
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Im in Wisconsin and recently bought a minty fresh 2020 Sprint S150
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I've seen enough stories of how these matte finishes are easily damaged to put me off them forever.
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Microfiber will polish the matte finish.

As suggested it may be clouding.
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I personally dont think its any sort of Calcium build up. The Calcium and Magnesium levels in water are measured in parts per million. The stains we get in kitchens are often due to the evaporating water mobilizing other dirt on a surface.

That looks like a bloom to me. Another option is to pop around to a local paint shop / resprayers and ask them for an opinion, costs nowt and they may have seen the likes before on matt paintwork.

I hope Im wrong but I dont believe chemical scalers will touch it. It looks more like water has chemically combined with the polyurethane type paint. It may not be easily reversible quickly, and may just correct over time

Lastly on the subject of hard water. Your water is hard because rain ( pure water, slightly acidic from Co2 and So2 in the atmosphere has run over calcium and magnesium bearing rocks. The calcium is temporary hardness eg like scale in a kettle and drops out. The magnesium is permanent and never comes out as white deposits unless you boil it to dryness.


Rain is very similar to distilled water , only slightly acidic.
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Rain is kind of naturally distilled water by definition, isn't it?
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Veni, Vidi, Posti
2019 GTS 300 HPE Supertech E3 63,000km
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DaleB wrote:
Rain is kind of naturally distilled water by definition, isn't it?
and re-polluted as it falls through the less than clean inner city air where I live
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Molto Verboso
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What happens if you try to clean it with clear water (and a maximum of normal matt cleaner). Please post a photo when wet and one after normal cleaning when dry.

For streak-free drying of matt paints, it is best to use long-pile microfiber cloths. Never rub.
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flybynight wrote:
Give it a wipe over first to see how thick and stubborn it is, the weaker the vinegar solution the longer it takes, I find 14° diluted to 7° works well
Isn't vinegar 5%?
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Chachi13 wrote:
Isn't vinegar 5%?
When diluted and sold as a condiment - yes, usually. You can get up to 75% at most big stores for other uses.
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So true I normally buy Acetic acid 80% from Amazon and dilute it down with water for washing machine or cleaning as needed.
jimc wrote:
When diluted and sold as a condiment - yes, usually. You can get up to 75% at most big stores for other uses.
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UTC quote
Was the banner attached to the scooter, like a leg shield banner? Did you ever ride with the banner attached?
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looks like scratching and marring to me
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old as dirt wrote:
looks like scratching and marring to me
Looks like wind-induced rubbing to me.
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jess wrote:
Looks like wind-induced rubbing to me.
Do those striations correspond to a pattern in the material of the banner? I still think the clouding could be caused by water soaking the plastic surface. Try setting it in the sun for a few hours to dry it out.
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UTC quote
Photo of the scooter with the 'banner"
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UTC quote
OldSchooot wrote:
Photo of the scooter with the 'banner"
and photo of the back of the banner. suspect you will see rub marks on it as well
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UTC quote
Hope you get it figured out. FWIW I too was sceptical about the Matt finish paint. Being an old guy around the various "shiney" paints all my life. A Piaggio BV 400 in a Matt silver was the scoot I bought. After having it for almost a yr and many bugs, dirt,road grime, etc., I am now convinced it is easier to care for than conventional paint. I haven't heard of paint being infiltrated by water, but if so I hope you find a fix ( repainting a last resort).
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It's damp in the lacquer so polishing it won't work. Don't polish matt lacquer.

Heat it very gently with an old fashioned hair dryer.
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Bill Dog wrote:
It's damp in the lacquer so polishing it won't work. Don't polish matt lacquer.

Heat it very gently with an old fashioned hair dryer.
I thought of that solution too Bill, then stepped back in case the heat " fixes" the lacquer. Its certainly worth leaving in the sun for a while to see if it gets less. I still persist its worth bobbing along to a paint specialist and asking their opinion.
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Molto Verboso
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UTC quote
My vote is a permanent disfiguring of the paint due to a combination of extended contact with water and leaching of chemicals out of the vinyl that was holding the water against the paint.

Your argument against abrasion is a good one - the Vespa badge would have prevented direct contact of the vinyl right next to it.
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Wonder if scoot has disintegrated, as no news Facepalm emoticon
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eeeee bip
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UTC quote
When VW Fox's were built in Brazil they would always get wrapped too early and there were loads of them that looked just like that.

Gentle heat should sort it.
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