Once the old lettering is gone, Lowe removes all residual glue and/or adhesive by going over the entire transom with a clean rag soaked in a half-and-half mixture of mineral spirits and lacquer thinner. The former is an oily, slow-to-evaporate solvent, and the latter is a much more powerful glue-cutter, although it’s highly volatile. “The mineral spirits,” Lowe explains, “keeps the thinner on the surface for a longer period of time—so it doesn’t just flash off, and it can do a longer, more thorough job.”
