Has anyone tried to restore an old VIN tag?

[DanMcG]

I'd like to clean up the rust stained, oxidized vin tag on my 78 but can't think of a way to do it without destroying the painted black lettering thats on it. Or does anyone know if somebody makes a dry transfer decal for these B pillar plates?
I can't see restoring a truck to like new condition only to have a nasty looking vin plate. or should I just paint it body color?

 

[CSFJ]

I'm shocked there's still paint on the numbers, if the rest has oxidized like that. I guess my first step would be to look for a chemical oxidation remover, that could be dabbed on with a q-tip to prevent any chemicals running down the paint and damaging it.

 

[DanMcG]

Are these plates tin or stainless? I might give it a shot.

 

[CSFJ]

I always thought that they were regular steel, by the way they corrode. They might be a lower grade of stainless, I guess.

 

[DanMcG]

For a visual, I want to somehow clean up the tag but save or replace the the black lettering.

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[CSFJ]

Ahh, I was thinking it was just the vin strip that's up in the dashboard. Not sure what to recommend that won't remove the printed lettering.

 

[bucket]

The tags on my '77 and '78 are fairly clean, I think they are stainless. They also have original paint in the jambs still. Yours has a very thick layer of paint around it, is it possible it's just paint/primer overspray on the tag? That's kind of what it looks like to me.

I'd try cleaning the non-printed areas with a Magic Eraser pad. If it works well, try lightly on the printed areas too.

 

[DanMcG]

Magic Eraser huh, I'll look into that, Thanks

 

[bucket]

Yeah, they would be in the cleaning supplies isle at the grocery store.

 

[bucket]

I don't know what they are made with, but it's almost some type of sponge impregnated with toothpaste, lol.