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I am looking at taking off the stock Harley tank badges and doing the black outline of the logo instead. It should look great on my bike as the motor is all blacked out. Anyone have any tips on the process? Don't really want to screw up the denim paint.
I think that's the exact king of thing I'd bite the bullet on and take it to someone who does that kind of thing for a living. So I wouldn't screw it up.
I am looking at taking off the stock Harley tank badges and doing the black outline of the logo instead. It should look great on my bike as the motor is all blacked out. Anyone have any tips on the process? Don't really want to screw up the denim paint.
Hi,
If I was going to do a De-Badging. I'd get some waxed dental floss, the thick kind. Use a long piece and get it under the lip.
Try to keep it taught as you drag it and pull it under the badge. When you get to the end of the string, throw it away. Get another piece. Start at where you left off at but go the other way like you are sawing a log. When you get to the end of that piece, toss it and get a new piece. The reason why you get new pieces is the wax, you want new wax on the dental floss at all times.
Keep repeating until it comes off.
Some people used fishing line but I think dental floss is better.
Once you get the Badge removed, use naphtha and a soft cloth to clean the glue off the tank. It will not harm the paint.
Last edited by Mongo1958; Oct 16, 2025 at 05:56 PM.
Which of your bikes and year model are you talking about? A picture would be helpful to better understand what type of OEM Harley-Davidson emblem you're talking.
By saying "badges" I assume you mean the raised emblem type badge like the ones used on automobiles. The ones on a newish Harley tank are glued on (maybe they all are).
I am looking at taking off the stock Harley tank badges and doing the black outline of the logo instead. It should look great on my bike as the motor is all blacked out. Anyone have any tips on the process? Don't really want to screw up the denim paint.
I did this to my 24 SG In vivid Black. The only problem is you will need to use something like goo gone and a lot of rubbing to get all the glue off. And if I am right if you rub denim paint it becomes a little shiny, I may be wrong but ask people who have denim paint. Be careful and good luck
I just did this recently. Was a massive pain. I have industrial gray denim paint on my 18 RKS. I used a heat gun to get the emblems off. Then I taped off the area around the residual tape to reduce the chance of polishing the paint in a large area. Then using the heat gun I removed as much of the big stuff as I could.Then gently rubbed the remaining glue with goo gone on a microfiber. Came out decent in the end with only a very light sheen.I went old school with the decal I put on
here is my NEW 25, little heat, plastic scarper and an eraser wheel...
emblem gone...i would be very cautious with the denim finish...those finishes are designed to be rough and absorb the light as to look matte....
any rubbing (even micro fiber clothes)...can polish the areas and cause a shiny surface
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Tank Emblems
