Removing adhesive from granite plate

[Dan Karachio]

I have a Woodcraft granite plate for sharpening. Recently I put on some adhesive sandpaper and it worked out quite well. Accept for one thing. There is adhesive left on the plate. Any suggestions on what to use to remove this? Of course I don't want to scrape it. Alcohol maybe? This may seep stupid, but with my luck I just know that if there is some substance that will damage this thing, I will, of course, pick it.

[Mike Fairleigh]

I have the same plate. I just keep a bottle of lighter fluid (naphtha) in the sharpening area for all kinds of things, including this.

[glenn bradley]

+1 on naphtha.

[Zach England]

mineral spirits in spray bottle

[Pedro Reyes]

I've tried, mineral spirits, alcohol, both work OK. But Naptha works much better. I use it on glass and the granite plate as well.

/p

[David Peterson]

Try "Goo Gone", which is available in most hardware stores. I use float glass and sandpaper for sharpening. This stuff easily removes any spray adhesive that is left on the glass after removing the paper. It's also much less toxic than Naptha or mineral spirits.

[Matt Sauber]

I use a product called Lift Off for that exact situation. It's at Home Depot. Here's a link:

Home Depot Lift Off Link

[David Woodruff]

Acetone works well. Will not damage granite.

[Dave Beauchesne]

I had the same problem yesterday - acetone worked somewhat - WD 40 was much better !

Dave Beauchesne

[James Scheffler]

Acetone works well. Will not damage granite.

+1 on the acetone. It works well for a number of adhesives.

A few people have recommended naptha, but you should know that naphtha is a lot more toxic and a greater risk for fire than either acetone or mineral spirits. Acetone and mineral spirits are on the safer end of the spectrum compared to most of the common solvents. Denatured alcohol is pretty safe, but make sure not to get methyl alcohol (methanol), which is both toxic and a carcinogen.

[John Coloccia]

It's all good, but I prefer acetone because it doesn't leave a slick film like WD40, and it doesn't smell oily like Naptha. Wear gloves.

Especially nasty stuff comes off with MEK. Wear gloves, eye protection and a vapor respirator. These days, I only use MEK for removing epoxy primer. That'll give you an idea of what that stuff can do.

[Paul Ryan]

There are hundreds of different chemicals that will take the glue off and none will harm the granite. Personally I use brake cleaner. I always have a supply. 3m and others make adhesive removers that work well also, but I prefer the harder chemicals.

[Ron Jones near Indy]

+1 on Goo Gone

[Dan Karachio]

Thanks everyone. I have Goo Gone, denatured alcohol, acetone and mineral spirits, but I think I will try the goo gone first. I do remember acetone was the best at taking off old bandsaw tire glue. Again, was needlessly worried the granite would somehow absorb something - there was an article in one of the mags (or somewhere) recently about caring for your slab and they guy went nuts including a fabric sock and more.