Is there a safe way to remove the "L" from the hub cap so the cap can be sanded and painted?

 

Very carefully?

 

I suppose I could tape them but I think I'd need a sedative to give me a steady hand with the trim blade.

 

you can buy hubcaps from ebay for about $15 bucs which come with removable emblems that can be removed without any kind of damage. Just mentioning this because if youre mess up removing your current once you can always spend the $15 and get the replacement caps and use the emblems that are on them. I have a DIY thread that i made a while back where i used those caps. here is the link for them.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/per...5#post10264217

As for removing the original once, it really depends on which caps you have. The construction is different for different year cars and different wheel finishes. For example, on the 5 spoke chrome wheels on 97-00 SC the lexus emblem is actually part of the cap. The whole thing is molded as one piece, so without knowing which car you have, which wheels you have and which version caps you have, its hard to say how to remove them without damaging them. I suggest removing one of the caps, look behind it, take a photo and post it here for a more specific reply.

On a side note, are you planning on keeping the stock wheels on the car? because i know most people on the forums(myself included) prefer to go with somewhat wider and larger wheels. If you plan on putting aftermarket wheels on the car your time and money might be better spent just getting the ball rolling on a new set.

anyway good luck with your project

V

 

V, thanks for getting back. Being new to this site I'm still trying to figure out how to upload photos. To answer you question(s) it is a 94 SC300. Stock wheels and I'm trying to keep everything as stock as possible. The caps are plastic and the "L' is attached by what appears to be 3 rivets or stems. Damn, I wish I could send the photos. I'll keep trying, and I'll check ebay. Thanks again, Bob

 

you can attach a photo by press the little picture icon right next to the smiley face in the quick replay bar


If im understanding correctly then it sounds like the logos are attached via plastic step that extend into the cap and the other end was likely melted into place. If thats the case you can take out the logos in one of 2 ways. You can use a utility knife to break/scrape/cut the melted plastic away until it lets go of the logo or you can use a drill-bit thats similar in size to the rivet point and try to drill it out. i also suggest taking a long piece of dental floss(the flat kind) and seeing if you can fit it between the logo and the cap. Do this to see if there is any adhesive around the edges of the logo in addition to the rivets.

 

The image uploader doesn't seem to want to post pictures. After hitting "Upload" they just go away and are not seen again. Nevertheless your explanation sounds feasible. I can always glue the stems back in once I've painted the caps and they should stay.