HOW TO - Clear Knobs

[Kodeblue]

First, they just pull straight off. Add them to a pot of water and constantly check and water as neccessary. ABout every 15 or 20 minutes remove the knobs and peel back the vinyl as far as you can and re-add to the water. Continue this until you have removed all of the vinyl. It will probably take you a couple hours of boiling. When you have removed all of the vinyl, use your thumb and rub off any excesspieces and glue. The knobs will look crappy and have a white haze at this point. Once you are satisfied with getting everything all off, spray them with a couple coats of clear coat and watch them shine. Here is a pic of mine.

[zegoldfish]

Nice subtle mod. :thumbs:

[AaronGAGT]

Couple hours of boiling isnt really that necessary. I just left mine in for about 20 minutes and just pulled. Just gotta use some good ol elbow grease :thumbs:

[Kodeblue]

Only reason I left them in that long is because it made it easier for removing and it also made it easier to pull more of the glue off as well.

[vinniGT]

wow...i didnt boil and had one heck of time with em

[Bumpin2000GAGT]

that is pimp, thanks for the info, gotta do this one, but do they look red when they are done or are they really clear? they look red in the pic.

[Kodeblue]

They are red.

[Bumpin2000GAGT]

damn, wish they were blue, would go well with my color scheme i got going. oh well, i'll find a way.

[AznGA]

Originally posted by silverbullet00
They are red.

Do they even light up?

[AznGA]

Originally posted by silverbullet00
First, they just pull straight off. Add them to a pot of water and constantly check and water as neccessary. ABout every 15 or 20 minutes remove the knobs and peel back the vinyl as far as you can and re-add to the water. Continue this until you have removed all of the vinyl. It will probably take you a couple hours of boiling. When you have removed all of the vinyl, use your thumb and rub off any excesspieces and glue. The knobs will look crappy and have a white haze at this point. Once you are satisfied with getting everything all off, spray them with a couple coats of clear coat and watch them shine. Here is a pic of mine.

Thank you for posting this for us. What exactly is the clear coat you sprayed?

[Kodeblue]

Originally posted by AznGA
Do they even light up? Yes, they light up at night when the lights are on.
Originally posted by AznGA
Thank you for posting this for us. What exactly is the clear coat you sprayed?
No problem dude. The clear coat is in a spray can and it says clear coat right on the can.

[Jagey]

Originally posted by AznGA
Do they even light up?

yeah, the entire knob lights up to match the orange of the rest of the dash lights

[kong]

you can lightly spray a coat of paint (any color) on them and they still shine. however, i used some dupli-color metallic paint and some ground coating. i now have metallic blue knobs.

[Bumpin2000GAGT]

got any pics kong? that sounds like what i want to do. :thumbs:

[kong]

not yet. i have one more knob to prep and paint. however, it should be done soon. drop me an email and remind me to get some pics. xiong_kong@yahoo.com

[BigTaters]

I did the clear knob thing, they look sweet ass, and do as the first guy said and let them soak good and take your time or the glue will stick. I was impatient with one and had to use the dremel brush to get some of the glue off. then i cleared them and they look sweet at night and in the daytime... One drunk guy in the back seat was complaining though lol...said they were too bright.

[IanGT99]

Yeah, I did mine a few weeks ago. Definitely easier to just let them boil for a long time and pry them off as you go along. Don't force it, cuz it gets really messy if you don't. Just make sure to scrape off all that glue afterwards, then put a good layer of clear coat on them...they're sweet lookin'

[96GAGTVenom]

A little trick I tried and had great success with on getting the glue off was soaking the knobs in finger nail polish that contained acetone. The glue came right off

[BigTaters]

yah i forgot to mention that, i took them to work and soaked a rag in acetone then wiped off the remaining resedue.. Acetone works wonders lol. I was thinkin of sprayin alight coat of blue or some other darker colored paint over the knobs. just to alter the color a bit, not sure if anyone has done it, id like to see what it looks like at night. The red is nice but i wouldnt mind seeing if another color would look better.

[Kodeblue]

The white part of the knob that you see at night before you remove the vinyl, the part that shows what setting you have it on, I painted that blue before I clear coated them.

[nelsong6969]

can you do this to the 94 knobs? if not can i put newer knobs on?

[96GAGTVenom]

my car is a 96 and the knobs are the same as on a 94. Under the knob it was not red but white. What I have done is primed, prepped, and painted that white plastic and I now have a 2 green and 1 white knob which looks very good I think.

[nelsong6969]

but i want mine to be clear so can i put some knobs from a newer grand am on? and where could i get some new ones?

[96GAGTVenom]

I'm not sure but I believe the knobs from a later model should work. You can pick up knobs at your local Pontiac/GM dealer. They should run you about 10 bucks each.

[Kodeblue]

Originally posted by nelsong6969
but i want mine to be clear so can i put some knobs from a newer grand am on? and where could i get some new ones? The Alero knobs are supposed to be clear if I am not mistaken.

[Bumpin2000GAGT]

can anyone confirm that the newer alero knobs are clear?

[Kodeblue]

2001 and 2002 are both clear. Not sure on the '99, '00 and '03. I heard the '99 or '00 was greenish blue.

[Kodeblue]

1999 Alero - Greenish/Blue
2000 Alero - Greenish/Blue
2001 Alero - Clear
2002 Alero - Clear
2003 Alero - Clear

[1993Grandamgt]

question..... that new dulicolor anodizing paint. since it kinda gives you a clear color finis will that work? i was thinking of buying some 2001 alero knobs and taking vinyl off and use that paint on it to glow a different color!

[Kodeblue]

If it is the paint I am thinking, it will not work. that paint requires a black coat for base, then the duplicolor paint. Maybe try a toy model store for some model paint. I think it is transparent and maybe you could find that color. Nice idea though.

[1993Grandamgt]

well that dupicolor anodize paint is meant for chrome finishes to be underneath it. that wya you can see the reflection of the chrome from under the colored anodized paint! so i know it should be a translucent paint. am i correct on this?

[Kodeblue]

D you have a link for this paint? Maybe I am not thinking of the same stuff.

[1993Grandamgt]

ummm. no i dont. i saw it at Walmart as well as on speedvision. i would guess if you went to duplicolors web site you could find out the info.

[1993Grandamgt]

www.dupicolor.com

and it is called metalcast. i am pretty sure we could use it but again i could be wrong.

[DirtyTexas070]

ok so im confused..... sounds like a really cool little thing to do, but these boards confuse me.... when you take the vinyl off its a clear-white color? so why are they red if all you put on was clear coat? i have a 94, will this work? what color will they be?... sorry im kinda out of it today i cant follow all these posts....

[Kodeblue]

Originally posted by DirtyTexas070
when you take the vinyl off its a clear-white color? so why are they red if all you put on was clear coat? They are not white/clear, they are red.

[STRMurphy]

I tried the boilng to no avail... came out real messy.... but I found that my Dremel did it ten times faster, used both brushes and the big soft pad... just gotta be careful cause it will cut through the plastic... had to make a few repairs and a lot of sanding, but they look damn sweet now :)

[Ishan]

ok.. my scheme is everything is red in my car.. so, i'm extremly excited to try this tomorrow! great mod idea man!

Edit: didn't want to double post

tried this, and got.. well.. im disapointed. boiling did nothing, i don't think that this works with a 95.. not just vinyl covering it..

[IanGT99]

Boiling won't make the vinyl fall right off. It just softens the glue behind it and the vinyl itself so it's easier to work with. Clearing the knobs isn't exactly a piece of cake. You really have to work at it. In fact, it's a royal pain in the @$$, but the end results are well worth it, I think.

[RamAir]

Has Anyone tryed using a Heat Gun for removing the vinyl? I was just wondering if that would work better than boling as u can get more heat and probably break down that Crazy GM Glue

[FireItUpXTC]

tried a lot of different methods of getting the vinyl off the knobs all of them worked to some degree just took A LOT of patience. I tinted my tails that day too and had some xtra clear coat and tint so i put a *light* coat of tint on the knobs and clear coat. It gave the knobs a nice solid dark red look and turned out really good. give it a try :thumbs:

[AznGA]

I boiled the knobs for an hour, still can't get it off.

[Kodeblue]

I boiled the knobs for an hour, still can't get it off.It should be starting to peel off at least. If so, keep boiling.

[Rich]

you can lightly spray a coat of paint (any color) on them and they still shine. however, i used some dupli-color metallic paint and some ground coating. i now have metallic blue knobs.

so do they glow blue?

[codester3388]

Does the clear knob thing work on a '97 grand am se? B/c i tried it and i started to peel it back but there wasn't any red in it except that little line at the top of the handle part. Its nothing but a white plastic covering over the red part. Do i have to get different knobs frm the dealer?

[CLEV]

Do the knobs just pop out because i pulled pretty hard and mine are really on there and i dont want to break anything.

[Kodeblue]

Do the knobs just pop out because i pulled pretty hard and mine are really on there and i dont want to break anything.
Yes, they do just pull off. Gice them a good tug, they'll come off.

[Lynch]

i have the same question as codester3388, any results on the 97?

[Kodeblue]

I am not too familiar with the '97's.

[codester3388]

hey guys.... the red plastic piece on a 97 can come off with a little force. I looked at it and the red part is only held by a little glue and so i used that little nail file that slides out from a nail clipper. just put it in that little slip where the back of the actual part of the knob u hang on to and slide the file inside the slit under the knob.and pry it up

http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=13084&stc=1

[Lynch]

like you said, it took some effort but i got it looking good. thx for the info

[mwolverines]

every1 is talking about their clear knobs. my 99 se has red knobs. i am changing all the lights to green. does anyone know where to get the clear backs or where you can get already customized colored ones??

[Kodeblue]

every1 is talking about their clear knobs. my 99 se has red knobs. i am changing all the lights to green. does anyone know where to get the clear backs or where you can get already customized colored ones??
All the 99+ Grand Am's have red knobs. If you do a search, there is some info for using clear knobs off a sunfire or cavi I think.

[jer_stud56]

Ugh well it looks like mine are pure plastic - they're gray and don't seem to have any inside color. :(

[STRMurphy]

If you read the beginning of this post I gave detailed info on how to clear the knobs. It works with pre-99 GA's as well... Just read it a bit, I gave the part numbers and all so you can order them off of gmpartsdirect.com, best prices around

[STRMurphy]

Oops, sorry about that last post, I thought this was the post I had started... in the HOW TO section look for a post ablout blue HVAC knobs, I put in all the info there... can do it any color...

[Rich]

whoa strmurphy your back.

OT:were you ever able to change the color of your odomater?

[Hodge]

hopefully we'll see how it looks, i only did 1 today and im waiting for the clearcoat to dry. im a prefectionist so it might have taken a little longer than normal haha.

[STRMurphy]

I havent fixed the odometer thing yet, havent had any time to tear it all apart again and fix it, Im pretty sure the LED's are just in backwards though, as even blue should shine through.

[grandam01]

i found that with some plyers and worked from the back to the front as the front has a small dinky piece of rubber and time helps, really it does