Wrap tips & tricks?

[Kojak_9x]

Car owner orderd full wraps for our cars.. Any tips or tricks on applying them? Do you guys cover the rivets on doors and quarters? Apply them with panels on or off the car.. ect.... THANKS....

[usafracer]

Go to www.racinggraphics.com. They have a how to video.

[TALON75]

If your in cold weather your gonna want to crank the shop heater or have a propane heater focused on the side you are working on, it goes alot smoother when the surface and material is warm. My wraps come in three vertical strips about 3ft wide each so one guy can apply it, the hard part is getting the overlap to match up . I always have the body mounted and go right over rivets no problem(bolts I remove because they create too much void) go back with a heat gun or torch and shrink it around, it takes a little practice and the same technique is used for wrinkles that can happen . the only special tools needed are a foam sqeegee, and a sharp xacto to trim all edges about 1/8" off to keep it from peeling . one other thing is to make sure your surface is clean AND the wrap and backing paper are clean, any debris will show up but not from a distance . it takes time and patience, I really don't like to have an "audience" when doing them, but now that I have done about fifteen of them in the last two years I'm pretty good at it, actually did a demo in the mall for one of our car shows, but my first few wraps were a bit rough . good luck

[Kojak_9x]

So since the vinyl is supposed to be "air releasing" you just apply them dry? Thanks for the replys...

[TALON75]

Yes, I always apply mine dry, although I have toyed with the idea of using some solution on the hood and nose( the large horizontal surface can be difficult) . I work the material vertically on the sides and it goes pretty smooth, air bubbles work out of the material with ease, the trick is to not crease the material, once you do that you have a bad spot, I always just try to minimize the badspot then heat it to make it even smaller . If you are using high quality wrap then you can just apply it dry with out problems .

[dirtyd2]

The air release works really well when wet, actually most wrap companies say get them wet. Also most take out rivets (leave one to hold body in place) then replace afterwards, also masking tape them in place with backing still on to line up overlap it helps a ton getting it lined up before trying to stick it, TALON is right about the squeegie they work better for wraps than the regular plastic ones, good luck.