Anyone DIY vinyl wrap a vehicle?

[OM617YOTA]

What's the learning curve like?

My truck is the usual 90's GM paint, aka half gone. It's definitely not worth getting a professional respray done, but a Rustoleum farmer's paint job might do it some good...................or a vinyl wrap.

Any tips? I suspect it being mostly boxy will help.

 

[CKN]

If you dont care one bit how it looks try it. Somethings are left best to those that do it everyday. This is one of them. Any imperfections will come through to the wrap btw.

 

[OM617YOTA]

If you dont care one bit how it looks try it. Somethings are left best to those that do it everyday. This is one of them. Any imperfections will come through to the wrap btw.

I promise you that I can't make it worse.

 

[SC Maintenance]

A friend of mine did. Nissan 240SX - about as curvy as it gets. Looked pretty good. I am sure patience is a virtue, and yes don't expect perfection.

Close as I have come is replacing the clear OEM vinyl fender protectors on my Xterra.

 

[IcarusLSC]

Some things to watch for: If the paint is flaky, dry cracked etc it may not bond well and lift. Best to get the adhesive promoter for edges etc too? Some materials will show everything underneath too like paint does...

 

[AZjeff]

Do the Rustoleum repaint. Likely same end result and cost less.

 

[meep]

1990s truck? I’m in the rust oleum camp, or VHT rattle can. Note, tire and wheel cleaner can wreak havoc with some of the spray paints. Supposedly you might be able to add hardener or something to the rust oleum to make it more durable.

Ive always wanted a green truck and just haven’t been able to get into one. I’d hoped my last one would last long enough that a DIY paint job wouldn’t be a problem. Didn’t work out. If I had an older car to work with, I’d absolutely try my hand at a DIY paint job.

 

[doitmyself]

Do the Rustoleum repaint. Likely same end result and cost less.

Use the Turbo can. Warm them up before use.

 

[SC Maintenance]

I painted a few cars in the late 90's - still in the days of hardened enamel. Barn painting, turned out OK.

I have since painted a couple panels in the back yard using a Harbor Freight HVLP gun. Turned out pretty good for what it was.

If you have an area to do it, I would definitely choose the harbor freight gun / rustoleum over the rattle can.

 

[OM617YOTA]

Would definitely be a HF spray gun and not rattle can, if I go that route. Would consider plasti-dip too.

 

[Leo99]

I've watched videos of someone vinyl wrapping a car. It's like art. Like watching an expert spackle dry wall. It's a skill set that I'm woefully lacking.

 

[97prizm]

What's the learning curve like?

My truck is the usual 90's GM paint, aka half gone. It's definitely not worth getting a professional respray done, but a Rustoleum farmer's paint job might do it some good...................or a vinyl wrap.

Any tips? I suspect it being mostly boxy will help.

From reading and talking to detailers wrapping a vehicle is part art form part specialty tools and skill. It's like the DIY window tint kits. Tint installers have heat guns and squeegees and loads of tricks. I don't think you'll be happy with the results.

 

[The Critic]

How many paint cuts are you ok with?

How much disassembly do you plan to do? This is what differentiates a 10 footer from an exceptional job.

 

[OM617YOTA]

How many paint cuts are you ok with?

How much disassembly do you plan to do? This is what differentiates a 10 footer from an exceptional job.

A 10 footer would be incredibly optimistic for this truck.

I'll have to stabilize some surface rust before any other steps.

 

[Cheetah-kins]

I've watched videos of someone vinyl wrapping a car. It's like art. Like watching an expert spackle dry wall. It's a skill set that I'm woefully lacking.

It reminds me of window tinting. I'd definitely want a professional to do a wrap, which of course would make it expensive. I'm planning repainting 1990 Mazda at some point - paint is in bad shape - and I'll be doing it myself. I'm fairly confident I can get something passable going, haha. One thing I think is important is sticking with the factory color, this gives you some latitude when painting, vs trying to a entirely different color and all that entails to get a decent result. But yeah. a bad wrap looks like sh*t, imo.

 

[TomYoung]

I promise you that I can't make it worse.

That’s the spirit!

 

[CKN]

I've watched videos of someone vinyl wrapping a car. It's like art. Like watching an expert spackle dry wall. It's a skill set that I'm woefully lacking.

You mean something on YouTube actually accurate? That's a miracle on to itself!

 

[Jay73]

I leave window tinting and vinyl wrapping to the experts. Good Luck

 

[jws926]

I am currently rattle-canning the bare spots on my Chevy Express , I thought about vinyl too, but have no experience with it yet .

 

[Leo99]

It reminds me of window tinting. I'd definitely want a professional to do a wrap, which of course would make it expensive. I'm planning repainting 1990 Mazda at some point - paint is in bad shape - and I'll be doing it myself. I'm fairly confident I can get something passable going, haha. One thing I think is important is sticking with the factory color, this gives you some latitude when painting, vs trying to a entirely different color and all that entails to get a decent result. But yeah. a bad wrap looks like sh*t, imo.

I had my Camry professionally tinted when it was a week old. It's been 10.5 years since then and the tint still looks perfect.