Vinyl Wrap Anyone?

[Jeff G 78]

IMHO, wrap is great for race cars and it's great when done clear as a paint protector, but every wrapped car I've seen has had the same issues which is minor lifting at the edges on convex panels.  Shortly after even 1mm of vinyl lifts a hair, dirty water gets under the edge and it starts looking shabby.  This will continue over the life and get worse over time.  Wrap is a fantastic temporary coating.  That's why it's so good on race cars.  All of the sponsors and graphics can be printed right on the wrap.  A good quality paintjob is still the better option for long-term durability on a street car.

[Jeff Berk]

FYI, The wrap I ended up using was manufactured by Vivid. My son and I wrapped a second car afterwards with Avery material which we liked better due to it's stretch. We made several mistakes with the 260Z and had to go with matching paint on the headlight buckets. Now that we have a little more experience, I think will rewrap the car next year in metal flake red and include the headlight buckets by using knifeless-cut tape. 

The advantages of a wrap for us is that we can change the color, we can do it ourselves, the color options and special affect vinyl are numerous. Note that the black stripe on my Z was done because I wasn't able to smooth the vinyl out without a wrinkle on the hood. I'm attributing this to Vivid's rigidity and hope to do the hood in one sheet when I go with Avery. Note that the air dam on the car was paint as was the  headlight buckets. It is definitely a two person job.

Avery offers group classes in car wrapping for around $900. At the end of the class, you get a $900 credit for their wrapping material. I might take their class next year so I can get some training beyond You Tube.

Edited June 17, 2021 by Jeff Berk

[Jeff G 78]

We used Avery at work for race cars and it did a pretty good job around complex curves.  I've always heard that the S30 headlight buckets are extremely difficult to get right.

My buddy Dean owns an IMSA team and this was one of the most difficult wraps he ever had done due to the chrome.  It wasn't as forgiving on the contours.  He said that the "hips" right below the quarter windows was all but impossible to get smooth.  The cars always looked like a Jiffy Pop container in that area when viewed up close.  The S30 has a very similar contour there, so certain types of wrap might be an issue.

I think think this one of the best looking race cars ever though (after the BRE cars of course).  It's inspired by the Gentleman Jim WWII P51 Mustang livery.

[Jeff Berk]

Chrome has a really bad reputation for durability but it really looks great on the few cars I've seen it on. Everyone wants to touch it and unless there is no dust or dirt on their finger or the car, it will leave behind scratches. I have a little chrome wrap at home to experiment with and it IS IMPRESSIVE. 

[siteunseen]

I can't remember the member on here that did one hell of job on a white 280. He did car wraps for a living and cleared his and looked great. Houston Texas  is where he is but I can't find any threads. He did such a great job and sold the car. We got mad at him.

 

[Jeff G 78]

5 minutes ago, siteunseen said:

I can't remember the member on here that did one hell of job on a white 280. He did car wraps for a living and cleared his and looked great. Houston Texas  is where he is but I can't find any threads. He did such a great job and sold the car. We got mad at him.

 

Was he the one who used a plastic fuel tank that fit an old Plymouth?

[siteunseen]

Just now, Jeff G 78 said:

Was he the one who used a plastic fuel tank that fit an old Plymouth?

I don't remember that. He would have bought the OE tank if needed, top of the line kinda guy. I'm going to find him...

[Jeff G 78]

1 minute ago, siteunseen said:

I don't remember that. He would have bought the OE tank if needed, top of the line kinda guy. I'm going to find him...

The plastic tank was brilliant.  It fit the Z with no mods.  I'm guessing it was the same guy.

[siteunseen]

I'm not losing it just a little slow.

 

[siteunseen]

Hazmatt

Denver, Colorado. I's off a few states.

 

Edited June 17, 2021 by siteunseen

[siteunseen]

22 minutes ago, Jeff G 78 said:

Was he the one who used a plastic fuel tank that fit an old Plymouth?

This is all I could find on a Plymouth tank retro. Hybridz.org.

 

 

[Jeff G 78]

I found it.  It was on FB.  The tank is for a 35 Plymouth.