Want to Put a Vinyl Wrap on Your Vehicle? Here’s How You Can Do It Yourself

Do you want a new look for your car, truck or boat? You may want to consider a vinyl wrap. You can either have this done by professionals for anywhere between $1,500 and $3,000 or you can do it yourself. Truck wraps, car wraps and even boat wraps are available and give you an easier way to change the look of your vehicle and then change it back when you are tired of the look. Maybe that camo wrap you picked out looked great in the fall but now that its spring, you want a different look.

If you are trying to advertise a product, wrapping cars and trucks can be a more effective way to go than what can be produced by even the best sign company. Banners are stationary, cars and trucks are on the go and more people can see them. People also pay a lot of attention to cars with a wrap. Camo may keep people hidden in many settings but a car or truck with a camo wrap will get attention.

Pick the right material. Like many projects in life, when you are wrapping a vehicle with that camo wrap, you get what you give. Get the right vinyl. Yours should be no more than 2 mm thick. This will make sure you get a finish on your vehicle that looks more like paint than a covering. These may be thin but they are durable and can last you up to five years. If you know the wrap is not going to be kept on the vehicle too long, say you are doing a specific campaign, you can get cheaper vinyl that will not last as long.

Clean the vehicle. Before you want to apply anything, and this is the same thing you would do if you were going to paint your vehicle, you need give it a thorough cleaning. When you get your vinyl, you should read the instructions from the manufacturer about how to prepare the vehicle for the camo wrap or your other design. Your fist job is to remove any dirt or dust. If there is grease or oil or even wax on the vehicle, you may want to use something like Xylol or Prep-Sol to get that off. Make sure the vehicle has been completely dried before you apply anything.

Prepare your vehicle for the wrap. If you are applying a camo wrap, you may not care as much about the pattern. If you have a marketing campaign, you might need to use some software to show you how you will lat the vinyl. Before you apply the vinyl, lay it over the vehicle and see how things should be laid out.

Get your equipment ready. You will need:

• A tape measure.
• A squeegee.
• A tool to get rid of air bubbles.
• Vinyl wrap tape.
• A propane torch or heat gun.

Apply your vinyl wrap tape. You put this around the areas where you are not going to want the vinyl to cover such as the edges of everything. Some people lay down the vinyl and then use an exacto knife but using the vinyl tape before will give you the same kinds of cuts and is more specific and none of your vehicle will be scratched. Lay this down where you want the vinyl covering to end, say on the hood and around the windows.

Put on your vinyl. Start with the hood of your vehicle. Start at the center and work your way out. You can prevent wrinkling by taking your time and using the squeegee. Apply the vinyl to the rest of the vehicle. This can be done alone or with help. Take care, do it all slowly and you will not have problems with wrinkles. If you start to have these, use your heating tool to get rid of them

Take off the tape. This tape should come off easily and just cut through the vinyl. It is called razor tape for a reason. You should try to take it off slowly and try to not break the tape as it cuts through the vinyl.

The main thing you need when you put a vinyl wrap is patience.

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