Vinly Hood Cowl Wrap

Figured I'd show y'all what came of my weekend boredom. Took the weekend off from enduro to rest some injuries and mess with the truck. Had a 4' x 5' 3m vinyl sheet sitting in my garage for 3 years so I picked up some knifeless tape and went to work! 3.5 hours later she's looking perty sweet.

Before:


After (my pupper Obi-Wan sayin' "Howdy!") :


Close up:


Overall it wasn't too bad. You can tell I'm a noob at this because there are a few small creases and the edges of the vinyl got slightly bunched. At least it got rid of some glare and looks pretty sweet! I just followed the hood's ridges with the knifeless tape and that made it easy.

 

Looks great!

 

You did remember to pull the knifeless tape liner off from underneath the vinyl after you pulled the chord right? Because it looks like the edge is bubbling since I can still see a line just inside the edge (it shouldn't have created that line unless the liner was still under there).

 

Yes. It is not under there. I pulled it and smoothed it out with a heat gun. They're barely noticable but still there.

Saw a video on this and apparently I applied the tape wrong. You have to put pressure on the outside only of the tape when laying in order for the tape not to bunch and pull incorrectly like I did. Lesson learned.

 

Knifless tape is a bit tricky sometimes. You have to go slow and almost have to hold your finger on top where its cutting sometimes when going around curves.

It should be salvageable. You'd have to use a knife on it and cut back about a 1/4in (or more and add an accent stripe outside of that would look good).

I use a new black ultra sharp olfa blade

$10 OLFA 18mm Heavy-Duty Ultra-Sharp Snap Off Replacement Blades, 10 Blades (80 segments) LBB-10B - Snap-Off Utility Knife Replacement Blades, 25% Sharper than Silver Blades, Fits most 18mm Utility Knives

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00176HQ6W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Ha7DAbHABN669

or a scalpel (just use very light pressure let the blade cut just the surface of the vinyl and it should "tear" along the cut) and maybe some fine line tape to use as a guide.

 

I tested myself doing that in a small section and cut my paint... I was barely touching the stuff too! I guess this just isn't my thing.

Below is a pic I just took of it. Maybe that last one I took before I smoothed it, but it looks a lot better now. Ignore that nasty bubble above it.. lol. It should bleed through the vinyl when it's a little hotter.

 

That looks rad!

 

Just as others said, looks good. Nice job!

 

Might copy this, looks stellar

 

Looks great!

 

Looks good! I may be doing the very same on my 4runner!

 

That looks great. I ordered this from Overlook Graphics. Waiting for it to arrive. Think it will look good on white.

 

I think you did a good job.
I suck so bad with adhesives I always screw it up that it's trash.

 

Anyone concerned about paint fade once the decal is removed?

 

According to 3M it's not supposed to damage the paint at all underneath and the vinyl itself should hold up for 5 years before it starts to fade / break down. By then i'm sure it'll have holes and scratches in it anyways.

Unless you're talking like the rest of the paint fading and the stuff underneath not fading?

 

Nice I like it. I've been debating doing similar as well, along wth the lower doors. I just gotta get the dealer pinstripe pulled off first...

 

I really like that. I want to do that as well, but cover the leading edge of the hood to protect against rock chips in the paint.

 

Sorry I wasn't clear. I am referring to the paint underneath the wrap. If the wrap was left on for a few years and then taken off, would the "protected paint" look different? Thanks

 

It shouldn't be bad to pull it off. The fresher it is, the easier! As for the lower doors; that'd be a PITA!

 

i would imagine but im not sure, i'm wondering the same and is my only concern in doing this