Is apparently harder than I thought it was going to be.
I want to apply it to the area above the doors and a bit down the c-pillar on my 4Runner to prevent kayak induced damage while loading and unloading. The area is curved and not a uniform height. I tried making a paper template of the area and quickly realized that I lacked the talent to put three feet of tape on in a single go.
I'm now telling myself it doesn't have to look good, it just has to protect the area. The new plan is to do more manageable 6-8" segments.
What about doing a rough cut and trimming the excess once you get it down into the door jam and window. Can you apply with soapy water like vinyl?
Following. Never tried it myself, but the whole paint protection thing is interesting.
I have used similar tape and used the soapy water method and then trimmed after the fact. You can precut small pieces but as the piece gets bigger it gets harder to cut it to fit pre application. Companies that sell kits for specific cars can sell you precut vinyl tape that fits but for your app I wouldn't think so.
I have a large precut vinyl thing on the hood of my Disco. It is made to reduce glare, but does a better job of hiding the awful repainting job somebody did on the aluminum. It was not too hard to put on.. but was also a large flat surface
This is adhesive sticky type tape. I don't think soapy water will work. I'm going to have to see of there are some tutorials online for this.
Apparently I am supposed to use a slip solution of soap and water. I thought that would keep it from sticking.
Ebay is great sometimes, but there were no directions included with the tape I bought.
In typical fashion, I started trying to use it without actually knowing what I was doing, thinking I was clever enough to figure it out along the way. Nope. I should know better at my age.
Could you just Plasti Dip the area? If you damage the Plasti Dip just peal off and re apply.
Try Youtube for how-to videos. Rough in the size from a template or material itself, keep in mind the film is much more flexible when the backing is removed. Once satisfied w/ the piece use a soap/ water mix in spray bottle on the body surface and lay the piece on less backing, it will contour much better now. Trim any needed excesses off now by just lifting a corner. You can maneuver the piece around for best position with the soap solution. Once satisfied w/ the fit lift one end (top/ bottom or left/ right) depending on how manageable it is and spray a alcohol/ water mix on body surface and 3M film. Start w/ small section first. This will wash away the soap mix, it will begin to stick now but still can be moved if necessary. Squeegee out any fluid or air bubbles in that section, a bondo applicator works well. Repeat the alcohol/ water spray on other sections of the piece. Squeegee again. Ain't bad once you get the hang of it.
I never did the alcohol thing when I put the big swath of black across my Rover's hood. I just let it sit all day in the hot sun.
Also.. most "bubbles" will shrink and disappear on their own. If they don't.. a fine prick of a pin will let the water out without ruining the vinyl
