Signs of the Times - May 2017 - 26
VEHICLES + VINYL MARK HOW TO PLAN A WRAP The first steps any beginner should know. KISSLING is ST's Managing Editor and Book Division Director. Contact him at mark.kissling@ stmediagroup.com. RAPPING vehicles requires a combination of mental and physical abilities, which are best and most quickly gained by taking a wrap training class. The advice and hands-on practice with an experienced installer will help you develop good decision-making and physical skills in this very manual, tactile profession. Professionals also strongly recommend that installers take some time at the start of every job to plan the installation process. Too often, less experienced installers jump right in and start wrapping without first having a plan. This may cause mistakes costing both time and material. Make sure to have a plan! W WRAP TOOLS Cleaning supplies that include wax, bug and tar remover are necessary to ensure the vehicle is completely clean and free of anything that could interfere with the adherence of the wrap film. This includes washing the tires to make sure no silicone substance comes into contact with the wrap. You'll also need isopropyl alcohol and a lint-free cloth for the final clean. Application gloves, rollers and Want your wrap job to shine like this Audi wrapped by Wicked Wraps (Mukilteo, WA) with Avery Dennison Supreme Wrapping Film? Make sure it's completely clean and wax-free. 26 SIGNS OF THE TIMES MAY 2017 squeegees allow you to handle the graphic without transferring dirty fingerprints, and also to position and press down the wrap. You can also handle heated vinyl. Rollers and squeegees speed the process of pressing and smoothing the film in place. At times, gloves work better as they fit in tight areas and allow for variable finger pressure. Magnets and tape help hold the film in position. You can slide a graphic under magnets without pulling tape free. If a graphic isn't being applied to metal, then tape works. Heat guns and other heating sources are important to warm a vehicle or soften and stretch the film to help mold it in place, especially on irregular surfaces. Finally, knives or blades trim the excess amounts of graphic once it's in place.
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.