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If you want to restyle your ride's interior and give it a fresh new look, Vinyl Dash wraps are some of the best options you can choose. At Rvinyl, we carry only the best wrap brands available today, ensuring you receive durable vinyl wraps designed to last many years. You can always trust us to supply you with the perfect wrap for your creative vision. And if you're looking for some tips, we got you covered. We asked Justin Pate of The Wrap Institute to create a video that covers the process from start to finish. You will want to assemble the following tools before beginning:
The first step is to get a good read of the area. The next step is to really get a good idea of the outside edge, as this is where the excess film will be cut away. Next step is cleaning, taking rapid prep, and spray it onto a highly absorbent microfiber towel. First clean the main surface area. Then once this area is cleaned from all dirt and oil, place the squeegee in a microfiber towel and the hard edge can be guided along the outside area. And this will get a nice, deep clean, which is absolutely essential for long term hold. So do a 360 around the outside and any raised objects in this case, the handle on the cover. Now take the Primer 94 stick and run on the outside edge. This will help the material bond extra strong to these areas. Be sure to put a nice, thin coat on this outside area and also on any exposed edges. Keep in mind that this needs to take 10 to 15 minutes to dry properly before the install. Be extra thorough and we're done with the application. Be sure to throw it in the trash right away.
Take the piece and note that is directional. This means the carbon pattern should be uniform from top to bottom and left to right because this piece is a perfect rectangle. This just means it should be one inch across the top evenly. Remove the liner about three to four inches. Lock it in place on a flat section, then remove the entire liner. Now with the liner removed, pick the material up and lay it as flat as possible, it won't lay flat perfectly because of the handle at the top. So squeegee it onto the flat section just to the handle, then tuck the material in and squeegee to the outside. Once the material is locked in place, be sure to tuck it safely into the outside edge. This means the material set and you can for now focus on the raised object. Tuck the material in with the soft side of the squeegee, then rotate the squeegee and tuck it in even deeper with the hard side.
Taking a knife angle it safely into the base of the handle and make one cut from left to right. Gently pick up the piece and because it's curved on the edge of the handle towards the other side, tuck the material in one more time using a finger and the squeegee. Once it's tucked in safely to the base and the corners cut it to the halfway point. Very carefully. If done right, the tip of the blade will hold the race object nice and clean, so there's no chance of cutting the cover itself or the handle. Taking extra time to make sure it's tucked properly is absolutely essential to get a good, clean finish. Now, gently pick it up one more time and relax the material around the raised object, the cut of the base is called a relief cut, which takes the tension away for the film so it could be relaxed around the base. Then the remaining portion of the section can be squeezed onto the surface.
Pick the material up from the side and tuck it very deep into the outside edge. This will ensure the full coverage and it'll make the cutting process much easier. Here, the base of the handle is cut away in the exact same manner as it was on the other side. Always be sure to cut in the right direction, so it feels awkward. Change your body position. Cut low and flat, so there's no pressure on the knife. This will help it stay in position. Remove the excess film, then take the squeegee and tuck it firmly into the base.
Next step is to cut away the excess film that is bridging over the cupholder area. This is a different style of cut that was done around the handle. This is because one side is solid and the other side is what is called empty. There's a big open space. Therefore, the angle of the blade should face in towards the edge. This will help cut the material flush to the top edge, which means it can't get lifted over time.
We now move onto the empty edge underneath the armrest. The excess film is cut away in the exact same angle as the cupholders. But because the object itself angles in as well, it should be cut twice. This is what's called shaving, so angled the blade in twice for a complete flush cut. Removing the excess film on the outside is next because the film earlier was tucked firmly into the scalp and uniform on all sides. It can be safely cut away with a very sharp blade, with the tip of the blade running in the groove. So a good tip is to work in stages, especially here. Work one side cut the excess film away, tuck into the groove, work the next side and so on. This leads to good quality and safety. Once everything sealed then you're good to go.
The final step is to make sure all edges are done, so a 360 on quality, make sure there's no bubbles and add heat to make sure all the edges are tightly sealed.