This doesn't look too tough. I'm intrigued that these guys use a torch to heat the material. That seems a bit more risky than the heat guns I've seen others use. I'm not looking to do anything as exotic as they show and would be looking for solid colors. Anyone who can recommend where to buy the material?
The 'Net is full of sources. 3M products seem to be the recomended material, but the Avery product Qwerty mentioned may be just as good if used for signage, so long as they are "stretchable". You need to do a fair amount of manipulationm of the material.
I'd like to find solid O.D. green which lacks the white strata. I've tried Krylon in both the plastic and normal versions and found that neither is fuel proof nor will it stay put on plastic for very long. I'd like my bike to be more "wash and wear" than it is with the painted plastics which require constant touchup. and this film is TOUGH.
If you want printed stuiff, nowadays you can have any pattern you want printed on the 3M material. A camo pattern of naked pictures of your evil ex-girlfriend could be paraded around town, your own likeness or practically anything you choose can be sent as a file to the wrap makers and made into a wrap. Most places I called do this for about the same cost as standard patterns, since even standard stuff like Realtree camo is printed to order from a computer file with the push of a button. As long as it's not copyrighted material requiring licensing to reproduce, the sky's the limit. Theoretically virtually any solid color could be duplicated as well, but if bthey used a white base material you'd still get that microthin, but visible strata.
That said, having worked with it the camo patterns would be more forgiving of error than solid or high-gloss types. Ronnydog's bike is a patchwork, but I defy you to notice that fact unless he points out the seams to you. And should you manage to penetrate the film in a fall a "Bandaid" could be cut from the material and wouild totally disappear.
Re: Use of heat. I initially used a blow drier on ours as recomended on several sites. While it did make the film conform more easily, heat also appeared to weaken the adhesive. Heat may be great for a fast-moving, professional installer but it only made for worse results for me. I found the same results could be acheived by pulling and pushing the product "cold", just don't plan on using your thumbs for a couple of days afterward.
! I started painting mine the day before. Had I know of this, I would have gone the vinyl wrap way instead of painting. And if my paint job sucks, or should I say, sucks real bad, then I will change course and order some vinyl wrap. Secretly I hope my paint job sucks so I cany use the wrap, but I will stay the course and try to do a good job with the paint.
