Vinyl wrapping question

Hey everyone. I have some questions for those who wrapped some of their interior pieces. I'm running into issues where it doesnt seem that the adhesive is sticking to my parts and slowly comes up. I used minimal heat if any for some the areas and tried not to stretch them very much. Most of the problems are either in the recesses around the cupholder piece and around the shifter piece. The inner radius seems to want to look pull out and wont stick. Any recommendations?

I saw somewhere that someone said once you had the part wrapped, you need to heat the piece to a certain temp to active the adhesive but I can find anything else about that. Any tips would help. Thanks!

 

I had a similar problem in those corners. Let me see if I can find photos.

 

Compared with newer and more advanced power trains, the Tundra's engines and sole transmission are prehistoric.

 

This was my first time wrapping anything. I only had a small sample piece of wrap so I could not practice on another piece first.
At first I had multiple bubbles but most disappeared over time (about 3 months now). You can see there are many imperfections all the way around. I used a sharp pin to poke a small hole in each of the bubbles, and was able to get some of the air worked out through that.


Now:

Most of them are gone, except for the small areas in the corners




I did use a sharp pin to poke each of the bubbles and work out most of the air. Then over time it kind of healed itself. The bad corners will probably not get any better. I will have to redo it at some point, but for now it is better than the chrome, even with the imperfections.

 

Thanks for the tips. And I agree, regardless it looks better than the chrome. I painted the surround on the shifter black to match everything else. That looks great. I think I'm going to try to rewrap the shifter pieces and see if maybe adding a few more relief cuts on those inner radii.

With the carbon fiber, I may be abke to get away with the small holes. It may cover up a little better than a solid color.

 

I had the same problem with my Infiniti. I think that just happens because of all of the corners and creases. Its not a huge canvas like the outside of a car or truck

 

Same problem here. Although it seems like it comes and goes :/

 

Heeeeeat!

 

One of the tricks when applying vinyl to a recessed area is to not bridge the gap. Work the vinyl into the gap without stretching it, that way the vinyl will not want to return to a flat form, as its "memory" has not been altered.

There is also a product called primer 94 made by 3M, that is an adhesion promoter. It works great, but is tricky to work with..

Any other questions, let me know

 

Most of the vinyl wrap films on the market nowadays have some form of an air release liner.....essentially the backing paper has texture that forms channels in the adhesive layer enabling the installer to work out air bubbles without poking holes in the film.

 

@Itchyjuffowup85
Look up 3M 1080 post heat. Essentially after applying the vinyl to an irregularly shaped panel, heating the vinyl will help to create a new memory for the film. The adhesive does not need to be activated.

 

Yeah I didn't check if this one had the air release, its the 3M 1080 Red Carbon Fiber I purchased through Rvinyl. On the cupholder piece I tried wrapping it two different times. Mind you, I knew this piece wasnt going to be perfect because its broken on the thin side. It just kind of crumbled apart when I was cleaning it. But I wanted to try and wrap those recesses anyways to try and understand it. I tried working from the middle and working out to each edge. (Middle meaning middle of the length of the piece. The symmetrical middle)

I though by doing that I would have reduced the tension and would be able to relax it in those points. I have 5 ft of the vinyl, so I can try it again.

I thought about getting the primer for the edges. I did watch a few youtube videos and they recommended it there too

Thanks for the help and I'll definitely let you know if I have more questions.

 

@Itchyjuffowup85 , if just the edges are curling, try and wrap around to the back of the piece, and if needed, use the primer there. The primer can leave a texture that can be visible through the film if not applied carefully

 

That looks perfect....do you have a link to the color vinyl you bought?

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/381995085815