hints & tips please on applying vinyl to wheel covers?

[Shane Drew]

Mate, use a Cast material, do it dry, and do a template on the screen the size of the wheel, and then see what looks best.

Deep breathing, take your time, … should be easy peasy, take about 15 minutes if the design is simple 😛

[Chris Windebank]

I use 5-7 year or cast for these, just draw a circle on the screen at the correct size and go from there. If it is a slip on cover remember there is a bottom to it, so make sure it is the right way round when applying (dry)

[Martin Pearson]

Warren, if he goes for the stainless style the centre dish is quite a hard plastic and fairly flat so you shouldn’t have to many problems at all, the all black slip over type are the ones that you really need to do with something underneath to help support the centre that you are trying to apply vinyl to. You will need to apply heat to ensure the vinyl stays stuck down but just watch you don’t get it to hot as this will distort the plastic. As Chris has pointed out don’t forget before you start applying that you have it up the right way as there is a bottom and a top to them although it doesn’t need to be exact.

[Chris Windebank]

another point, if you are going to do dry, pop down your local car paint centre and get some tak rags, these are slightly sticky and remove all dust etc prior to fitting. Dont press too hard just a gentle wipe. these can be used time and time again

[Warren Beard]

Hi Guys

Thanks for the tips, I suppose making sure it is the right way up will be a great start.

Is there a way to find out the diameter for the print so I can start the designing before I buy the wheel cover, should I just walk around looking for one to measure?

Thanks again guys

Warren

[Marcella Ross]

Your customer or car dealership will be able to give you the diameter of the wheel cover.
They’re easy done but as mentioned make sure you’ve got it the correct way up 😀
What model of car is it for and I’ll see if I’ve done one already and have the diameter……

[Chris Windebank]

Hi Warren, its only a circle after all, you can design it at 500 square then size to suit when you know?

[Marcella Ross]

makes sense…………

last one I did was 550mm diameter.

[Warren Beard]

quote Marcella:

Your customer or car dealership will be able to give you the diameter of the wheel cover.
They’re easy done but as mentioned make sure you’ve got it the correct way up 😀
What model of car is it for and I’ll see if I’ve done one already and have the diameter……

It’s a 06′ Suzuki Grand Vitara

I have started doing it the way you mentioned at 500m so should be OK for when I get the wheel, I really wanted the size so I could get a quote for digital printed vinyl as I need to outsource it.

Thanks

Warren

[Gary Birch]

Warren
For quoting purposes I`d go with a 600mm dia design that way you know you are going to get the print at the right price. I don`t think I have had a wheel cover that has had a bigger space than that. You watch I`m sure I`ll be proved wrong lol.

Hope that this makes sense.

Cheers

Gary

[Warren Beard]

good point gary 😳

I’ll do that.

cheers

Warren

[Chris Windebank]

a discovery, i think is one of the biggest and that 580mm so price on 600mm and you will be fine

[Martin Pearson]

Don’t want to argue with anyone but I have done them larger than 600mm, only slightly I will admit but I have had a couple of customers that wanted the graphics at the very edge almost right on where it starts to curve. I think most people keep them under 600 because they use 610 vinyl and so plotting at somewhere around 580, 590 means that it fits neatly into the size of vinyl.

Chris it depends on what wheels you have fitted to your discovery, if they are standard steel wheels then the shoguns have a bigger wheel.

[Chris Windebank]

true but depends on the wheel cover itself, if it is the slip over type most start to round off after 580 ish and fitting is harder so i gues most stick as you say to under 610 Incidentally, how wide can you cut on a 610mm roll, as my machine will only do 580mm anyway

[Martin Pearson]

Chris, I have managed to cut at 608mm on a 610 wide vinyl but only in short lengths, I have a graphtec plotter and one of the options in the set up is to cut on the inside of the pinch rollers (default setting) which means if you set them fairly close to the edge of the vinyl it will cut about the 580 mark as you say but you can also set it to cut outside of this by about 10mm max which gives you an extra bit. If you then set the rollers at the very edge of the vinyl you can cut just over 600mm but if you do this then it is very difficult to get it to track straight so it is really only any good for doing short jobs !!

[Warren Beard]

Hi Guys

Getting sorted now, the customer is going with the plain black cover as his 4×4 is black and no stainless steel on it. My problem I am going to have is fitting, I don’t have a jigsaw at the moment to cut a template to fit on, does anybody have any other good tips to fitting?

Thanks for all the comments so far.

Warren

[Shane Drew]

quote Warren Beard:

Hi Guys

Getting sorted now, the customer is going with the plain black cover as his 4×4 is black and no stainless steel on it. My problem I am going to have is fitting, I don’t have a jigsaw at the moment to cut a template to fit on, does anybody have any other good tips to fitting?

Thanks for all the comments so far.

Warren

just git some corflute (real estate board) board with a pair of scissors. Just needs to be firm, not stiff

[Warren Beard]

Thanks Shane, I will do that, didn’t know how stiff it needed to be.

Thanks mate

Warren

[Colin Hibbitt]

Warren

Wheel cover can be ordered from graphityp uk for £23.00 + vat and p&p
Few sticky letters
we used 5-7yr ultramark
All they need is the wheel size which you can find on the cover and theyll send correct size

If one colour cut in one piece- lay up and either stick on wet or dry

Dry is better but if your first time when apply wet – plastic quite hard so pressure can be applied without the need of anything underneath

Allow to dry (10 min) and remove tape – job done

Hope this helps
Colin

[Alan Wharton]

Old wooden cable drum you will find laid about ind est’s iv got 2 just for wheel covers and you can tuck excess under the drum to hold in place, i also use registration marks at north south e and w to line it up, as long as you get the cover smack in the middle of your template the vinyl should go on np’s

[Martin Pearson]

Warren, you don’t need a round shaped board underneath to support it but it does help. If you just have this one to do and don’t have the time to manufacture one then any form of support will be better than none. Even a couple of bricks and a flat squarish sort of board to help support the middle. even something like the house hold frying pan !!!!

Don’t know how much you know about applying graphics but I would think about doing something like this with a centre hinge if you know what I mean by that.

I’m thinking about moving so maybe I’ll come down there and give you some friendly competition !!

[Warren Beard]

quote martin:

I’m thinking about moving so maybe I’ll come down there and give you some friendly competition !!

😮 😮 😮 Competition feeds my soul :lol1:

Are you thinking of moving to Surrey mate? what part?

I might be moving to Hampshire in the next 3-6 months, my wife is buying a baby magazine franchise for Hampshire and we needs to live there in order to qualify for the franchise. I don’t know where in Hampshire but it has to be in it.

Thanks for all the help guys, and thanks to Chris for the call this morning, I really appreciate it.

Cheers

Warren

[Graeme Speirs]

just out of interest what do people typically charge for this, I only ask I have one to do this week for the first time, seems very easy. I quoted £40 for a two colour cut vinyl job? To be honest I was thinking of having a minimum £50 order charge in the future which would cover this. Is this about right?

cheers
graeme

[Colin Hibbitt]

40quid for graphics and £80 for cover as well

[Martin Pearson]

Graeme, I think £40 is a bit on the cheap side for one of these, even a simple 2 colour job is going to take you at least an hour to design, cut weed and apply, don’t know if the prices for the covers has come down but I would have charged a minimum of £50 for a one colour job and maybe a bit more for a 2 colour job.

Warren, I was brought up in Epsom so when I read your post about the job you had to do I had a pretty good idea where you were.
I was born in London, brought up in West Ewell and Epsom and my parents now live in Burgh Heath.
I did think about moving back in with my parents when my marriage broke up but the kids wouldn’t let me move out of the area so I was only teasing you.

[Warren Beard]

quote martin:

I was only teasing you.

:tongue:

Nice place Epsom, there seems to be alot of competition around as I see so many sign van driving around. I live very close to the high street (near sainsbury’s) and have 2 sign shops close by, but the one guy is absolutely useless (more on that later)

Warren

[Martin Pearson]

Warren, i moved away a long time ago and don’t get back there very often but I know where you are. I used to live in Downs Road, our house was opposite the dead centre of Epsom.

As for bad/useless signmakers I’m afraid this industry is just like any other and there are good and bad almost everywhere so its not just unique down there.

[Warren Beard]

[quote="martin"]our house was opposite the dead centre of Epsom.quote]

Hi Martin, by "dead centre" do you mean the high street or the cemetery? 😮 :hung: :lol1:

I am in Middle lane, off Kiln Lane, by all the car dealerships 😮

Warren

[Martin Pearson]

Warren have a drive up Downs road, stop near to no 89 and then you tell me !!!! :lol1:

[Warren Beard]

quote martin:

drive up Downs road!!!! :lol1:

Is that ups the road or downs the road ? :lol1: :lol1: :lol1:

just joking, I will go past and sure I will chuckle to myself 😮

[Graeme Speirs]

sorry I meant to say they guy already has a brand new cover, Im only designing, cutting and appying the vinyl. So maybe £40 is ok?

cheers
graeme

[Lee Ballard]

31" is the largest diameter semi rigid wheelcover. Fits up to a 235/85 R16 tyre.

We do a fair few of these, prices for single covers start at £65.00 and then go up depending on artwork/colours etc, all the usual things.

We get out covers from cutlers(they supply jag and grafityp) so it works out a bit cheaper plus if you need something odd making they will try and help.

Lee