Vehicle Graphics: Mini Cooper

[John Simpson]

I’ve noticed that Peter, it can be too hot for vinyl lettering, so how does such as Shane go on in oz?
I’m pleased i have a decent size unit to keep vehicle warm in winter & shut the doors to keep out the sun in our short summer.
L J

[Peter Normington]

lj.
Just out of curiosity, is that Duxford in your avitar?
Peter

[John Simpson]

Nice one Peter, yes, had a brilliant day there 3 weekends ago, not far from my sisters.
Been past it on the M11 hundreds of times over the years but never had time to call in before.
L J

[Robert Lambie]

humid is somtimes worse than hot mate, sticks like, like, sticky stuff 😉 can be a pain but as long as in the shade i tend not to have any bother. ive seen me applying graphics to a piping hot bonnet in direct sunlight. not easy at all… & i dont make a habit of it. 😀

i have one of these to do very soon, the garage the guy just bought it from wanted to supply the graphics but miss applying the difficult bits 😕
so hes given me the joy 😕
the one in the picture i think is a much older version of the car…

[Peter Normington]

Rob,
I hope you’re not trying to show off cos you think you’ve got a bigger one! 😉
Peter

[Robert Lambie]

quote Peter Normington:

Rob,
I hope you’re not trying to show off cos you think you’ve got a bigger one! 😉
Peter

:lol1: :lol1: :lol1: :lol1: :lol1: :lol1: :lol1: :lol1:

[Dennis Van Der Lingen]

looks like a nice job.

one thing i don’t see:
left and right of the foglight: why did you cut something out and not aplied over the bulges?

i’ve never done a mini so i’m not sure if it’s a bulge

[Peter Normington]

dennis, it is not just a bulge, but a deep narrow reccess as well. The stripes (supplied by bmw) wil not conform enough to follow the contour.
Earlier models did not have this shape.
Peter

[Dennis Van Der Lingen]

ah ok i get it now.

considering the vinyl it’s a job very well done :appl: :clap2: :drums:

[Stephen Morriss]

Nice job job Peter, did you say the stripes were supplied by BMW.

I hate doing stripes, I find it hard to keep them looking parallel over the curves etc, I may be getting a Mazda to do soon and the bonnet is all shapes at the front.

Robert, I did a mustang a few weeks ago, main of it’s ok but the fuel cap is right in the middle at the back and the stripes come down right next to it. That and the con-caved shape of the back make it a pain to keep them parallel.
Let us know how you get on.

Steve

[Chris Wool]

last week in the sunny weather had to letter a black car.

so i hosed down with water just before fitting as i was fitting wet any way cooled it down a treat.
i think to hot is worse than to cold.

chris

[Shane Drew]

quote L.J.:

I’ve noticed that Peter, it can be too hot for vinyl lettering, so how does such as Shane go on in oz?
I’m pleased i have a decent size unit to keep vehicle warm in winter & shut the doors to keep out the sun in our short summer.
L J

LJ, as Rob says, humidity is worse than a hot day in many ways. When you have a hot day and it is high humidity, that can be a real trial.

I usually follow the shade too. Always work on the side of the car that has no sun on it. If there is no way out of doing a hot surface, I use lots and lots of soapy water, and do a wet application. I’d rather do it dry of course, but doing it dry on a hot surface is a nightmare.

Good job on the stripes Peter. I know how difficult this actually is. I do a regular contract on motorhomes here, that need 90mtrs of 6mm and 45mtrs of 12mm stripes over the whole vehicle. Takes me 8 hours on average. It is easier to get a 6mm line straight than a thick line tho, as a thicker line is less forgiving. 😮

[Roy Roffey]

i done one of those today, don’t you find it a pain in the a**se to get around the wipers??

[Peter Normington]

Funny that, I just done another today as well!,
Wipers dont seem to be a problem, its only one that is in the way, Just remove it, the plastic bit underneath and the plastic grills and its not a problem.
Hardest bit is getting the stripe on the bonnet and grill to appear straight
BMW stripes are cut parralel, When I make my own I put a slight arc in them at the front of the bonnet so they actually fit much better.
Peter

[Keith Nilsen]

Heat is a killer for application! Good thing it is not a major ongoing factor then for us in Jolly England, rather a freak of the weather!! When I worked in Africa we had an aircon storage unit for the vinyl to keep it nice and chilled. Worked a treat!

[John Harding]

Ok this is an old thread but I have a similar car to do tomorrow, lots of questions for peter or anyone else with experience of this, do i need to use cast or will calendared be ok how do you do the stripes, start one end or hinge in the middle of the panel, or some other method, two stripes together or apply seperately, wet or dry?

Thanks for any advice – John

[steve geary]

I don’t know if this is the best way…. Peter seems pretty experienced with these, but iv’e done about 5 or 6

I use Cast and apply wet with no tape. Spray it up on the table as i’m removing the liner, then apply with a felt. I’ll mark the car with pieces of masking tape before i wet it.

Most times i’ll guess at the arc, and cut one from black calendered vinyl, lay it on and make adustments. Or lay a piece of paper on and draw the lines, then measure and guess. I don’t have a big scanner.
You may get much better advice, but this has been working for me… so far.
Last one i did only took about 2 hours start to finish, but there were no major obstacles..

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[John Harding]

quote :

Most times i’ll guess at the arc,

steve are you saying you cut these as curve stripes rateher than straight to counteract the contours of the panel? I think this is what peter refferred to also.

i was sort of hoping to run some straight lengths off the plotter and fit, but I guess youre saying this wont work out is that right? 😕

John

[steve geary]

yes, that’s what i meant, but on the car i’ve shown, I only had to do that on the trunk lid. When I layed the vinyl over the edge it bent to the inside, because of the compound. So I cut one straight out of scraps, layed it on and measured on the car where it needed to be. Usually get it right the first or second time.
The stripes on the hood and Roof are straight and went on quickly and easily.

[Brian Little]

had the same prob Pete ..today tried to letter a van out in the heat …thot id cool the panels down but it was so hot it was as if the vinyl was melting (hot)

[Marcella Ross]

Is that the new Mustang Steve?

[Dave Bruce]

John I have done only one car stripes, Cavalier, cut all straight and applied dry no problems, just did lots of measuring from the edges, and put markers(bits of masking tape) along the edge of the app tape once positioned.

Hope this helps

Dave

[steve geary]

quote Marcella:

Is that the new Mustang Steve?

Yes.. it’s an 05.

[John Harding]

Thanks Steve/Dave feeling confident now, if I get a curve ball thrown in there a discreet cut and shut will suffice im sure 😉

John

[Phill Fenton]

If you find the stripes you are applying run “out of true” due to the curvature of the bodywork all you need to do is get a mallet and give the bodywork a few good hard thumps in the opposite direction to where the stripe is running “out of true”. It’s a bit hit and miss – but eventually you will get the stripes running straight

Whenever the boy racers come around here with their 1.2 litre Saxo’s asking for stripes to be applied I advise them that this is the method I use to ensure their stripes go on straight.

They usually don’t bother me again 😕

[Phill Fenton]

After my disgraceful comments last night – and just to prove I am not “Anti Stripes” here is a picture of my beloved Mondeo (I really wish it was a Mustang – hence the Stripes).

I also bet Andy some time ago that my car had stripes and said I would post a picture just to prove it

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[Andy Gorman]

That’s spooky. I was about to post a picture of a girly mini I did this morning. Wow Phill, I bet that goes really fast now. 😉

Anyway, here it is, notice the lovely colour scheme (!)

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[Simon Kay]

Ah yes,

‘get out of my way stripes’

😀

[Phill Fenton]

I was going to put “Phill & Alison” on the windscreen but the Neds around here simply don’t get the intended irony of it all 🙄 (I also have a “baby on board” sticker on the back. as well as a nodding dog on the parcelshelf :lol1: )

[Shane Drew]

quote Phill:

I also have a “baby on board” sticker on the back. as well as a nodding dog on the parcelshelf :lol1:

Phill, you sound like the type of guy that my dad warned me about 😮 😛

Don’t tell me you wear a hat and driving gloves too…

[John Harding]

Thanks for the advice guys did the job yesterday charged £140 two stripes plus two numbers on door, took about 4 hrs, 5 with interuptions, what would you guys have charged and why?

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[Hugh Potter]

blimey, this could be troublesome for me too,

a pal of mine has asked me, on behalf of his local mini club to do a quote for ‘supply only’ of stripes , onion jacks and raf targets on request, the latter two are no bother i think, but after reading this i’d better get it right before i quote,

[steve geary]

quote John Harding:

Thanks for the advice guys did the job yesterday charged £140 two stripes plus two numbers on door, took about 4 hrs, 5 with interuptions, what would you guys have charged and why?

John,
You’re price was spot on with what i would have charged. I do everything time and materials. I have low overhead, and around here that would have been about 80% of what my competition would have charged. I think it would have taken me about the same time. some people on here do stuff a lot faster than me, though.

Nice job!

[Peter Normington]

Sorry john,
missed this due to hols.
I always do stripes dry, as I do most stuff, just works out quicker for me.
Most doubles can be cut straight, and pre-spaced on the plotter. I also cut a few reg marks down the centre at the same time, to aid aligning with a line that I stretch from front to rear.
for the long bits, roof or bonnet, I tape one half of the tape in place, front or rear, then hinge from the centre. as for the bonnet contour I apply the ‘flat bit’ first, then remove the app tape and backing, before appliyng the contoured bit. (If that makes sense)
If you have something with a comlex bonnet curve, a good tip is to apply app tape, use a strip of magnetic as a staight edge to mark the line with pencil, remove the app tape, place on vinyl and cut by hand.
If this is to late for your job, it may help someone else.
Peter

[Peter Normington]

Sorry again, missed the second page.
job well done John,

Charge wise, I think you could have gone a little higher, but dont know your local market.
Peter

[John Harding]

Hi Peter

Hope you had a good hols, like the advice useful for the future anyhow!

As for the price always felt I could be a little stronger on price we are opp sides of London town so shouldnt be any real difference

John