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What’s wrong with WET?
I use wet ap for EVERYTHING but windows and teeny-tiny copy.
I even use it on reflective, even tho the manufacturer says not to.
No matter which method I use I get air bubbles.
But they seem to be easier to squeegee out when wet.
I use a hair dryer to get out crinkles.
I prefer using Rapid-Tac over home brew.
It is designed to work with the adhesive.
Some things ARE better done wet, you know.
😉 love…Jill
(but I wish I could do it like Rob does, never a bubble or wrinkle!) -
6 Replies
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YOU ARE WORRYING OVER NOTHING
whot ever works for you
all i can say is Before you start a job stop and THINK how can i make this easy
some stuff dry some wet most print vinyls are designed to be fitted dry the glue isnot instant stick some new vinyls are the same most older vinyls require a fluid of some discription or other to stop them sticking to quick then the tempreture makes a differance Practice the wing of my car has had faulty prints fitted to it then ripped off try different ideas
above all ENJOYchris
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Whatever works for you is good , so don’t worry about “real mean only apply dry”:)
The washing up liquid is a surfactant , IE allows water to spread by breaking it’s surface tension and should be free from lanolin or other additives , so real cheap works well. Better than washing up liquid is photo wetting solution available at just about any 1/2 decent camera shop.
If you add alcohol , then add isopropanol (chemist) not meths (methyl alcohl is bad bad news , even for cleaning – its a cumulative poison that is ingested via the skin and its denatured ( making it taste awful and look purple ) thses are additives of which you know nothing)
There is some debate about that , some folk seem to think alcohol might aid the popping of the bubbles the glues are encapsulated in. Some seem to think it messes up the adhesive properties or reacts with glues.
We use a teaspon full of alcohol with a drop or 2 of surfactant and add a litre of water with unprinted vinyls
For printed we prefer to leave the solvent out and add a little more wetting agent so that the front of the application ,which we normally apply naked is more slippery. -
use the method that suits you best! i prefer dry, others prefer wet..
no point using dry if you get bubbles and creases. 😕
some points..Wet application:-
Very difficult to apply properly in cold weather. Impossible in frosty, cold..
Should not be used for vehicle wrapping.
Should not be used in recess work on vehicles.
Should not be used on cold glass windows, internally.
Takes far longer to apply wet than dry.(please note I say should not, not cannott)
Dry application:-
Difficult to apply on very warm days in direct sunlight.read this post, it maybe helpful.
http://www.uksignboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=4281&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0 -
Got to admit when i was a wee lad ( well 2 months ago ) i was only applying wet, then i had a few days work up in scotland with McRod who had a quick refresher with me applying dry. (it’s amazing how much you forget after your first weeks tuition). Anyway after he pushed away my fears of applying dry and reminded me on how vinyl reacts in general , i can now say that 90% of my work is now applied dry.
I learnt that if you take your time (it’s not a race) and think things through it normaly turns out great.
When i finsih my van i’ll post pics and i have a couple of others to post too. All done dry, now to the old hands here probably not a lot to it, but with a newbie like me who only ever applied dry, well i like it 😀 -
While we’re on the subject, I fitted a van livery today and for the first time this year noticed that ‘slightly tackier than normal’ feel to the vinyl. Summer’s here….It’s worth remembering that vinyl can behave very differently in warm weather to cold and it’s easy to get caught out with a load of bubbles when the weather warms up.
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Thanks for the Heads Up Big G
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