Vinyl striping durability/warrant

[HeavyD]

Hi everyone. I was just wondering what is normal durability/longevity of vinyl stripes are. I have looked at some of the makers and most offer 3 year warranty. I am contemplating having Bumblebee style stripes painted on. I am thinking the extra cost of painting will be worth it in the long run, versus fading, or peeling vinyl. I have never had vinyl before and was looking for some opinions. I found a very interesting video from Autotrim Design regarding warranty that would apply to all makers not just them. One thing I learned was with graphics there is the maker of the raw material, custom graphic designer and dealer/or/installer. There is actually a small chain of hands involved in the vinyl process. This makes the warranty process a little confusing and hard to claim. Here is a link to what Autotrim Design had to say;

[daphatgrant]

I plan on getting mine painted to avoid any vinyl hassle 20+ years down the road.

[lostinvt]

You can check my post in the general forum, but my car is in today having them looked at, among other things. The dealer confirmed that the stripes currently on need to be replaced, I've had my car 3 weeks. One stripe has what look like popped air bubbles, the other is peeling up.
Personally I'm going to see about getting them painted on now....
But general feeling is that a flawless installation of them will last a long time....but it's gotta be a flawless install...!

[kellertxgen5]

You're serial 589 but have only had your car three weeks? Wow!

[lostinvt]

Yea...my dealer was one of the first in NJ to get a camaro and they didnt let go of it since it was such an eye-catcher...they had it sitting in their showroom right on the street....they moved a bunch of SS models, but this was the snazzy looking one!

They let go of it when I came by finally....

[Xmicro_SS]

Being involved in Vinyl cutting and installing for many years, maybe I can lend a little insight. This is a very good question and one not brought up enough in my opinion. As someone who sells vinyl on this forum and elsewhere, as well as installing it for local customers, i can say this. Each company (Oracal, Avery, 3M, etc) all have many grades of vinyl. There are two main type of vinyl produced, CALENDARED, and CAST.

Some interesting reading:

http://www.signindustry.com/vinyl/ar...alendered.php3

A high quality CAST vinyl is 3-5 times the price of a calendared "everyday" Vinyl. If buying vinyl on the web or from a local sign shop ALWAYS ask what Make and series they sell. I use Oracal 751, it is a 7 year vinyl and there second best. The 851 is an 8 year but the cost is almost double, so it does not pay, and because of that few stock it. I also use Avery A8 which is an 8 year vinyl. Point is if you do not ask, you do not know what you are getting!!

Most vinyl if garaged, AND PROPERLY MAINTAINED, will last 10 years. The benefit of vinyl are, less expensive than paint, less permanent than paint. Allow you to remove graphics when selling the car so it is more sellable and "Generic" looking. A clean canvas if you will. You can change the look every couple years to keep it fresh and you can really personalize without killing your resale value.

You do have to be careful on the edges and corners when washing. Microfiber has a REALLY bad habit of grabbing edges. And once you dirty the adhesive underneath, you are done, time for a new graphic.

It is like anything else, it has many benefits but some downfalls. Bubbles, distortion, poor stretches are all install issues. Fading, uneven wear, and surface peeling would be a warrantee issue!!

I hope this helps, please question what you buy!!

There are people on EBAY selling vinyl preaching quality. One guy selling so cheap, about what I pay for raw vinyl. He actually brags about using Avery A6, which is a Calendared 6 year vinyl more suited for store windows............not car Graphics!!

Please PM me or go to my thread if you have any further questions or need help with a product.

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showth...d=1#post905154

[Graphics Girl]

We use only 3M or Avery vinyl which is rated for 5 to 7 years. Most body shops around here want $2,000 to $3,000 to paint stripes, vinyl stripes are around $400 installed . Vinyl stripes are also removable if later you want to change colors. Installation can be difficult because of the contour of the hood, but the trunk is easy. Call or IM if you have any questions.

http://www.bigwormgraphix.com

[DS1937]

Hey Micro_SS, you obviously know what you're talking about, do you know what vinyl GM is using?

[Xmicro_SS]

Originally Posted by DS1937

Hey Micro_SS, you obviously know what you're talking about, do you know what vinyl GM is using?

When I matched it up to all my sample books, it looked like 3M™ Scotchcal™ High Performance Graphics Films. And it makes sense for them to get 3M, especially since they buy other materials already for them.

3M material is very overpriced, you pay for the name. The Avery and Oracal stuff in the higher series are just as good, if not better in some cases, in my opinion.

[MEPoPo]

I was at my local Chevy dealer today and they had their first IOM show up today with the stripes already on and we were talking about the vinyl stripes. The shop guys are pretty happy that they are being put on the at the factory now. The dealer's body shop told they would rather the stripes on (base coat/clear coat, any color) for $300. Yes I repeat $300. I've seen their painted ones and the vinyl ones, and I am going with the painted ones for sure.

[fee5fofum]

I had my Vinyl stripes redone and painted on to avoid future problems with vinyl stripes like fading and or peeling among other problems that may occur to name a few..

Having my stripes done at the Dealership , it is covered under the same full factory paint warranty that comes included with a new car..

Here is the Thread i posted about the vinyl and painted stripes with pictures that compare them both together ..

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=40901

PAINT THEM ON , YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT LIKE I REGRET PUTTING ON THE VINYL WHEN I SHOULD OF JUST HAD THEM PAINTED ON IN THE FIRST PLACE !
That's my own opinion and probably most others will agree with me but then just maybe a few will not ...

[HeavyD]

Thanks for info everyone!

[Graphics Girl]

Whenever possible we use 3M vinyl, it is more expensive - but worth it. In years past we have had problems with Oracal material coming off - poor quality adhesive. We actually use it when people want drag racing or autocross numbers that will remove easy. Sometimes 3M doesn't have a color we need so we will use Avery. The generic material that a lot of people use on ebay is the worst - fading in a short amount of time and sticking problems.

[Xmicro_SS]

Originally Posted by Graphics Girl

Whenever possible we use 3M vinyl, it is more expensive - but worth it. In years past we have had problems with Oracal material coming off - poor quality adhesive. We actually use it when people want drag racing or autocross numbers that will remove easy. Sometimes 3M doesn't have a color we need so we will use Avery. The generic material that a lot of people use on ebay is the worst - fading in a short amount of time and sticking problems.

I have to agree with you on the Ebay Crap. I have never had issues with Oracal in many years, and I do high traffic areas in stores in New York City and many car graphics, so what is a better test. I have had color consistency issues with Avery. When it come down to it, any one of the three is the cream of the crop. You need to find a happy medium of price point (salability to client) and quality. Competing with pricing like on EBay is difficult when you refuse to sell crap. You have to educate people, because they simply do not know. Some people only see dollars. I too use 3M when it is asked for, but you need to charge for it, and they are very weak on color choices.