Wrapping Door handles - Pre stretch technique

While 3D parts require you to "charge" the vinyl with memory, large panels like hoods and roofs require the exact opposite. Here, the goal is to keep the film as stress-free as possible. When done correctly, the vinyl looks like a sheet of smooth glass before you even touch it with a squeegee.

Glassing uses a cold pull of only, It eliminates "fingers" (bunched-up vinyl) and ensures that the adhesive makes uniform contact with the paint, reducing the risk of silvering or bubbles.

The Step-by-Step to a Glass

1. Place your vinyl on the panel and create a center anchor line (the "T").

2. Pull firmly and evenly away from the center toward the corners of the vehicle.

3. Once the wrinkles disappear and the film looks like a smooth sheet of glass, "drop" the tension.

4. Now that the film is flat, you can squeegee from the center out with minimal effort. You aren't "pushing" wrinkles out; you are simply locking down a flat surface.

The biggest danger when glassing is pulling too hard. Because a hood is a large surface, a 5% stretch over 60 inches is still a lot of movement.

• If you over-tension a flat panel, the edges will eventually want to shrink back toward the center.

• This is the leading cause of "dirt necks"—that black ring of adhesive and dirt that appears around the edges of a wrap after a few months.

 

If the panel is flat, your pull should be cold and minimal. Let the weight of the film and a light pre-tension do the work. Save the heat and the heavy stretching for the mirrors.