HI all
I ordered a small sample of automotive vinyl wrap and tried it on a trailer of mine...and then I order heaps of it! Well, I have a roll of the stuff about 2m long by 1.52m wide....
Why? Well I don't like painting and I had been thinking of making some trailers and selling them....but as I don't like painting and it can be hard to do a good job of it I thought I would try using a wrap instead...
So, here is my original scratch built 28ft 1:18th scale car trailer. I had painted it with Tamiya paints originally and then later with an automotive paint (as it was getting a bit tatty).
![Image]()
You can see here the paint job on it....This was also my first time making one of thee so I did mess up with too much glue etc...
![Image]()
Wrapping one side....
![Image]()
Ta da!
![Image]()
OK so it wasn't quite that fantastic...
![Image]()
But I think it will work well. Lesson here is to ensure the surface is smooth anf flat before laying on the wrapping. I should have given it a sand first...
Then I tried it on the bonnet of a Dodge Ram...
![Image]()
This is my first custom RAM too! It's looking a bit beaten up actually....
![Image]()
So how about I give it a nice matt black bonnet?
Off comes the bonnet
![Image]()
Applying the wrap...
![Image]()
![Image]()
![Image]()
![Image]()
![Image]()
Actually there are a few creases along the sides, but I think it look good.
So to sum up:
Can you use wrap instead of paint? YES
How much preparation is required? Little or the same as for painting (need to sand trailer, but only cleaned bonnet).
Difficulty: easy to medium, but could be hard for certain shapes
Tools: sharp knife, hair dryer
Lessons:
Prepare suface before applying (be patient)
Using a heat source (e.g. hair dryer) allows you to stretch it around shapes better
What next for me?
Well I have a number of these trailers in various states, some of which could benifit from being wraped up. And I want to try wrapping a whole car too...
![Image]()
I ordered a small sample of automotive vinyl wrap and tried it on a trailer of mine...and then I order heaps of it! Well, I have a roll of the stuff about 2m long by 1.52m wide....
Why? Well I don't like painting and I had been thinking of making some trailers and selling them....but as I don't like painting and it can be hard to do a good job of it I thought I would try using a wrap instead...
So, here is my original scratch built 28ft 1:18th scale car trailer. I had painted it with Tamiya paints originally and then later with an automotive paint (as it was getting a bit tatty).
You can see here the paint job on it....This was also my first time making one of thee so I did mess up with too much glue etc...
Wrapping one side....
Ta da!
OK so it wasn't quite that fantastic...
But I think it will work well. Lesson here is to ensure the surface is smooth anf flat before laying on the wrapping. I should have given it a sand first...
Then I tried it on the bonnet of a Dodge Ram...
This is my first custom RAM too! It's looking a bit beaten up actually....
Off comes the bonnet
Applying the wrap...
Actually there are a few creases along the sides, but I think it look good.
So to sum up:
Can you use wrap instead of paint? YES
How much preparation is required? Little or the same as for painting (need to sand trailer, but only cleaned bonnet).
Difficulty: easy to medium, but could be hard for certain shapes
Tools: sharp knife, hair dryer
Lessons:
Prepare suface before applying (be patient)
Using a heat source (e.g. hair dryer) allows you to stretch it around shapes better
What next for me?
Well I have a number of these trailers in various states, some of which could benifit from being wraped up. And I want to try wrapping a whole car too...
mg: my eyes!
