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Detailing with vinyl stripes?

19K views 30 replies 17 participants last post by  PaVaSteeler 
#1 ·
I'm wondering how those of you with decals deal with them when you polish and wax your car. Tips & Tricks?

I'm considering getting side stripes added.
 
#2 ·
Quick wax is safe on vinyl. I haven't used paste wax yet, as my clear coat still looks new. My car is black but garage kept, when I do eventually wax, I'll use painters tape to cover edges of stripes. Wax will eventually gum up the vinyl.


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#3 ·
Are your striped matte or gloss? If matte, keep any type of polish, compound, or cleaner wax away. I use Turtle Wax Ice Liquid and use it on everything including matte and gloss stripes as well as the plastic and rubber. No white residue and super easy to use.
 
#4 ·
When I had my stripes installed last year, the guy actually included a small bottle of 303 protectant and said it's one of the best products to keep them protected from UV rays. He's been doing vinyl for a lot of years, so I'll go by his recommendation.
 
#5 ·
I think the OP is actually asking about how best ensure no damage happens to the stripes when they polish and wax the car.

In my experience it really depends on if you are using a machine or doing it by hand and how much you trust yourself or want to risk.

If you are using a machine, so a Porter Cable, Flex, Cyclo, Griot's or anything else - I would definitely tape off the stripes to protect them. Even the professionals fully tape all plastic, glass, and rubber when they machine polish cars. It takes up-front time but will save you tons of time on the back-end of the job. Taping ensures that product is not flung onto areas or deposited into time crevices/cracks that will take hours to pick out.

Plus if you by mistake take a machine polisher over stripes they may be ruined unless you want to spend a lot of time trying to work out the abrasions that happen. I am not sure how successful this would be either as I have only seen a youtube video on it but no shots were really close up enough to tell the final outcome in full sunlight.

If you are working by hand, so polishing and waxing by hand, then taping is also recommended if you don't have a steady hand. But if you are really careful then you can get away without taping the car. I have done this several times without very many issues. There is always somewhere that you will find some polish or wax in a crack or crevice and have to dig it out no matter how careful you are.
 
#6 ·
I machine polish up to the edge of the stripes, taping off the stripes might pull off the stripes and it's a lot of work if you have a lot of stripes. I've just clay barred my stripes on a new 2014 Shaker and no issues doing so. Turtle Wax Ice is the best to use on the stripes.
 
#8 ·
If you have the correct tape, low tact, and pull the tape off at an angle and fairly slowly then you will not have any issues if the stripes have been applied correctly. But if you use the wrong tape and/or just grab the tape off and jank it upwards you will most likely have an issue.

I highly doubt that professional detailers, who make a living at this stuff, would tape cars off, including vinyl, if the tape could damage it. So as long as the taping is done correctly then you should not have any issues. It is easier to tape then try and dig out dried clay bar, polish, wax or another product that gets stuck in and around the edges of the stripes, plastic, decals or other parts of the car that it is very easy to get in and hard to see until you are completely finished with all the hard work.

As for clay barring that is different from what the OP was asking. You can definitely clay bar stripes as long as the clay is not filled with contaminants and you use a lot of lube on it. If you don't use a lot of lube then the clay can "stick" to the stripes, and this includes the "factory" vinyl that comes on some of the cars.

The issue will be in finding the correct product to protect the stripes after they are clay barred. You need something that will not harm or damage the stripes but that adds SPF and seals the vinyl. Adam's has a couple products and a number of people use 303.
 
#7 ·
It is my understanding that wax, polish, sealants, etc. will dry the vinyl out over time resulting in fading and eventually cracking. Now vinyls today are more robust than in the past but it will depend on just how robust the vinyl used is and we need to remember that the manufacture used was probably the lowest bidder and to be the lowest bidder the product may not be the highest of quality.
 
#19 ·
Dual Action and Random Orbital polishers are a type of polisher that will prevent you from putting swirls or burn through your clear coat. These are the best machines when you are learning to use polishers.

Rotary polishers are much more aggressive and you can do some major damage if you use them incorrectly.

If you really want to learn more about polishers my suggestion would be to visit some good detailing sites. A couple that have a lot of videos and offer good advice are autogeek.net and autogeetonline.net, adamspolishes.com, chemicalguys.com and autopia-carcare.com. Each of these sites offers various videos, how-to guides, forums, etc.

As for products that can damage the vinyl I am not sure. I know that the vinyl can get dried out, faded and damaged by the weather and the sun and by bad products. I was told to never apply wax to our modern vinyl but to seal it. I personally use Adam's sealant for this while others swear by 303 Aerospace Protectant.
 
#10 ·
I use Meguiar's Quick Wax and Quick Detailer. Who knows if they're helping, hurting or doing nothing to the vinyl stripes since my car is less than a year old (Built June 2014) and it spent December through February (and some of March) in my garage at home. I certainly don't want to dry them out as "Lonestar" suggests may happen..... Has anyone whose car has been around longer than mine had any issues with their vinyl stripes fading and/or cracking ?? There's an older yellow Daytona Charger in the parking lot at work whose vinyl stripes seem fine. Not sure whose car it is but if I find out I'll ask them what they've used (if anything) and post back here.. :thumbsup:
 
#22 ·
Do you guys use anything special for all the black parts (ABS plastic rock chip guard?) on the very bottom of car?
Thanks!
Any plastic can be protected by a sealant. You also want to add some UV protection if possible so the rocker panels keep their dark black color, as you will find posts from people where these have faded. Adam's Super VRT is great for this as it has SPF35, dries quickly, is water proof, and won't sling product off. You just wipe it off with a MF if you get any on the paint by mistake. I use it on all my trim and it does not need to be applied every time you wash the car. You can also use 303 Aerospace on the rocker panels to seal them.
 
#21 ·
Do you guys use that bug remover stuff from turtles on the front bumper or is that a no no...
I personally do not use any "special" product for removing bugs. If there are just a few and I do not want to wash the entire car then I just soak with detail or waterless wash spray, with a MF cloth held under to catch the drips, wait a minute for things to loosen and then wipe upwards and at an angle over the bug. The majority of the time everything comes off in one go.

Now if the front of the car is caked, and I have been there before on a couple of cruises, then this means a trip to the local car wash to use their high pressure foamer and water on the front to remove the majority of everything. Then I will follow up with the same process as above.

If there are any really hard baked on guts left over then you can a bug & tar remover. I have a plastic razor blade that I find works really well and will not leave any marks on the finish.
 
#20 ·
Like others, I use "painters tape" on my factory R/T stripes, when applying Liquid Glass polish. 4 1/2 years, and the stripes still look new.


I use "303" on all the black plastic, but haven't used it on the stripes yet.


For getting fresh bugs off, I spray heavily with "detail spray" and use a micro fiber towel to wipe off. For BIG dead bugs that are really stuck, just a little "PrepSol" on a rag, then detail spray.
 
#24 ·
You might want to consider using this on your stripes after they've been installed and have cured for a couple of days.

You trace the edges with this pen, and it seals them tight against the car body. If your hand shakes or you "color outside the lines", all you need to do is put a little mineral spirits on a microfiber and wipe the excess off your paint.

My vinyl guy suggested this to me, based on the sharp points my graphics and script contain; after 7 months of weekly hand washing, buffing, DA paint correction, even the fine tips of my hypocycloids, script or stripes haven't budged, been lifted or marred.

Amazon.com: Sealit! Pen: Automotive





 
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#27 ·
I have a random orbital buffer, i have to find some 303, as i have used it on my trucks weatherstrips and i did it once year & the truck has been garage kept since new and the rubber STILL looks and feels new. Lets say you treat your stripes ( shakergraphic stripes ) with 303, what happens IF you get wax ON TOP of the 303 treated stripes either older treatment or same day as wax day ?
Bert
 
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