besides a final wipe with a tack cloth before applying vinyl - what did you wipe it down with?
I usually use denatured alcohol - anyone else use something else?
And a heat gun is helpful as well right? I’ve only done some flat surfaces.
so what I did was sand down the deck and wipe it down. then I applied a coat of black paint. (originally I was going to lay one layer of real carbon so I didn’t want the light wood peering out from behind the dark weave)
after considering the cost Vs the benefit (a lot Vs none) I decided to vinyl wrap it instead and perhaps leave the carbon for a full deck project later. so I put down the vinyl with a heat gun.
1 Like
@lowGuido @King1017 I tried this tonight! I partially sanded my board, cleaned it with denatured alcohol, prepped with tack cloth, and then applied the adhesive promotor from 3M. Waited five minutes. The adhesion went well and the vinyl molded to every corner with little effort. I used my heat gun around the corners and at the drop just to get the vinyl to sink in.
But I wasn’t able to make nice straight cuts to finish it off, as I trimmed away the remainder, I realized that I had no idea how to do it well! All of the instructions I watched online about applying carbon fiber vinyl were for car parts, where the vinyl edge is “tucked” somewhere and not visible.
So here’s the result:
Any tips on getting a straight line with vinyl? I’m going to give it another try!
1 Like
dont worry about it. looks fine. if you really have to you can rub a small file around the edge to make it even.
1 Like
I does look good, I understand your want for it to be perfect. I used to own a vinyl print and install place a few years back. Whenever I wanted a perfect straight line that followed an edge nicely I would use a vinyl squeegee (the kind you use to help apply the vinyl) as my straight edge. I would put it between the surface that I didn’t want to Mar up and my blade and smoothly cut. There are videos out there demonstrateing what I’m talking about.
Also make sure before you start a cut to have a brand new sharp blade. Another tip would be for the size of cut it is to trim a skate deck you should try to do it one smooth cut without stopping
1 Like
@lowGuido @King1017 Thanks for the encouragement and advice! Has anyone ever tried this stuff? Seems like it might help.
Yeah that stuff is awesome.
1 Like
Yeah i have used that cutting tape on cars before where I wanted to cut the vinyl on a line that not the edge of the panel. heres a hood that I did.
but for what you are doing it is totaly over kill. just get a new sharp blade and run it down the wood. same as if you were cutting the grip tape.
1 Like
PS i reckon a mod should split this into 2 topics, one for carbon fibre and one for carbon vinyl wrap.
1 Like
Agreed @lowGuido. @onloop could we move this to a CF Vinyl thread? Sorry for hijacking the thread here @lox897.
Looks awesome @lowGuido! I tried to follow the grip-tape method, but the vinyl doesn’t have a much structure as GT, and it would fold and wrinkle as I cut. I’m wondering now if the blade I used was too dull. It was brand new as of yesterday, but I also used it to cut new grip tape for the board just before applying the vinyl.
sounds like you need a fresh blade if the vinyl is wrinkling. I buy a box of replacement box cutter blades and use a fresh one every time.
@treenutter That’s fine. I learnt a lot from here about vinyl not much about actual carbon fibre though. I’m glad my thread had a good conversation!
1 Like
Just a side note here. I know some people even go as far as to spray over top of the carbon vinyl with a nice clear coat. I think it gives a more realistic carbon fiber look. If you have some scrap it might be something to play around with.
1 Like
Snap off blades are best for trimming vinyl you want a really sharp tip to trim vinyl nicely. I prefer NT Brand red dot stainless knife with carbon blades the seven section 30 degree ones (BAD-21P). I tried clear coat over vinyl and have had no lasting luck. I have not found a clear that is compatible with vinyl.
@lox897 I know this is a pretty old thread, but I found this video about laying CF and it looks pretty doable and the results this guy gets are excellent. IMO Check it!!
5 Likes