Custom Bay: Press and Play

For a quick demo and more details, we stopped by Sharpline's booth at the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show, where a Ford Super Trac show vehicle, created by Performance West Group, was being dressed with a Mustang-style C-stripe each and every day for interested onlookers.

Sharpline doesn't actually manufacture the vinyl (it's usually made by either 3M or Avery), but instead is called a "converter." Only a few companies nationwide are full-service converters, which typically handle a variety of services, such as fabricating, die cutting and screen and digital printing.

The volume business, though, especially on the wholesale side for car and truck dealerships, is still in simple pinstripes, which actually carry a bigger profit margin than large graphics, notes Sharpline's Marketing Director Greg Duchinsky.

However, he notes that just about all RVs and other large vehicles don't leave the showroom without some sort of big graphic treatment.

Whatever the size of the vinyl graphics, the application process is fairly similar and easy to learn. But it's not a do-it-yourself product, as a certain level of expertise and technique is involved, which the accompanying photos show. Once you get the hang of it, though, the graphics go on pretty quickly, and your customers will be impressed with how much they spiff up a plain-vanilla pickup.

1. The tools required for installing vinyl graphics are minimal: masking tape, utility knife, squeegee and spray bottle.

2. Make sure the body surface is clean and spray with alcohol beforehand to remove grease or oil and to ensure the adhesive bonds securely.

3. Use a "center cut" method to position the graphics properly. First, tape the graphic in position and work outward from the middle, applying each half separately.

4. Follow body contours so the graphics line up evenly.

5. Here, the tail end of the C-stripe butts up against the fender flare. Any excess can be rolled around the edges of the cargo bed or door gaps.

7. Cut off the backing paper in the middle area, as you work toward the rear of the vehicle.

8. Use the squeegee to press the vinyl in place, working both sideways and up and down with gentle but firm motions.

9. Once the forward section is pressed in place, continue working toward the rear of the vehicle, peeling off the backing paper as you go along.

10. When you reach a gap in the body, cut the vinyl down the middle. For a show vehicle, wrapping the vinyl is appropriate, but for production vehicles, cutting it back slightly from the edge minimizes any problems with the ends lifting up.

11. Once the adhesive side of the vinyl graphic is pressed in place, peel off the top layer. When pulling it back, keep the top layer as flat as possible to maintain the adhesive bond.

12. If any air bubbles appear, poke them with the point of the utility knife and press the vinyl down firmly.

13. Apply masking tape as a guide before cutting the graphics at door gaps and other openings.

14. Push the edge of the squeegee into the door gaps to roll the tape around the edges.

15. There — we're done! Wasn't that easy? And it sure looks sharp, too.

Steve Temple is a freelance technical writer and photographer with more than 25 years' experience. He has served as director of sales and marketing for Shelby American and as online editor for major magazines such as Hot Rod, Car Craft and Rod & Custom.