rominl

iTrader: (4)

oh and i paid myself for my custom piece i did al lthe install myself. for my front ugo lip, i custom measure and plot the whole pattern, bought the bulk material and cut it out and installed the thing myself. took me a total of 2 nights, 6 hours each (one night for drawing and the other for installing). that's the best and most professional way of doing it

some shops, if you do custom install, they just stick the whole big piece on, and cut it at the spot. this is ok but most of the time it leaves cut mark on the paint (very bad) or leave behind some unsmooth edges. quicker way of doing it, but result usually not as good

also, i used the 12mil version of the bulk material for the front lip instead of the normal 8mil xpel has. 12mil is thicker and much better protection. A LOT harder to cut but if you stick it well, still invisible. i have my WHOLE front lip covered, all the way to the sides. did it this way coz' no one would be able to tell at all

rominl

iTrader: (4)

alo another thing you guys should look out for when getting clear bra in general is the thickness. i have been sticking with xpel so far coz' they have good quality stuff (imho) and the headlight pieces are SUPER thick plastic. i have seen stoneguard and it's a complete joke. the thickness of stoneguard headlight pieces are just as thin as that for the body, how on earth is that going to help protect the headlights.

the body you need to use thin ones otherwise they will be very noticeable, even on silver cars

i got all my materials from my friend, it helps a lot when you can get tons of information

rominl

iTrader: (4)

well personally, i think 1 month is overkill. that's what recommended by xpel, and i think they just wanna play safe. but it's hard to say what's really a "good" time

about the tricks, umm..... there are tons of them, and it's different all the time. more i should probably say experience. if the shop you go is good, or better yet if they are certified xpel installer like my friend, then you are all set, they should do a good job

custom cut pieces for body kits though, that's an art, takes time and experience. i cant' say i am expert but i was willing to give time, and given my art and craft isn't THAT bad the result was ok. but you definitely need a very good and experienced shop for that

you should talk to the shop you getting the install done to see if they have package deal to get xpel as well. sometimes that's cheaper. i got my xpel from my friend. we have known each other for a long time so of course i got good deals

TLW

henry thank you very much

im going to wait till the winter to do this

great info

thanks again
-johnny-

TLW

hmmmmmmmmmmmm

wondering what the chance and cost of you making some custom pieces

might be a good side biz LOL i know i know probably cost wayyyyyyyyy to much

rominl

iTrader: (4)

haa you are welcome johnny, anything to help

actually this is labor intensive business, it's always good money. you can send over your tte lip and i do an install for you

for the record, even my dsr grille, i custom xpel the WHOLE thing, every inch was covered. that's why it's always so damn shiny

i love custom work

TLW

The TTE lip.... im sending over the whole car

hmmmmmm....roadtrip never been to the other coast

once again thanks for alll the info henry

rominl

iTrader: (4)

you are welcome always do my best to help.

EmeraldLexuSC3

Got them on my Headlamps.....great product.

Lexis11

Hey Johnny I have this on my car as well. I love it, except that I have a monir scratch in it from wellI am not sure from what but it isnt that bad so I live with it. I also can attest to this stuff protecting my bumper because I got hit last month, I thought the bumper was damaged peeled back the film and holy snikes my bumper wasnt scratched.

RMMGS4

iTrader: (5)

The #1 thing you must consider when making your own template is the stretch factor. You cannot make a template and just copy it, you have to shrink the cut out because the Xpel will stretch, especially lengthwise.

Even when installing the Xpel pre cut pieces, you need to stretch the left and right side to fit to the edges BEFORE you secure the rest of the piece down with a squeegee.

I made a template and cut out a two piece custom set for the TTE lip. Did it on Synergy's car. Never took pics tho.

Also did custom Custom cut Xpel for my car and the wifeys and a few other members as well.

Wifey's car (INDGOGRL)
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...&pagenumber=13



My CAR
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...highlight=xpel


Another install of Xpel pre-cut pieces on INDGOGRL's car
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...l&pagenumber=2

RMMGS4

iTrader: (5)

You can fill the rock chips with touch up paint and them have them wet sanded and buffed flat. When the Xpel goes on, the touched up chips will be even harder to tell. I touched up 5 good size chips and maybe 20 small pinhole chips. The small chips won't have a problem with bubbling from the Xpel install. You need to fill the BIG chips with paint to prevent bubbles. Good installers should be able to keep it from bubbling though, depending on the size of the chip.


I did the paint repair myself, but a professional detailer/pait repair place should be able to do it.

I really don't care how much the value of the car is lost when the car is sold to the next guy, because I'm the one that has to look at those chips for the next few years !

Only YOU can decide how many rock chips you are willing to live with.

Ditto

I know I have to wait a month or so, but I don't mind driving my SUV (which is sitting in the garage for sometime) while I wait for the paint to cure. The thing is, after the bumber was repainted, I can already see the paint chips after I drove it 600 miles for business. Oh, well. I can remember when my chromed bumper '79 chevy was shot by a BB pellet and it didn't even scratched the chrome. The good ole days.

lexusondubs

iTrader: (9)

does anywone know where i can get this stuff in florida iam very interested in some however i do not have the patience to install it

TLW

http://www.xpel.com/

just put in your zip for the nearest dealer