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  1. #1
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    Vinyl wrapping a bike?

    I have a DH bike with a raw aluminum frame. Figure this would be a great bike to try wrapping. I have a decent amount if experience wrapping large vinyl decals on some stuff at work before.

    Figure stripping the frame down ahead of time would make it easier.

    Anyone done this?

  2. #2
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    My wife wrapped her bike in vinyl because of the hideous factory paint. She started out taking her time, but it was a pia to keep is smooth on all the oblong shapes, so she went quickly and it came out good enough in the end. A few wrinkles here and there, but she did not care. We used high end 3M vinyl for wrapping vehicles. My friend does that and hooked us up with a bunch of scraps.

    It adds weight, but on DH it wouldn't matter too much I guess.

  3. #3
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    Yeah. You can get the 3M stuff in all kinds of colors and patterns. Thinking of going with a dark realtree camo pattern and then using blaze orange to replace company logos or blaze camo real tree vinyl with black or dark grey logos. Its a podium anyway and my inner trash-neck has loved this one off bike since I first saw it last year:

    http://www.pinkbike.com/news/red-bul...ly-podium.html

  4. #4
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    As someone with zero experience with vinyl wraps: how do you get it to handle stuff with really small crevices, like welds?

  5. #5
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    The Coastal Crew at one point were wrapping all of their bikes. Looks like a total pain in the ass. An easy way of doing it, could be getting one of the frame protection companies print you a vinyl kit for your bike. Check out frameskins and invisaframe. Not sure they'll do it, but worth a shot.

  6. #6
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    With enough effort and soapy water, you can stretch that shit into any bend/weld/crevice. If there a pattern and it's not designed/cut with your frame in mind, you're gonna end up warping the pattern in places.

    I wrapped most of a frame in 3M clear bra stuff once. It was a ton of work, but you could barely tell it was there. My crowning achievement was covering the head tube and junction, welds and all, with a single piece. No way I'd do it again, though.
    Remind me. We'll send him a red cap and a Speedo.

  7. #7
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    I kinda think camo might be the best since it will probably be harder to notice warping over the welds, etc.

  8. #8
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    A buddy of mine has been using this on his Yeti after they gave him a Teal warranty replacement frame. It actually looks completely legit on the bike, and he's repainted it once after it scratched. Shit peels right off if you don't like it or want to change things up. Would be 1000x quicker than vinyl wrap.
    Wouldn't do for camo though, unless you were some kind of real artiste.
    I think it's a cool option for changing logo colors. Or for spray painting a giant cock on the hood of a friends car.
    However many are in a shit ton.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by jm2e View Post
    A buddy of mine has been using this on his Yeti after they gave him a Teal warranty replacement frame. It actually looks completely legit on the bike, and he's repainted it once after it scratched. Shit peels right off if you don't like it or want to change things up. Would be 1000x quicker than vinyl wrap.
    Wouldn't do for camo though, unless you were some kind of real artiste.
    I think it's a cool option for changing logo colors. Or for spray painting a giant cock on the hood of a friends car.
    what are you talking about?
    a positive attitude will not solve all of your problems, but it may annoy enough people to make it worth the effort

    Formerly Rludes025

  10. #10
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    I am guessing he is talking about spray-on plasti dip stuff.

    http://www.plastidip.com/home_solutions/Plasti_Dip

  11. #11
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    I would think some kind of acrylic or automotive clear coat would be the easiest, and lightest solution. Vinyl wrapping a full suspension bike frame sounds insane.
    Spray painting a cock on a friends hood sounds like a great prank. I owe someone a big one and they don't park their car in a garage. 3M clear tape, right? Isn't that stuff expensive?
    No longer stuck.

    Quote Originally Posted by stuckathuntermtn View Post
    Just an uneducated guess.

  12. #12
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    This is a 100% vanity/steeze project. Not looking to protect the frame or anything. Shit is fucking bulletproof anyway.

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by rludes025 View Post
    what are you talking about?
    Falling asleep at the computer, mid-reply without attaching link.
    http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Oleu...6289/204726052
    Somehow WG beat me to it. So, yea, like he said.
    However many are in a shit ton.

  14. #14
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    If I remember correctly, the Costal Crew did a short video on how they wrap their bikes. Also, maybe check and see if any of the frame protection companies like invisaframe or frameskins, could print you a vinyl camo kit for your bike.

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by alpineadventure View Post
    The Coastal Crew at one point were wrapping all of their bikes. Looks like a total pain in the ass. An easy way of doing it, could be getting one of the frame protection companies print you a vinyl kit for your bike. Check out frameskins and invisaframe. Not sure they'll do it, but worth a shot.
    Quote Originally Posted by alpineadventure View Post
    If I remember correctly, the Costal Crew did a short video on how they wrap their bikes. Also, maybe check and see if any of the frame protection companies like invisaframe or frameskins, could print you a vinyl camo kit for your bike.
    How'd you get your concussion yesterday?

  16. #16
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    I do car wraps and vinyl installs for my job and have tried to wrap a few bikes it goes ok as long as you are not too worried about having a few spots missing. The places where there are really steep angles are hard to get a good looking seem. Wrapping over the weld will hold especially if you take a heat gun or hair dryer and heat it up after you lay it.

  17. #17
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    Ummm, seriously. Hope your brain is OK dude.

    As far as I can tell none of the frame protection companies carry kits for Knolly since they are a smaller/boutique brand. I am guessing they actually run bare frames through some CNC type machine to come up with dimensions for their vinyl templates.

  18. #18
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    Jeezus, I thought i didn't post that yesterday... Fuck.

  19. #19
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    At the risk of coming across as another brain damage victim,
    spray painting sounds a lot easier to me than vinyl wrapping. Even if you taped a couple layers to make your camo thing. Not a camo fan here though.
    However many are in a shit ton.

  20. #20
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    Yo Phish, what did you ever do about that?

  21. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by jm2e View Post
    At the risk of coming across as another brain damage victim,
    spray painting sounds a lot easier to me than vinyl wrapping. Even if you taped a couple layers to make your camo thing. Not a camo fan here though.
    Now would be a good time to rattle can it. In my experience it takes a very long time for the paint to cure. It stays fragile for so long, but eventually hardens up. The commuter bike I rattle canned took FAR more damage in the first 6 months than it did in the following years.

    If you paint now and don’t build up and ride until the spring, the paint will have a lot of time to cure

  22. #22
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    Not completely sure wtf this thread is about but I've put 3m vinal on a few bikes and it definately deals with scuffs and scratches to keep the bike looking better
    Lee Lau - xxx-er is the laziest Asian canuck I know

  23. #23
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    Was there aquaseal invovled eh

  24. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by XXX-er View Post
    Not completely sure wtf this thread is about but I've put 3m vinal on a few bikes and it definately deals with scuffs and scratches to keep the bike looking better
    edit: ok so its for vanity, getting all the wrinkles out would be hard, painting or powder coating is probably a better idea, make sure to tapeoff anywhere you don't want paint or powder coat

    Click image for larger version. 

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    Last edited by XXX-er; 12-16-2023 at 12:35 PM.
    Lee Lau - xxx-er is the laziest Asian canuck I know

  25. #25
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    I've done the 3M clear coat wrap on a few bikes and it wasn't too hard. Gotta use a lot of soapy water, but I found blasting the tough angle with a hair dryer made the material soften up and contour to harder angles. Covering all the bulges of a weld is next level and also seems totally unnecessary.

    Click image for larger version. 

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    My last bike I had a mint hunter Maine redneck decor going; some blaze orange decals and just straight up Moss Camo duct tape from Walmart cut to size. Did the trick! I will miss that colorway...
    "We're in the eye of a shiticane here Julian, and Ricky's a low shit system!" - Jim Lahey, RIP

    Former Managing Editor @ TGR, forever mag.

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