Archives for January 2020

Because sometimes you get an idea, just to let it fade away. Ideas mean little, without ACTION to back them up. ACTION is EVERYTHING—and thoughts are about as useless as a fart in the wind.

Keeping it ON TOPIC (Vinyl Graphics and Cool Decals), today we’ll spotlight some of our clients’ sent-in pictures. Some are insanely cool, al are very creative. Check out the following uses of of our vinyl decals and graphics. If anything, use the following ideas to spark ideas for a project you might have on the back burner. And FYI, the sky’s the limit, this is just a tiny sample of what is possible.

When it comes to vinyl graphics, it’s cool that they are not permanent. Some people choose to clearcoat over top of the vinyl graphics, but I tell most clients, that it’s cool not to. You can change things up once in a while. And while most decals last for upwards of 5 years or more when applied, feel free and have fun experimenting with different colors, graphics styles, whatever, to fit your ever-changing lifestyle and how you choose to express yourself in any given week, month, year or decade of your life!

Now, here’s TEN awesome clients’ projects that were sent us here at Full Intensity Grafx, and how they chose to BE CREATIVE. Because expressing yourself in your own unique way, is what it’s all about.

Well, I hope you like today’s post showing off a few of our client’s rides. These are some ideas put into action, and show that you can do it your way, whether that be clean and simple, hot and wild, or no vinyl graphics at all. But, don’t be afraid to try new things. And if you decide on some vinyl graphics for your ride, or your custom project, whatever, then hit us up. As always, we’re ready to work for you at Full Intensity Grafx

Vinyl graphics and your paint job. Removing vehicle decals from auto-body paint, and your car or truck’s window glass.

Here at Full Intensity Grafx we’ve been creating and applying vinyl decals for over 20 years. The following are accounts from OUR experience, which may or may not be typical.

First, will vinyl graphics applied to the body of your car or truck affect your vehicle’s paint job? Possibly, but why? The normal painted surface of a vehicle does in fact fade over time. Because time is a juggernaut; it does its thing. Underneath the decal, the paint will fade at a lesser rate, if at all, and after several years—more time being more of a factor (as well as sunlight, temps, and other variables your paint job has been exposed to)—might allow a difference in color intensity between where the decal had been applied, and where it had not.

Please also note, most vinyl decal material has an outdoor durability rating based on the angle of which the decal is applied. For example, a 6-year vinyl material (we use mostly Oracal 6-year proven, commercial-grade vinyl) is rated at up to 6 years outdoor durable, or longer, when applied at a 90-degree angle, plus or minus 10 degrees. Sunlight and heat will affect hood decals more than vinyl graphics that are applied to the sides of a vehicle, car, truck, boat, etc.

Examples based on my experience:

• decals applied to the sides of a car for a month or so… There’s a 99% chance no signs of a decal ever being applied, will remain on your paint job.
• vinyl graphics applied to paint for a couple years… There may be the slightest chance you will see some fading, e.g. where the decal had been, and the paint that had no decals applied to it. Sunlight fades every paint job—time is the juggernaut and does its thing!
• graphics, decals, or stickers have been left on a vehicle for ten years… They will be more difficult—and could be quite difficult—to remove, and depending on how much sunlight (as well at other variables: temp, extreme exposure, etc.) there may likely be signs that some decals have been applied to the paint. Rubbing compound and polish can help with this, or consider replacing your vinyl graphics with a fresh set that are the same size. Perhaps try a different color to add some spice! (I have many clients do this!)
• vinyl graphics have been left on a vehicle sitting in a junkyard for 30 years… Get a new paint job if you intend to restore it!

What can I expect after removing my graphics? What problems might I run into?

Will it remove my paint?

Well, do you have a cheap aftermarket paint job? Perhaps the auto-body shop didn’t prepare or sand the surface as well as they could have. Yeah, there are many places that offer these super fast, super cheap paint jobs—and this is how they are able to do such a thing. They cut time to save the money, in order to pass the savings on to you.

If the above is true, then yes, vinyl decals—which can have a very strong adhesive—could possibly remove the paint when peeled off. And, I have seen just this happen with my own paint job. Yeah, I once got one of those quick “cheap” paint jobs. It was from Earl Shieb. After letting the paint cure, I then put some flame graphics on the sides of my truck. The graphics were no bigger than about the truck’s doors, and when I eventually attempted to remove the decals, I did it too quickly and didn’t peel them off at a sharp enough angle (before I had all lthis experience… hee, hee). And you guessed it. The paint came off with the stickers! Oh, no! And underneath, there was that un-prepped surface.

So, to prevent this from happening to you… you may want to heat the graphic a little. Peel off extremely, even anally, slowly, and at a very sharp angle, away and flat against the paint of the vehicle. If you have a cheap paint job, and you remove your graphics slowly enough, and carefully enough, then you should—cross your fingers—be okay.

As for most factory paint jobs, or paint jobs where the surface has been prepped correctly, you shouldn’t have to worry about vinyl decals removing the paint of your vehicle, but I would still use caution when removing your vinyl graphics.

NOTE: Have you seen those factory paint jobs where the paint seems to be cracking off, as if, even the automobile manufacturer didn’t prep the surface correctly? I have seen this happen on older Dodge Neons, some Ford vans and Ford Mustangs (white). What vehicles have you seen this on?

Removing vinyl decals from glass.
Actually, removing vinyl decals from a car window is pretty easy. I like to use a flat razor and some water. Lightly heating the decal may help, too. NOTE: If using a heat gun, never apply too much heat. Heat guns get VERY HOT and can damage just about anything they fire at, be it glass or paint—anything!

Slowly use your flat razor-blade at a sharp angle to the glass, to get under decal. Spray some water on your window at the same time. The decal should come right off, as well as the glue!

TIP: Here’s a page on our main website with application videos for removing and applying vinyl decals.

NOTE: I have noticed—again, this depends on time, amount of sunlight the decal has received—that the glass can keep a slight variation in appearance to where a decal had been applied to it. This seems to vary depending on many factors, and I’m not sure at the moment if it is permanent. Something to consider…

Removing decals from the painted surface of a vehicle, car, truck, etc…
Removing decals from paint takes more time. It takes more time even, than applying the graphics, which can be rather simple depending on the application. To remove vinyl graphics, you’ll want to attempt to peel them off slowly, as not to remove any paint (very rare—read the above, if you haven’t) and if it leaves some glue you can remove the remaining adhesive with adhesive and glue remover. There is a really good 3M brand of this sold at most auto parts stores, and of course, Walmart. I have tried the GOO GONE, which can be found at the Dollar Tree, and it did not work well at all.

NOTE: You may want to test a small inconspicuous area on your paint job, using whatever glue and adhesive remover you purchase.

To remove your graphics, you also might try heating your vinyl graphics a little bit with a heat gun. Blow dryers don’t work well, they just don’t make enough heat. Putting your vehicle, car, truck, boat, in the sun on a warm day helps too.

WARNING: Be careful with heat guns! They’re HOTTER THAN FIRE and can damage your paint job if too much heat is applied.

Decals left on for many years will be much harder to remove. Time and patience is key. One final tip for removing vinyl graphics, and I see many people do this… DON”T use metal razor blades on your paint. It will scratch it. You can order plastic razor blades, which will not scratch your paint job. These can probably be found easiest online.

How hard is it to remove vinyl graphics from my the paint of my car, truck, boat…

• My decals have been applied for a few months… It should be quite easy, and might not even leave any glue. Still, using patience is recommended.
• My vinyl graphics have been on the sides of my truck for ten years… It could be a task, but can be done. Use all the advice above.
• Graphics have been applied to the hood of a car that has been sitting in a junk yard for thirty years… Ah, forget it!

That’s it for today’s post. I hope the above information was helpful. If you have a question, or would like to suggest other pertinent information that could be added to today’s blog post, please feel free to contact Full Intensity Grafx.

 

The simplest of posts, with the coolest of FIVE. Decals, that is!

Check out these FIVE cool decals we made, and following is an image with 1000s of really cool vinyl graphic creations we made here at Full Intensity Grafx, where we might NOT be the cheapest vinyl graphics shops, but who actually wants the cheapest? Like a handmade pair of boots, we take the upmost care and pride in creating the simplest of vinyl decals, to the most complex and difficult.

Without further ado, here’s FIVE cool vinyl decal creations, layer after layer of the highest quality precision-cut vinyl, and a little bit about them…

That’s it for today’s post. Five cool decals! Thanks for reading.

Create a family sticker for your car, or truck, or boat… almost, whatever!

Yes, it’s a cool manner of expression. No, it’s not for everyone. And not cool for everyone. And my wife doesn’t like the taste of whiskey. Though, I love it. But I don’t like eggs, but I do like fast cars, and she likes…

Meaning… this BIG world has a little something for everyone. The figurative “boats” (does this float your boat?) get floated by this, that or the other thing. Yep, everyone’s different! And like this or that and those things over there, those car decals or those tattooed arms, syrupy pancakes or mega HOT sauce, and whatever else, the world is going to continue to spin round and round just like the thousands and thousands of ways to express yourself will continue to fad (like fade, but fad) in and out. And creating a family sticker, instead of getting a tattoo or custom-made T-shirt, might be a manner of expression you find fun to advantage of—if it floats your figurative boat, of course. So, EXPRESS yourself, if ya wanna! And SHOUT!

If I haven’t lost you yet, then yes, this might be right up your alley. What a cool and unique thing it is: Creating a family sticker!

Today’s blog post will highlight a few of the cool, and sometimes really crazy, “family stickers” we have created. And while most of our pics show them applied to car windows, in fact, the family “car” sticker can be applied to just about any smooth surface.

If I still have your attention, you made it through the screening process. You might want to shout out to the whole wide world—I love my family—or, and we have created many family stickers like this, too: My family is crazy and they drive me nuts! And last but not least, “position available” (you’ll see what I mean below).

Without further ado… here’s some more pics showing how our family stickers are made, a few cool, and perhaps wild examples, and finally, where you can go to create your family sticker online.

So, that’s all for today’s blog post. Again, just another of a million ways to express yourself in our BIG world. And a mighty cool one, I might add. And I think you think so too, if you’ve made it this far in today’s post.

So, have a great one, everybody. Thanks for reading. And, BE CREATIVE! Express yourself using whatever means you’d like! And if that happens to be by creating a cool family sticker, then Lore and I would love to be your go-to one-stop vinyl shop!

 

 

 

NOT TATTOOS! They’re cool vinyl decals!

We’ve been doing this a while. Selling vinyl graphics, that is. Over two decades, actually. And our outside setup makes quite a stir, decal mania, really, and kids walking by almost always say, “Look at all the tattoos!”

Well, they’re surely not tattoos, and I don’t generally see a tattoo booth set up outside at flea markets, events and shows. But the adults generally know what they are. And I can often times hear one person asking another, “What are they?” while a companion of that person most times answers, “They’re decals, for cars.” To which—if I’m in the up-and-at-’em salesperson mood—I sometimes chime in with, “Actually, you can use them on just about any smooth surface.”

But, yep, first impression—we sell decals for cars. And trucks and vans, and boats, and… Well, there’s tons of other uses.

And this brings us to the topic of today’s blog post, which, had me going through some photos. Some were from recent eras, and some were from, well, quite a while ago. And now I shall highlight things we have created in the past—Eight Creative uses for Vinyl Decals, besides Cars, Trucks, and Boats—while you are free to come up with any project you have in mind, letting us know what you might need a vinyl decal for. Because Lore and I will be more than happy to help and advise!

So, without further typing, here we go…

That’s it for now. I hope you liked today’s post. And, if you have used vinyl decals—ours or those of a competitor—by all means, please send us a picture and we’ll share it with the world. Have a great one, everybody! ~Full Intensity Grafx