The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Vinyl wraps

I've seen some pretty impressive videos on vinyl wraps as a painting alternative to change the color of my 54 1/2 ton. I'm wondering if anyone has done this and what you think. It's gunmetal gray now and I'm looking at gloss black.

In what shape are your painted surfaces?

"Do not apply film directly to unpainted steel. Any painted surface with bare metal or rust spots should be entirely refinished."

I've seen that too, but never knew the cost. How does that compare to a prepped paint job?

You can search vinyl car wrap and get to 3M site for prices on rolls of wrap. Estimate $400 - $600 for the wrap, there are some tools and depending if it's DYI or done by specialists, the cost would vary. Also how extensive the prepping would be, as Tim said, would affect cost. They say it lasts 5 - 10 years depending on use. I can't find out how difficult it is to repair nicks or dings. I assume repainting would be a couple grand, and you couldn't just peel off the paint if you got tired of it. The youtube videos make it look pretty easy (check out the chrome vinyl BMW) but I'm pretty sure there are many ways of screwing it up.