By Mark Fair
Posted on Friday, April 19th, 2024
Not long ago, one of my regular real estate customers called up and told me she wanted to replace and update the graphics on her car. The new design had recently been created by an ad agency. “The Hat Lady” knows the value of high impact vehicle graphics, and I had done some work for her in the past.
Materials:
Oracal 810S masking and application tape: $27
Mineral spirits for adhesive removal: $8
High performance vinyl and application tape for small copy and “hat band”: $22
Sub out automotive paint job to body shop: $1480
Total materials: $1537
Time:
Create workable file from ad agency art: 3 hours
Remove old vinyl and adhesive: 5 hours
Cut masking and apply to vehicle: 8 hours
Transport vehicle back and forth to body shop: 1.5 hours
Final touch-up to paint imperfections: 2 hours
Total labor time: 19.5 hours
I started this project by removing the vinyl from an earlier job. Then I masked off the graphics and subbed out the automotive painting to a local paint and body shop. When the vehicle came back, all I had to do was touch up a few imperfections in the paint and add some vinyl secondary copy.
Mark Fair’s shop, Mark Fair Signs, is in Montgomery, Alabama.
This appeared in the November/December 2007 issue of SignCraft. While the prices have been adjusted for inflation, they may not accurately reflect current pricing for such signage.
Create file from ad agency art: 3 hours
The customer’s agency-supplied files needed some attention before I could begin cutting.
Remove old vinyl and adhesive: 5 hours
I used a heat gun for this part of the project.
Cut and apply vinyl mask: 8 hours
Careful planning and masking were critical to getting this project right. After painting, the mask for the primary copy would be removed.
Transport vehicle to and from body shop: 1.5 hours
This step includes dropping off and picking up the vehicle, and meeting
with the body shop manager.
Final touch-up and vinyl application: 2 hours
After I brought the vehicle back to my shop, I touched up some imperfections in the paint and applied the secondary copy in vinyl film.
