Roof Rack Restoration with 3M 1080 Vinyl & Dlux

[swanicyouth]

When you have a 14 year old vehicle as a daily driver that lives outside and you have the detailing bug, there is always something to fix or restore. When you first get it - the focus is always on the paint. Once that's sorted, you may want to go to the trim and the wheels. After that, little things always seem to pop up that catch your eye.

One thing that has been bugging me for a while is my roof rack. Originally it was heavily oxidized. So, I polished the paint. Problem fixed. Well, it was a temporary fix. As, this paint is thin, single stage, and takes a lot of UV abuse on the roof. Over the last year the paint degraded and eventually failed to the point it was peeling off in strips.

See pics:











This is obviously bad. It's so bad I would notice little strips of paint chips blowing all over the car when I was washing it or driving it. Something had to be done. I could just remove them for good - but I kind of like the way they look. I looked into replacing them - $400+. I looked into powder coating them - another few hundred.

Then I started to learn a little about 3M vinyl for wrapping parts. The two most common types are the Di-Noc & 1080. I was looking into getting some parts wrapped from Mark Wu from Wu Wraps for my BMW. This guy seems to be the be all end all of parts wrapping. If you look at his work online it's pretty amazing.

From what I found out, Di-Noc is an older vinyl that is mainly suited for interior parts. It's a little harder to work with than 1080 - and 1080 seems to be more durable and also seems easier to work with. I believe 1080 is warrantied by 3M for 3 years+ on the outside of a vehicle. So, I decided to try and wrap these roof rack rails with 3M 1080 vinyl myself. I ordered 6' x 3' of this vinyl up from eBay. Cost was $38 delivered - a lot less than the several hundred for the other options of restoration. The wrap comes delivered wrapped up like wrapping paper in a hard cardboard tube.

In reality, I wasn't sure if this project would turn out well. This stuff is not as easy to work with as it would seem - especially when wrapping a 3' long part. Especially if this is your first time ever attempting anything like this. As soon as you peel the vinyl backing off - the wrap wants to stick to everything - including itself. But, I figured for $38 I don't have much to loose. If it didn't work - they would already be stripped down for powder coating.

Here is a 3M promo video of them using this stuff wrapping a whole car:

http://youtu.be/EgFlEKwNeOQ

As for what finish of the vinyl to get - there are several. Black carbon fiber seems to be the most popular - but I decided not to go that route. However, I did order a sample of it:



The above is 3M 1080. One thing that is cool about this stuff that is not apparent via photo is that it actually has a texture to it. It's not smooth like a sticker - you can actually feel the texture you are seeing.

So, carbon fiber seems to be the most popular vinyl for automotive use. But, like I mentioned, there are many others. Instead of carbon fiber, I choose to go with 1080 black brushed steel vinyl to mimic the original factory black paint. A sample of that:



I made a quick video comparing the two on how you can actually hear the difference in the texture:

http://youtu.be/7vczDSqLwr8

This vinyl is pretty amazing. There are videos on You Tube of crumbling up the peeled vinyl in a little ball - and then heating it with a heat gun and stretching it to it's original shape with no sign of creases or crumbling.

Here is an example video:

http://youtu.be/-z3mb85nxdY

So, while it's tedious, when your working with it - mistakes can be corrected. The vinyl can be unpeeled in areas, and re-stuck several times without issue. A heat gun helps when working with this stuff, as it stretches and softens quiet easy with very little heat to help fix creases and mistakes as you go along.

Anyway, back to the process. I started out by breaking down the roof rack rails into their 3 primary components: mounts, rails, and rubber inserts. All 3 pieces were getting some restoration. Since I was doing this - I was going to do it right and go for the best looking roof rack I could get.

Disassembled:



Once disassembled - it was time to sort out the peeling paint on the rails. The paint had to be removed so the wrap would look smooth and professional. Instead of sanding or grinding it off, I picked up some of this stuff:





All the cautions on the label, the nasty looking death skeleton on the label, and the fact that if you ingest this stuff you pretty much die a miserable death; gave me the gut feeling this stuff should work pretty good. I can't stress enough how nasty or dangerous this stuff is. I got a dot on my skin and it burned like hell. So, if using this product wear heavy leather gloves and work in an open space with ventilation. Safety glasses would probably be a good idea if your prone to getting stuff in your eyes and if your the type that would mind being permanently blind.

Anyway, you pretty much just paint this nasty gel on and wait 15 minutes and the paint starts bubbling off:







It's not as easy as it seems though. The paint still sticks. The best way I found to get it all off was pressure washing it off with a dirt blaster wand (which makes a huge mess) and then going over it with a Scotch Brite pad. Even after 3 go rounds of this process, there was still stubborn spots that required sanding. The paint seems to want to come off in layers. Maybe the layers it was originally painted in? Basically it was a nasty, dirty, miserable, disgusting, horrible process to get every iota of paint off these things. A friend stopped by while I was doing this in the garage and thought I was crazy to even bother with this.

After they looked like this:





After they were stripped I cleaned them with Meg's Degreaser and Eraser. It was time to start the wrapping. When your going to do this, especially if your working on a big part like this, you need a large clean space to work on. Because, when you peel the backing off the vinyl, everything and anything anywhere near you will want to stick to the sticky side. So, I measured my rails and cut out my vinyl with about an inch extra on all sides. I cleaned an oil drip tray with Meg's Degreaser so it was perfectly clean and used that as my working surface on a table:



Here is a closeup of the brushed steel finish of the vinyl:



I have no pictures of me doing the actual wrapping, as to have accomplished that I would have needed 8 extra arms. I bought a decent amount extra of the vinyl in case I messed it up - I could just try again. Well, it's sufficient to say mistakes were made, vinyl was crumpled and stuck to everything (including my pants and my hair), BUT, somehow....I managed to achieve this via my first attempt with each rail. The wrapping didn't come out 100% perfect, but it did come out about 97%+ perfect. You would almost have to examine it with a microscope to see any imperfections. Being this was my first go around with this stuff and I was wrapping such large pieces, I'm extremely happy with the results.

Here are some pictures of the wrap after it was applied. This is before DLux was applied to the rubber. As, you will soon see what a difference that will make.







So, while I was at it, I figured I would restore all the rubber and plastic bits with DLux. Once I started, I realized coating the actual vinyl wrap with DLux would enhance it's appearance, add extra protection, add killer beading and hydrophobics, and make these rails pretty much maintenance free for at least a year - except for washing.

So, I scrubbed all the rubber and plastic pieces in the bath tub with Tuff Shine Tire cleaner and a pad brush to strip them nude of all oils, dressings, silicones, polymers, and waxes. Then, I sprayed them with Eraser and dried them. After that, I coated the whole shebang with DLux:

Right trim piece has DLux - left trim piece clean and nude:



Top mount has DLux - bottom mount is clean and nude:



Here is everything wearing DLux everywhere:



DLux just added so much gloss, shine, and bling to the whole thing. In person, these parts look deep, glossy, rich, and black. They are just glowing. They look better than the brand new single stage matte paint they came from the factory with. This stuff is so much better than any dressing or "trim sealant". Besides the fact it's super glossy and darkening, it's pretty easy to work with. I know from past experiences it also will last at least a year. It beads water as well or better than any coating. It won't run when it rains like dressing and it's basically a once & done process. Dirt doesn't stick to it and I believe it offers UV protection.

DLux makes maintenance washing faster because you just have to wash these parts - not protect or dress them. Who feels like applying dressing to roof rack pieces after every wash? That's a huge PITA. It's almost impossible to apply anything to the rail rubber pieces without getting it on the rails and it's almost impossible to apply anything to the rail mounts without getting it on the paint. I'm for doing it once, doing it right, and forgetting about it. That's DLux in a nut shell.

Here are some more after pics with the DLux applied and then after I re-assembled the rail bits:





My roof rack is so shiny with DLux that you can actually see a reflection in the black rubber:





Everything built back up:









Just try to remember, I was starting with this:



So, I was so happy with how this came out. The 1080 vinyl is a winner as long as it doesn't peel. This shouldn't be an issue, as the edges are sealed under the rubber strip in the center and under the mounts on the ends. 3M does make a "primer" for their vinyl for tough to stick areas, but I decided that would likely be too sticky and complicate the process - so I choose to negate it my first try.

1080 is a great way to restore any part with fading or failing paint that is beyond what wet sanding or compounding can do. You can even coat your entire car in it if you are skilled enough. I know I am not skilled enough for anything like that. But for these types of pieces, this stuff is a viable alternative to:

1. Spray paint: Just sucks. Never looks as good as you expect and never is as durable as you expect. Runs, drips, and heavy orange peel are par for the coarse.

2. Powder coating: looks great and lasts forever but cost major dollars. I believe this is not an option for plastic pieces as well.

3. Body shop type re-spray: again looks good and lasts, but costs major dollars. Paint may not match perfectly as well, if your going for that look.

4. Just leaving it alone: Just sucks. Having something on your car that annoys you is just annoying. This is the worse option.

The DLux really made these pieces stand out and offers durable protection. It's an A+++ product and is a class leader. If DLux offers this much bling, it makes me want to try CQuartz and just start coating the whole world with DLux. But, that will have to wait until the 5 gallon drum is available...

Next time I wash the vehicle I will re-install these parts and post a few roof shots of them installed and the water beading of DLux.

[allenk4]

Great Project

Well done

Wonderful review

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

Outstanding work Steve! I enjoyed this article over my morning coffee. Thanks.

[Charger12]

Awesome job,looks killer

[HUMP DIESEL]

Very well written and also great work. I will keep this one in mind, seems like I come across roof racks all the time.

HUMP

[dcjredline]

Those things look like a million bucks!! WOW

[damaged442]

All the cautions on the label, the nasty looking death skeleton on the label, and the fact that if you ingest this stuff you pretty much die a miserable death; gave me the gut feeling this stuff should work pretty good. I can't stress enough how nasty or dangerous this stuff is. I got a dot on my skin and it burned like hell. So, if using this product wear heavy leather gloves and work in an open space with ventilation. Safety glasses would probably be a good idea if your prone to getting stuff in your eyes and if your the type that would mind being permanently blind.

Excellent write up!

That stuff works so well because it has methylene chloride. Best paint stripper ever, but it will most definitely give you a pretty serious burning sensation. Use as many layers of gloves as you can, because it will quickly destroy and go through all of them. The MSDS for the stuff is no joke.

I used to use methylene chloride by the drum in my previous life. If you got any on the top of the drum...instant bare metal! If you got any on you, better get your gear off in a hurry!

Great work on bringing the roof rack back! Looks better than new! Curious to see how well that vinyl holds up.

[swanicyouth]

Thanks for comments all.

I thought these pics may be interesting. Here is this exact same vinyl applied to a whole car.

[Hazcat]

Good stuff Brother!

[c8n]

I actually wrapped my grill and spoiler with 3M 1080.
I did a horrible job on the spoiler as the my car had some complex corners. Altho it doesn't look too bad, I plan on redoing the spoiler at a later time. If anyone is interested in using this, I would suggest you buy some excess and play around with it for a bit.

What did learn are...
1. This wrap can work like a shrink wrap when heat is applied. It can stretch and shrink back with application of heat.
2. You need a very good cutting knife. I made a mess when I was cutting off the excess when working on my spoiler.