Plasti-dip

[Calendyr]

Hey guys,

every week I try to learn something new about detailing.

This week I watched about 30 hours of video regarding Plasti-dip.

So my impressions on this is that it doesn't look to hard to do. I think I might be a good alternative to having the car painted.

Do any of you offer this service, and if so what advice would you give. Also is the money Worth the time of offering this?

Thanks!

[Pureshine]

I Wouldn't offer Plasti-dip as a service ever. I used it for my emblems and engine covers. cars that are painted in this look like crap and I have 2 guys in my car club that did their cars. I did my daughters rims they look ok not great but easy to take off.

[6supersport7]

I agree with pureshine. I see no real money in offering this. Most people who do this have some ragged out paint jobs anyways and are looking for the cheapest route to make it look some what better. To do it right, you would still need to tape off lots of trim, glass, badges, etc... and lay a thick coat of PD down. It stripes real bad and usually does not look that great when you do total cars. It's not as easy to get off either especially in certain areas where it goes on thin. Would not be worth the hassle unless you were charging big bucks. Sadly, from my experience, the people who do this are not willing to spend big bucks.

[Calendyr]

Ok. I agree that the typical client would be someone wanting to save money. My perspective on this was that if someone needs a paint job, instead of spending 4000$ to have the car repainted, I could Plasti-dip it for something like 800$. From what I understand material to do a whole car costs about 300$.

I agree it doesn't look that good. Although I have never seen a plasti-dip that has been sealed or waxed... don't know if you can do it but if so it might improve the look.

There are some pretty detailed videos about how to do a whole car, the trick seems to be in the preparation and then applying correctly (first 2 layers are very fine dusting layers then you do 2 more standard layers and last 2 are wet layers almost to the point of having runs. One of the videos I saw was in real time and applying a layer takes no time at all... I would say about 5 minutes. So with the dry time this can be done in a day no problem.

I am not sure I want to get into that. If I can find plenty of work with standard detailing I see no reason to. But otherwise, it might be something interesting to add to my service list. Some shops are specialized in doing that so there must be a market for it.

[EvolutionDetail]

if u watch dipyourcar's video by Fonzie, u can tell that dude dont care if hes putting scratch in the paint lol

[LSpec]

I think plasti dip will be a good idea if you offer this for temporal protection, for example, to someone that want be in road race or autocross, maybe a long trip with the car to avoid the anoying bugs or stones that make chip damage.

[Calendyr]

I think plasti dip will be a good idea if you offer this for temporal protection, for example, to someone that want be in road race or autocross, maybe a long trip with the car to avoid the anoying bugs or stones that make chip damage.

That is something I had not thought about. So for exemple you would use Plasti-Dip as a low cost bra?

[LSpec]

That is something I had not thought about. So for exemple you would use Plasti-Dip as a low cost bra?

Yes i would. Actually I am trying to get one can to protect my wheels for some events.

Here the climate is tropical, when I go to the beach bugs make a mess in front of my car, would be nice to have this kind of protection.

esta es repuesta automatica

[Gurge]

Hey guys,

every week I try to learn something new about detailing.

This week I watched about 30 hours of video regarding Plasti-dip.

So my impressions on this is that it doesn't look to hard to do. I think I might be a good alternative to having the car painted.

Do any of you offer this service, and if so what advice would you give. Also is the money Worth the time of offering this?

Thanks!

meh... I'll focus on fixing the paint instead of spraying plasti dip all over it. The kiddies on instagram can have their fun plasti dipping cars in the driveway. I'll be in the shop polishing... :buffing:

[chrisleys]

I don't know, I've heard nothing but good things about Plasti Dip and was thinking of giving it a try. Some of my friends tried some from a local place called Dip Effects in Edmonton (http://dipeffects.ca/products/plasti-dip-edmonton). Might give that a go

[swanicyouth]

I dipped some trim pieces and felt it was junk. Doesn't hold up to a pressure washer as all. The finish looks flat and blah, not satin or matte. Looks like cheap spray paint.

[SYMAWD]

I've used it before. It held up all through the winter and still looked like the day I put it on, but I chose to peel it.
http://i1014.photobucket.com/albums/af270/SYMAWD/IMAG0508.jpg

[Vidur119]

Dipping is not really easy but just like detailing with some experience you can get there and make money doing it. On the other hand I hate the fact that every stock car in the market has blacked out rims or emblems and end up acting like they're driving works of art.

Plastidip is great for a temporary solution. Personally I find it tacky and lacking in beauty. Its pretty big in Utah where weekend racers get their car's plasti dipped. Saves the paint from damage but its just not for me. Personally love taking care of the paint and making it look better than just any other ride on the street.

[thebamboo23]

Dont do it. check your area, im sure there are a handful of dedicated Dip shops already

yes, its very cheap to buy the Dip paint, but it takes sometime to get it the technique down. youll also need a badass gun.

too much of a hassle headache..

theres money in Dipping.. just not the free time for a detailer

[milkcow500]

We do plastidipping for a shop out in LI. I'd like to give my experiences in working with plastidip, since it seems like people think about it in a negative manner.

Plastidipping has come a long way ever since I first did my car. The procedure is a lot more detailed now in aspects of taping and application. Taping takes up most of the process whenever I do a car, and without proper methods, you get panels/trim bonding together, tears, and unclean lines.

I used it at first to protect my paint during the winter months, since I go upstate all the time for snowboarding. I've never had an issue with it damaging my paint or clearcoat, but I have heard of certain cases where it has stained paintjobs (frs/brz paint and infiniti self repairing clearcoat). The most I've ever left it on my car was 1.5 years, which is pretty good considering all I had to do to upkeep it was foam cannon/pressure wash (electric) and go.

The only issues I have with plastidip is:

1. Prone to scratch and rub marks, which will not go away unless you put another coat over them.
2. Water marks etching into the plastidip if not properly taken care of. Also requires another coat to cover the marks.

I have had no issue with striping or rough texture as long as proper measures and techniques were accounted for. It seems the largest issue I've been seeing recently has been the reliability of the plastic earlex/graco hlvp guns everyone has been using.

Recently I've been working on custom colors, which is clear plastidip mixed with pearl pigments, which gets a lot more complicated. You can achieve multiple different types of metallic, satin, and glossy finishes, which in my opinion can look very close to a nice vinyl job.

I've also been looking into coatings over plastidip. I've tried opticoat, 22ple, max protect, gtechniq, polish angel, etc. Most of these actually melt the plastidip during the application. I'm not sure how the longevity is, but I am in the middle of testing still.

I think it really comes down to preference though. Some people are not into it and I can totally understand why. I think it's all about showing the possibilities of what this product can bring. The progress that has been made in the past couple of years is very promising and I'm looking forward to what's coming next.

If you'd like to offer this as a service, I suggest you put some time into the prep/application process. If you don't feel confident in full car jobs, I'd suggest you stick to trim/emblems/wheels, since that's where the most profit comes from anyways.

-milkcow500