Specific detailing of vehicle name and model lettering

**jeepingdetail** · 08-05-2016, 03:59 PM

I have a new jeep grand cherokee model that has everything including wheel spokes blacked out. I like that look in general but want to accent the "jeep/grand cherokee" lettering everywhere on the car. I'm totally new to car detailing and asked the dealership if they can do it. They told me yes, but it would be very expensive and would eventually wear or peel off, so i began looking into diy paint and detailing methods. The paint i would like is reflective color (large glitter particles) in a transparent or translucent suspension, so that the glitter particles reflect or glitter. I'm not sure if the lettering needs to be removed and reattached after painting, or if i should do it by hand with the letters still attached on the car. Also i don't know what special paint to use, or if i can prepare my own with material from a hobby store like joanns for example.

I will appreciate any suggestions or advice here, as I've not yet received any answer in the chat box.

**Aaryn NZ** · 08-05-2016, 04:15 PM

Hey, welcome to Autogeek Online.

I'm not 100% sure on what you should do but Curtis from Clarity Auto Detailing in Houston I believe would be the man to talk to about this. He's a forum member too, maybe shoot him a PM?

Aaryn NZ.

**jeepingdetail** · 08-05-2016, 04:30 PM

thanks, but how do I find his address to PM him?

**jeepingdetail** · 08-05-2016, 05:29 PM

Originally Posted by Aaryn NZ

Hey, welcome to Autogeek Online.

I'm not 100% sure on what you should do but Curtis from Clarity Auto Detailing in Houston I believe would be the man to talk to about this. He's a forum member too, maybe shoot him a PM?

Aaryn NZ.

I've tried that but so far no response. Anyone else in this forum have advice?

**AuroraDetailing** · 08-05-2016, 06:03 PM

Just a thought, but nail polish sounds like the perfect product. I'm sure you could find the exact color you're looking for and with the little brush, you can get the letters pretty easily. I'm guessing you don't really have to hit the sides of the badges. If it gets bad you can always start over with some nail polish remover and do it again. It'll cost you all of 99 cents.

**jeepingdetail** · 08-05-2016, 07:56 PM

Originally Posted by AuroraDetailing

Just a thought, but nail polish sounds like the perfect product. I'm sure you could find the exact color you're looking for and with the little brush, you can get the letters pretty easily. I'm guessing you don't really have to hit the sides of the badges. If it gets bad you can always start over with some nail polish remover and do it again. It'll cost you all of 99 cents.

Thanks for the thought....I considered that but remembered what the dealership told me...that theirs might peel off. If that's the case (done by a pro) what might happen with ordinary nail polish? That's one of the reasons I wanted advice...thinking detail pros here could suggest a professional paint or paint mixture. For example a "permanent" pro lacquer with relatively large glitter particles (bought at a hobby store) mixed in. If I continually mixed that to keep the glitter evenly suspended in the lacquer and applied it by hand with a brush, if the lacquer was what the pros use it would stay on longer. If it did wear off eventually I could simply reapply as needed. I thought asking for advice here about that would either get approval or thumbs down with better suggestions. What do you think?

Something else. Someone told me you could buy letters from Jeep and paint them with such a mixture, replacing the factory letters, or pop off the original letters and paint them, because (they say) there's a double tape backing on them that holds them on. Thing is I don't know if that's true and I don't want to trying prying them off only to find all the letters are part of the body mold (this model's body seems to be mostly plastic) and I marred the surface by trying to pry off the letters. Also, if anyone here is familiar with late model jeeps (this one's a 2015 "Altitude" Grand Cherokee) they might have advice about how to prepare the letters surface before applying the lacquer.

Thanks again for your thought, maybe I'm getting somewhere now.

Anyone have any information or suggestions about any or all of the above?

**AuroraDetailing** · 08-05-2016, 08:09 PM

The problem is you want it translucent and no paint is intended to hold on a smooth, polished surface like the badges. It doesn't matter how professional the paint is, surface preparation is everything, and unless you want to sand the badges, including every nook and cranny, you most likely won't get the permanent solution you're looking for. You won't be able to reuse the badges once you take them off either. If you paint new badges, you'll need to use the sticky transfer paper they are usually supplied with in order to get them on straight, and you risk pulling the paint off just by doing that.

**jeepingdetail** · 08-05-2016, 09:06 PM

Yes, understood. So you're saying I need to sand at least the surface of the badges if any lacquer I use can be (relatively) permanent? But if I get new badges I'll need to use supplied transfer paper guides(?) (after those new badges have been painted) to get all the badge letters straight in place. So any lacquer (even clear nail polish) is as good as any professional lacquer if I use it on the original smooth badge surfaces, and that's why you think "nail polish" is as usable as anything else (if I don't sand the surface)?

**Hantra** · 08-05-2016, 09:32 PM

Find a good shop that does film wraps, and they can cut you a metallic vinyl to size. That's what I'd do, without seeing a photo of the actual badges in question.

**AuroraDetailing** · 08-05-2016, 09:43 PM

You don't necessarily HAVE to sand, but if you want it to not flake off in the long run, it needs a surface it can "bite" to. Most people these days use plastidip or a similar product for "painting" things like that. This may be what your dealer was referring to when mentioning that it won't last long, because it doesn't. But it's meant to be removable and easy enough to put on that the longevity is not a big deal. I'm not that familiar with the color availability, but it might be tough finding the color you want. It's basically a rubbery plastic coating. I'm sure you don't want that.

The transfer paper I'm talking about is just a sticky tape that is less sticky than the adhesive backing of the emblem (on the ones that are stick on). It's so you can pull the waxed pair off the emblems, and it holds all the individual letters in place. Not all of them have that though. It's usually just for emblems with individual letters. Not sure how the ones are on the jeep.

I just wouldn't knock nail polish just because it's cheap. It's actually not that cheap when comparing price per volume with other laquers. They are just sold in much smaller quantities.

If you do find a different paint you want to use and want to just mask off the emblems, buy some plastic razor blades to trim around the emblems. It'll cut tape, but won't harm the paint. I would suggest running along the edges of the paint after painting too so that pulling the making off won't pull paint of the emblem.