mklll supra door panels

this is my first post and i was wondering what the best method for wraping my door panels would be. what type of vinyl should i use and what type of adhesive.

The material you choose depends on how you plan to cover the panels. If you're going to be sewing seams, you have a much broader choice of materials because you can create the fit through seams and fitted panels. Material such as Allante, Whisper and Visions have a nice leathery look, but don't soften and stretch with the application of heat. But, if you don't have access to sewn panels, and are planning on molding the material, you'll have to choose something susceptible to heat. Enduratex, Windsong (marine), and the good old Naugahyde really get a nice stretch going when heated to allllmost the melting point. Just don't burn through.

This is if you're wanting to stay moderate with price (like mellohide and enduratex for heat, or allante and whisper if sewing). Of course, you can whip out the credit card and pony up to some UltraLeather, which is very good at molding and stretching without using heat. I used to cover the front pilot's area of tour busses, and it was great to use.

As for glue, I'm not a 3M loyalist. I think it sucks, myself, and when I have to make sure something will stick, I use DAP Weldwood Landau Top Adhesive. It's a contact adhesive, so you spray both surfaces. I"ll give you my secret for making molded panels stick (and you can owe me the $100,000 education fee). Contact adhesive is supposed to be allowed to tack up for sticking. But don't follow the instructions. I spray it to both surfaces, and then forget about the panels for awhile (a few hours to overnight). It needs to be completely dry. If it is tacky at all, then it is still drying. And as it dries, it is expelling gasses, which will bubble up the material over time. Completely dry, and the gas is all gone. But then it won't stick just pushing it together. It needs to be reheated, which will reactivate the cement. Do NOT let the material touch the panel until you're certain it's where you want. Once it makes contact, it's stuck, even without very much pressure at all. And if you have to pull it up and readjust, it will pull up the contact cement on the panel itself, and your efforts are ruined and you have to start over. If you don't reapply the glue, you'll have uneven, bumpy panels under the vinyl.

There'a another way to get a nice soft stretch to the vinyl, but I don't try it often because it is so aggravating to do, and unhealthy. You can use Methyl Ethyl Ketone applied to the back of the vinyl and strip off the backing. This gives the vinyl two or three times the stretchability of stock and you can do amazing things with it. The backing needs to be nylon or polyester (marine vinyl works best). Cotton backing just gets mucky and ruins.

Good luck. Take your time.

That thing will be a tough to wrap without seams.

i would seam it any ways, I'm a big fan of top stitching, usually in a contrasting color.
It gives a nicer look IMO, to have different color panels sewn in them or they look too plain.....

Never had the patience to do that glue trick.
I buy my glue from Keyston Bros. in the big black 5 gal can...


I have tried that MEK trick, but that is some nasty stuff to be working with..... Very toxic and carcinegenic......
It works, but the material is much weaker and can easily be torn, especially when using heat....