SolarFX, SunGard, GeoShield review. (Just my opinion fwiw)

hungry&fat · December 15, 2013

I'm skeptical about a lot of films. Especially films that are new to the market. I got a roll of SolarFX Ultra film a while back to try and forgot about it. I had the chance to install it today on a newer Civic coupe. Not a challenging car by any means. So the first thing I notice is the film/liner is really thick. Most thick films normally seem rubbery to me. This is what I would consider a rigid type film. Cut real easy with minimal pressure when rough trimming the rear window. I also noted it had a really slick release liner. The film shrank pretty well. I use a porter cable heat gun most of the time. And it is what I used on this film. The film stuck to the dryer sheet residue really well after hard carding it while shrinking. The Suntek I use doesn't stick as well and I west the edges after trimming to make sure it is shrank all the way. The Scorpion I use sticks great. It is very comparable to the Predator line from Scorpion as far as adhesive and color. The Ultra stuck to dots fairly well right after the initial squeegee. One think I really liked was if I had a finger or touch up, the adhesive was really responsive to the heat. The color looking out was really nice. As I told Shawn from SolarFx, I am interested in seeing how well the scratch coat and color holds up. I am not in a region that is harsh on films. I am in Indiana. We have all 4 seasons and none are really extreme. I would seriously consider installing this film as my standard film.

I also installed GeoShield's new line of film "Pro Classic" Or something along the lines. Out of the box it felt and looked like a great film. I installed it on a Scion TC this past week. It was really slow reacting to the heat to shrink the back window. It did not want to stick to the dots at all. It took a lot of heat to make the edges stick. The 1/4 windows same thing. Film would roll off the dots. The driver/passenger, it installed okay. Did not have an aggressive glue at all. Even after diluting my solution. It was an okay film overall. But the 15-20 minutes added heating up the dots would add up at the end of the day doing 5+ cars a day. The Scratch coat on this film was really weak compared to a lot of what I have installed. The people at GeoShield were very friendly and I do like a lot of what they have to offer. The swatch "binder" was really nice. The overall presentation was Spot On!

I sampled SunGards Black Pearl and the Black Pearl HP. SunGard really impressed me with the customer service and overall help without being "aggressive" for the sale. So I got to install the Black Pearl on a Chrysler 200. It installed and shrank very well. Almost like Llumar ATC. It has a great color. The adhesive was a little slow for me also. No problems with the Scratch Coat installing. It didn't feel real stretchy or rubbery. Personally I like rigid brittle feeling films. It installed really well also. I diluted my solution to make it grab quicker and the whole car installed really easy. On touch ups it needed a lot of heat to fix any tiny crease or finder. The HP Version I installed on a late 90's 2 door Buick Riviera(Yes they still exist). The HP film was naturally a little more rigid. Shrank really well. Did not have a really "Shiny" HP Film look. I think it actually responded to the heat better than the NR version of the same film. Not having experience with all the failures and horror stories that are tied to SunGard, I would be open to giving it a try one day also as a line I carry. I know the Black Pearl is a newer film and has not had time to be "proven" for longevity.

My Conclusion: I believe all of these films are around the same price point. Offer the same warranty.

SolarFX Ultra worked great for me. Shawn is straight forward and seems like he will be there if a problem arose. I wouldn't changed a thing about the film. Still thrown off by the thickness, but didn't have a negative influence on how the film installed.

GeoShield Pro Classic. Eh... Honestly for the price there is other film I would install. I would really like to try the Dark Matter.

SunGard Black Pearl was a good all around film. Nothing that would keep me from using it other than their tarnished name in the Industry.

SolarFX Ultra

Black Pearl NR

shwusyrtnts · December 15, 2013

Nice review there bud. Thanks for sharing.

SunGard.......R U N!! .........seriously.

whitehog · December 16, 2013

Thank you for taking the time to try out our Ultra series film Happy&Fat. We appreciate the honest feedback on how the film installed for you. If you have any questions don't hesitate to get in contact with us!!