Bham

Ghosting will not go away because the film has been altered with improper heating. Glue smear "might" go away with time as it cures but is on the lower side of that actually happening. Wrong tint shop, not necessarily. Just a new or improperly trained installer. Everybody has bad days.

@AgentK Now it sounds to me like you are having either what we call "ghosting" issues, where the film will have a "blurry" look to it where it was shrunk in the wrong manner. It also could be "ghosting" from moving dry adhesive (trying to remove and reapply during install). Moving water through glue that is already starting to cure during the install can cause marks like this also. And sometimes they don't cure out over time. The other thing might be squeegee marks from trying to run a rubber squeegee over film that doesn't have enough water on it. If these marks can't be removed with a micro fiber then it is likely something to do with the way it is being installed. This does not sound like a low angle haze issue.

That is up to you and how bad those spots bother you. They should not cause any further problems and you have good film installed so it depends on whether it bothers you bad enough to have it redone.

Yep, what TintDude said. That has nothing to do with type of film, but type of installer. Dust and fibers that contaminate installs are both inside and outside the vehicle. We try to be as perfect as we can and control our environment to benefit good installs(at least you hope that's what your installer does). But now you have to worry about left over glue on top of other normal contaminates. Hopefully the new install comes out better.

Be aware that if you had no cutting strip or had a worn out one, you will probably have to change your pressure settings after installing a new one. When you do, start very high and come down slowly. If you start to deep with a new strip you are just going to gouge a new cutting strip, so be careful.

all of the above plus, I won't do limo on top of factory glass. I'll go down to limo (20% on top of 20%) but I won't add 5% to 20% I also try my best to NOT do limo on the front two.

From the amount of damage I see, I gonna go with = that glass has been replaced with aftermarket glass that as is not the same as factory glass, giving you a different hue after adding film. Just my guess.

You will need to get both of those issues fixed before asking someone to tint your vehicle properly. They can probably still get it done, but it won't be correct and will still have to be re-done after you get those issues fixed. So might as well fix them first. It will just be better on everyone.

I use Global and get it from Dragon Distributing. There have been some times they have not had exactly what I needed in stock due to them getting shipments in. Ceramic seems to be more of an issue than the regular QDP (at least on my end). So yes, I now call way ahead of time to make sure something is in stock and to find out THEIR delivery date(which is a questionable date in itself) if it's not in stock.

Also got the Wagoneer in here. It’s really nice.

The new Maverick

Questions from the slightly educated Do you have to change the blade or just the pressure when switching from tint to PPF ? Would it not be better to have one plotter for each ? Thanks in advance.

For the record, I just did a removal and replace on a Corolla and when I pulled the rear glass piece off the defroster lines sounded like guitar strings being plucked as they peeled off the glass with the tint. The ones that broke left a piece hanging and I just grabbed that piece and pulled the rest of the line off the glass. Obviously defective. The GatorBlade took care of the rest of them. My fault? Nope. Did I pay for a new back glass? Nope.

@DougW Yeah, good luck. I have had the same issue for years. Using the "downtown buildings at night" example and they still don't get it. The only way to get it across is to actually show them(put them in the situation). Meaning you would have to go to the house at night with the brightest lights you can find, point them at said window with them standing outside with you. They will see the light reflection causes you not to see in until you turn it off and there is no more light. You would also have to have someone inside turning all the other lights on or off to show that difference also. I have this type of set-up at my shop using the big glass windows and doors that separate my waiting area from my work area with mirrored film on them. I am able to turn off the light up front and keep the light on in back or vice versa, to help show the actual physics of the situation. It's not perfect but it sorta helps. The other option for putting them in this situation is if they have a tinted vehicle and a very dark garage, put them inside the vehicle, turn the lights out in garage and turn the interior lights on in the vehicle( add a bright work light or flashlight to make it bright inside the vehicle. Then they will see that with light inside the vehicle, you can't see out in the dark. In this demonstration, if the garage is dark enough, you can walk all the way up to vehicle and put your face on the glass and they won't see you until they turn all the lights off inside the vehicle. Trying to explain mechanical situations (physics) to people who don't get it or won't try to get it is VERY TOUGH and I HATE IT.

Like Highplains was saying. You need to carry whatever shade is legal in your area, a medium shade and some limo. And then possibly some windshield film. Your customers will ultimately determine what you stock them most of. I have to add that with Llumar, you better have the customer base to keep ordering. If you only order ever now and then and don't spend the amount of money THEY want you to spend, they will pull their film from you or go up on your pricing. Good with them but be careful.

There are SO MANY things wrong with this post/situation. Trying to match film that has a purple look to it probably means you are trying to match film that is failing and will not last much longer itself. You can only tint plexiglass with a static cling film. Regular adhesive window film will not last more than a few months before it fails and is not supposed to be installed on plexiglass at all. The other problem is that static cling film will not handle the elements of being on a boat. That type of exposure and other elements combined will not allow for that type of application. Solution would be to use a high performance charcoal film, in the proper shade, on real glass. Other option would be to use pre-tinted plexiglass. It does exist.

I also will add that there is a known problem with the Toyota defroster lines from about 2016 - '18 where the defroster lines did not weld to the glass properly and were flaking and coming off during the cleaning process before tinting. Just my on the matter.

Sorry But they don't really make a handle for that style of squeegee. They make a little plastic piece of PVC pipe cut to fit that channel and slide on it, but that piece sucks and is pretty much useless. Those are designed to be used with the hands, hence the reason the side you hold is so large(unlike a blade squeegee). The Blue Max - Red line extractor and other blade style squeegees are the ones that have handles to fit them.

I figure it will be easier if I go the plotter route. Just feeling out other ideas. Thanks for the input.

This is more for the smaller shops that might have an employee working by themselves. The bigger shops with multiple employees rarely have someone working alone and usually have a manager of some sort to track everything. Keep in mind that I have never had employees, only been one. And really haven't had anyone worry to much about film usage, soooo ,,, How you keep up with film being used? How can you tell if your employee is wasting too much film or stealing film off the rolls if they are working by themselves? Say, all day on a Saturday or for a few day while you are on vacation? Other than cameras everywhere, what is the best method? I've heard of people weighing their rolls and going about it that way(kinda of average type thing). I've heard of writing measurements on the box every time film is removed. I've heard it's best to not keep to much extra out in the install bay and keep the stock locked up. The first place that trained me a hundred years ago used to not let us clean the floor until he told us to because he said he could tell how much was being wasted by how much is being thrown away. Not really looking for that kind of method but wanting some input on how you guys keep up with your film inventory and make sure no-one is stealing from you?? Thanks in advance.

Getting started = yes, that part is simple. If you have good work ethic and a talent for the business then you should be able to get started. Maybe not at the first place you go to but somebody, somewhere is needing help. Whether or not you fit the bill for them or this type of work is yet to be seen. No it's not that simple once you get started. Other than cleaning up and prepping for the installer (which you can still do damage at this point ) , the reality of the situation will set in when you get into working with tools and on cars that aren't yours and are expensive to fix. Scratching glass, cutting rubbers, burning panels are all things that "might" happen and you don't want to be dealing with that on your own recourse. Pay attention and have patience and be careful on this journey and you will be fine. Try to put film on glass before you know what the tools do You won't make it. Good luck.

I guess my biggest question is have you installed any film ? You could always buy some film and find a way to practice, if you think you are at that point. Practicing with product that is supposed to be for income is very tough for an owner. Ask if there is practice film available, if not, order a roll of decent film from somewhere and practice with that. Just my

One of my all time favorite little cars. And yes, I did the pilot windows properly.

If you try to precut to fit before shrinking, there is NO room for error. Most errors come at the end of the shrink not the beginning(i.e. = where the edge of your pattern is has the most room for mistakes). Most cars leave enough room around the edges to be able to shift the pattern if there is a mistake at the end of the shrink. Not possible if you precut before you shrink.

Absolutely love this little ride. RDX A-spec awd/turbo