DynamicATL

I just noticed they require a zip code when you nominate. You can just use 30071 which is the one for the shop.

First, thanks to everyone that voted for us to win Best of Gwinnett for 2019...we won! 2020 is going to be a little different than 2019. They are only taking the top 5 nominated shops per category to compete in the Best of 2020. So I need your help Nominating us by clicking the link below. As you scroll down, you will see Dynamic Appearance Inc. Select the Nominate button to make sure we make it into the top 5...voting ends February 2/29 at 11:59 pm EST. Once we make it into the top 5, voting to determine the winner starts 4/1 which I will then add another thread. Thanks in advance to anyone that can take time to help. https://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/bestofthebest/#/gallery?group=335017

Yes, we love the Ceramic IR. It has the same feel as Obsidian and CS but it shrinks like a regular dyed film. Obsidian shrinks like CS which is the main reason we didn't go with it as our entry level...just took more time. The only thing that sucks about the CIR is the 3M logos do not easily come off like it does on the other lines.

Every 70/80 film I have ever seen has a blueish hue.

I think we were averaging 2 cars a day by the second year of offering window tint. As @TNTLady said, social media and online marketing is going to bring you customers faster. Take advantage of all the free options out there until you can build up some money to do paid advertising. Craigslist used to be a great option when it was free, but now they charge per post. It is still pretty cheap if you do a few posts here and there but I wouldn't spend a bunch of money there. Facebook, Google, Yelp, Instagram, YouTube, etc are all great ways to be found. Take photos of your work and post online...customers are visual so they want to see that your doing work. Also, talk to customers about leaving you a review if they enjoy your work. Tint shops that have been around for years/decades with virtually no online presence will fade away since they have no way to attract the newer generations besides word of mouth. It was like when Cadillac decided to revamp their entire lineup because they realized their current customer base was literally dying off. The last piece of advice, do not start off with a low price because you are newer to the game...this is a mistake a lot of people make. Once you build a reputation for being cheap, it is hard to raise your prices without losing all your customers. A higher price tag gives the customer perceived value in your service.

As far as clarity/quality goes they will be on the same level. Overall heat rejection is almost the same but AIR 80 will block more Infrared Heat...86% versus 68%. The only difference in warranty is Autobahn films have a transferable warranty to the next owner of the vehicle. Personally I wouldn't care if the next owner has a warranty or not, but it is a difference. Lastly, Llumar AIR has been on the market for much longer. I would not worry about the film as much as choosing the shop that is going to do a better job. So go with the shop that has the better reputation and the one you feel more comfortable with.

I am not sure if anyone on here uses ASWF, so not sure if there will be confirmation or not. However, you can go to that shop or another shop and have them meter the window. Generally, it will be in the 26-30% range once installed.

I would say for us there has been no affect since we do not compete with shops that use these cheap films. In the rare situation someone says something like another shop has Ceramic film for cheaper, I always ask what brand? Then explain to them that there are more cheap quality Ceramic films on the market that film than good ones. 90% of the time we still get the customer. The people that choose to go the cheaper route is usually not a customer we want anyway.

https://www.instagram.com/tv/B793Ftjhu8j/?igshid=15klv8ppmdixl

Yeah, it is definitely not 3M. Large brands are not sold anywhere online, Express is the only quality film you can online buy without a business. Below is a video I did a few years ago comparing real 3M Crystalline to "3M Crystalline" that is sold on eBay. As you can see, nowhere near the same film.

3M Ceramic IR is one of the easiest 3M films to shrink...much easier than Obsidian, Color Stable,and Crystalline. So I would first ask, how did you get a hold of 3M Ceramic IR? The only way would be to get a 3M dealer to sell you it. Unless you know them, there would be no point of them doing this since they could be dropped form 3M if they were caught. If you bought it online, that is fake 3M...you can find it all over eBay and other places. That is just some cheap Chinese film which could be the reason for the difficult installation.

Nothing wrong with the film especially from an installers POV since it is the easiest to install...I just don't think it is the best. I would do XPEL since it has the best proven track record especially for the 10 year warranty. Suntek Ultra in that form hasn't been out 10 years yet, so we will have to see if it will last that long. Once again, that is on my personal cars...I would have no problem offering it to customers since it is a good film. In my case it would be the Llumar Platinum since I'm a Llumar dealer, that is reboxed Suntek Ultra.

Photos?

I didn't say go with one over the other, just that Ultra is the regular film with an added top coat...there is nothing different between the two films otherwise. The top coat is to keep it weather resistant to ensure it lasts longer which is what the Ceramic coating would also do. Suntek Ultra has a 10 year warranty on it while the regular option is 5 years. So the real question is will the Ceramic coating come with a 10 year warranty? If it does, then go with the basic to save money. If it doesn't, go with the Ultra to getting double the warranty with only a 15% increase in price. So my post is based purely on the facts/specs versus a personal opinion. Personally, I wouldn't do either on my cars.

It is the exact same film, just a hydrophobic or "HydroResist" top coat has been added. So basically the same as getting the Ceramic coating.

I was speaking about Lexen, it is sold all over Amazon. Express is the only decent film you will be able to purchase without being a business, so I would stick to that if you want something that is going to last. Some of their lines are the same as Global which is one of the most respected brands in the game. You won't be able to purchase any of the bigger brands listed since you have to be an actual business and even then doesn't mean they will allow you to be a dealer. Not too mention all films don't install the same, so even if you get great at Express films doesn't mean you can install harder films like 3M or Huper Optik...there are tinters with 10+ years in the game that can't shrink them.

No quality films are sold on Amazon, it is meant for DIY'ers that don't care about quality since 99.9% of the time the install will be trash anyway.

So to update this, we won "best" in our category! Thanks for everyone that voted! It is amazing since we only voted over a period of less than 2 weeks...voting actually didn't end until late December. I already submitted us for the 2020 vote which seems they are changing things up a little.

They should be closed with that quality.

PPF is a film that is applied to the paint which helps prevent rock chips and other heavier damage. Ceramic coating is a thin layer of liquid that is applied to help prevent light scratches. You can pick either option to keep your paint looking new since it will be protected from the elements, but a Ceramic coating is too thin to protect from rock chips. Since PPF is also subject to damage from the elements, some people choose to add a Ceramic coating on top of the PPF which helps it remain newer looking for a longer period. No matter the route you choose, you should expect to do a full detail with paint correction prior to application even if the vehicle is brand new.

Xpel, SolarFX, or Global are going to be best to keep similar pricing to Solargard. Llumar is going to be higher priced with price increases almost every year. 3M is also more expensive and is much more difficult to install...there are many 3M dealers that can't install anything besides the base film.

Mine was automatically added, so not sure. When I updated the About Me part, the info did update right away.

It has been a minute since we played with Wincos, so can't remember if it has a blue hue or not. However, here is a couple of photos of a Lexus we did in Wincos 30.

Awesome idea, just updated my info. I recommend people to take out all the awards/subscriber icons since the "About Me" section on the make looks crazy with all of that crammed in there.

And the fact the glass is actually 2 pieces of thin glass sandwiched together...so the thinness is a problem.