Tint Slayer

22 hours ago, civicrice said:

I used the non ceramic version and it sucks. the color is too green for my taste and the film is very heat sensitive. curls and burns where other films just lay and shrink. 

The Auto NR? I don't see green in it at all. My experience shrinking is the opposite. Which version you using?

I've tried out Avery Dennison off and on for a while now and am surprised i don't hear more about it, it's pretty decent, I know the whole Hanita deal and where it comes from, but i'm surprised i don't hear more about it in this forum. Anyone else using Avery Dennison tint film? Any comments on it?

Windshield - Nothing

2 front Sides - 35%

2 back side and rear glass - 20%

Whatever they want, but lately leaving a gap is the quickest for me unless they ask. Like @Dano said the top corners are tricky, i don't cut on the glass i use magic marker for the vertical cut spots. when you're gonna leave like a 1/16 extra to shave or cut i make the cut just a little lower on those 2 corners on the outside of the lines, this way i line up the the 2 corners of the film just below the edge so i'm not digging into the corners trying to shave or file the very edge of the film in the rubber area.

Basically at the corners away from the line where it'll be under the rubber i make a cut from the line outward and slowly down ward so i don't have to dig in there to shave and i get some adjustment using those corners.

The other customers have to be factored in, you can either make the one C6 mad or all 3 or 4 customers mad. Some days i can't do stuff i do easily other days. 4 rear glass go bad in a row i'm done for the day, i don't think many of us would try 5.

Car is brand new and the lights are just stupidly bright, you can see the horizontal line of the headlights in fornt of you it's just ridiculous really like everything is white, i drive at 2am i can see the animals in the trees it's so bright. So i should try the medium smoke? anything good have a blue-ish hue?

I have a 2020 Subaru Impreza, it has those bright white lights that everyone thinks my high beams are on all the time and i'm thinking of putting something on them. Is there a particular shade of film that takes the edge off of the brightness just right? Also, would doing that mess up the Eyesight Assist system?

i shrink beyond the future cut edge as much as possible and do a wet check every time, those fingers would show in a wet check unless its how you're push/pulling the film during install

11 hours ago, civicrice said:

awesome! is there a buy in amount? must I get Xpel certified before becoming a dealer? 

Why don't you call them? 

I only knew of Huper Optik having a specific Marine Window Tint, but doing a web search of "Marine Window Tint" brought up a few other brands i haven't heard of.

On 6/5/2020 at 8:57 PM, DynamicATL said:

I looking at adding 5% to my lineup but want something that the "5% crowd" will be happy with as far as darkness. I've seen photos of Llumar CTX/IRX in 5% and I can still see in some and didn't know if it metered lighter out the box. Anyone do the new 3M Ceramic IR in the 5%?

You're the professional with all the answers who's gonna answer you? LoL 

Enjoy your day bro and thanks for being such a good source of quality info.

On 6/6/2020 at 5:20 PM, Jake09 said:

I’ve tried tinting twice and completely failed both times. I’m trying to install tint to the front windows of my 2016 Honda CR-V. This last time I attempted I used precut solar gard tint and Came into some issues. I used a water/dawn dish soap mixture and thought I added enough soap. While applying the adhesive side to the window it would immediately stick. The time before I was able to slide my tint into position before tacking it down but not this time. This made it really hard to line everything up. Once I got the top lined up I started to move down the window and creases were started popping up everywhere. I tried pushing them out but they just folded and at that point I was screwed. I tried experimenting with some of the others with the heat gun hoping I could shrink em out but they did the same and folded. Was this a solution mixture issue? Not being able to slide the tint into place? What could I do to prevent this next time? Any other tips or tricks would be much appreciated! 

You may just need more slip, for your slip use 10 mls per liter (or quart) of Dawn Simple Clean (the most basic weakest Dawn product, avoid stronger Dawn liquids you just need slip), the range i use is 8-12mls per liter depending on weather, the film and the need. right before you install soak the glass and soak the sticky side of film both times with a downward spraying motion, try to put the film on lightly and try not to stick all the film firmly on glass at once, put a corner of the film on glass and try to align or get as close to final position as possible before putting all the film on the glass still putting it on lightly until final position so you can start squeegeeing. The film should now be in the final position with a bunch of slip visible under it. Now with your thumb holding the top and run the squeegee along the top of film anchoring the top, do a light stroke down the middle and then light strokes outward and downward (remember where those fingers were, you want the film to pull wide to flatten them out, think about these things when doing your light set up squeegee and final hard liquid removal) and watch if the film has waves bump up when you're pushing it, stay behind the wave pushing it slowly and if needed pull in front of it with your finger to flatten it as you go and go slow to push the wave to shore (the rubber). now that the film is mostly in place you can spray it lightly with slip again and push that water out. Don't try to be the fast swiping guy with the squeegee just yet until you get a feel for what the squeegee can do other than fast swipes, do another final hard squeegee, heat the top of film lightly and briefly to dry it so you can close window. The bottom area spray slip and squeegee in direction of any small fingers (going perpendicular to them can give you creases). I know i went on a bit and i'm sure i said something wrong by someones standards but that's my 2 cents and let us know how it go, send some pics good or bad, the bad tells us more. Good Luck bro!

-If you start to tack up and cant move the film easily you can either full palm slap the film lightly in the direction you're going to break the tack towards OR pull the top of the film back enough to spray slip in there and with your finger tips push and massage all that slip down and into the tacked area until the film floats on slip again, readjust film.

-Tinting is not simple, cutting and all that is easy, getting a clean good looking job involves personal skill with pride in your work and that relates to how much you as a person want a job to look. The trick is go slow as you need and let yourself improve rather than try to be a 10 min side glass installer at the gate. My best work is the work i take the time to do right.

8 hours ago, bpbv6-6 said:

this question will be useful for OP as well. What is the best way to apply film and shrink on hatchbacks? ive been having issues lately with vw GTis and maz 3 hatchbacks. Im shrinking normally as I would on other cars but for some reason hatches are my weakness. I do the normal H pattern using dryer sheets. The ends of the windows and defrost lines just wont tack up!

Are you saying it won't stick to the glass after install?

9 hours ago, bpbv6-6 said:

not jacking thread but i've been getting micro bubbles in some of my jobs lately. I use a blue max. What is a more effective squeegee to use to remove maximum water?

Blue max should do it, press harder.

Some people will make like they can do a spotless, crease free 5 minute shrink job every time, and i'm sure some can and will let us know as usual lol. I make mistakes like you do, everyone does. Just keep blowing thru, taking your time. One tip i'd say is change your perception of shrinking. Ever hear that "Can't see the Forest for the trees" adage? Well "you can't see the shrink for the fingers" i'd say focus on the whole shrink instead of just the finger. When you shrink try look at it not like you're shrinking that one finger but instead think like shrinking the whole film across the glass. Like shrink that first line all the way across (or half way) just doing circular motions with the gun close and no card and you'll see what i'm saying, then shrink the next line all the way across, and make as many smaller fingers as you can out of the big fingers, as the fingers get worse towards the bottom or top run your finger down the middle of the fingers and split them smaller and smaller as you go across the film, if needed pull it with your finger a little to help lock down the tops of the finger in a good direction. Think of it like shrink wrapping, if you were shrink wrapping something you'd want to do as much of it as possible together instead of focusing on one spot where you hammer it on home and overwork that one area. You're not totally trying to shrink a finger as much as you're trying to shrink wrap all the film to mold to the glass. Another thing i see in newbies is they heat the film and will get a crease because they push the card past where they heated the film into cooler film, or they didn't heat it enough to a good melting point that will accept a hard card flattening it. If you find your self at every finger trying to work out every finger on it's own without thinking about the rest of the film, you're focusing on the tree when you should be focusing on the forest.

18 hours ago, vanhorn1 said:

We use Fusion, seems to be the most consistent we have ever tried. We do use a little more when it gets hot and humid. I was always told that dish soap can break down the glue and I know for a fact it can streak door panels.

 

When i tried a Fusion sample i found a lot of particles in my slip, so i ordered a bottle figuring it was a bad batch in the sample and the new bottle gave me particles too. I went back to Joy and no particles so it was the Fusion and i will say i did like the Fusion otherwise. @vanhorn1 did you ever have that issue at any time? I was thinking of giving it another try, it did slip well and clean.

29 minutes ago, Trent said:

Just curious about what some of you other pros use/prefer during the summer months. 
 

Generally I use baby shampoo or a non degreasing dish soap (joy, dawn, Ajax ect.) I’ve been adding an extra ounce for side windows. 32oz with a 2oz is what I’m running may add another ounce or 2. 

Joy Non-Ultra at 10 mls per liter of water, i'm finding Dawn Simple Clean is a little more slippery than the Joy Non-Ultra at 10 mls per liter.

Back in the day the recommendation was an ounce of soap per gallon, it's pretty spot on, an ounce is 30 mls and a liter is a little more than a quart (32 oz), so 4 quarts per gallon means 30 / 4 = 7.5mls per quart, so about 8 or 9 mls per liter.

That 32 oz bottle only needs .25 ounce or 8 mls, so to me you seem a little too heavy, i personally don't like too much slip, and the less soap in the water the better. my 2 cents.

On 5/24/2020 at 2:14 PM, DavidInKc said:

Been trying and trying to add my user name is and won't take it. I'm all paid up and still won't take it. Sucks it's Sunday and they aren't open.

 

I went though another post and nothing helped. I even uninstalled and reinstalled and still nothing. 

 

Any clue on how to get this up and running today or you think Tint Tek Monday  

 

 

Make sure and bill them for the day of work they cost you

If those are your only 2 choices you may want to broaden your search area

On side glass my buddy uses a blue hard card to clean and a gray bondo card to install film. He also uses a handled squeegee when he needs too but the blades are typically soft (like a red Go Doctor). His installs looks great.

So my question is do any of you use tools out of the norm when you install?

11 hours ago, Bubbles said:

Whats up everybody. I have a friend that needs me to tint his new truck. He also bought some new speakers for the doors and I told him i would install them for him while Im there.  Where do you guys go for install items like speaker adapters, wire and connectors.  Thanks and stay safe. 

Best buy. They do installs and have all the plugs etc. And there's usually one close enough to drive to.

On 5/14/2020 at 1:12 AM, N2Tint said:

Im reaching out today in hopes of getting some feedback regarding tint application and tips to gain more knowledge. I live in Texas and I've tinted a couple of my personal vehicles as well as a few friends just trying to get the hang of it so of course i don't charge anything.....ive always found window tinting to be pretty cool and its something that i actually enjoy doing as for most of you I'm sure do too but before i go and try to put my name out there i wanna make sure that my work is to the T. The vehicles that I've done have came out decent but could definitely be better, idk if its in my prepping or if I'm not shrinking the film correctly but sometimes i find myself fighting with bubbles or edges that dont wanna lay correctly for instance when i go to roll the window up or when I'm tucking the film into the seals..now there are times where ill be fairly impressed with the work, at least for a beginner. So yeah any tips or videos would be appreciated i look forward to this journey and glad to be apart of the tint family. 

 

 

Another thing is back glass 😧 ive done a few older trucks but as far as cars and dealing with defrost lines is something ive been avoiding.

No matter how long you do this, you'll have some of those issues on occasion, just repetition will minimize them and show you how to deal with them over time,. If you're looking for videos go to youtube and look up "Window Tint Warriors" or "Tintstuff"

SolarFX has a low priced Classic series 1 ply that is actually pretty amazing, have it on my truck for over 4 years now and looks clear and no fade, even the top of the glass that gets hidden at the top of the door that never gets rollled down is the same color as the rest of the film. I'm very impressed with it. Downsides are it's not your typical shrink because it's thin but do-able after you get the hang, but if you're willing to use Lexen than you should be totally fine with the classic series it's almost half the price of they're next levei up. I keep it for the people that come in and say they want darker glass cheap lol. I think the Classic is what you're looking for, has a 5 year warranty.

https://solarfxwindowfilms.com/automotive-window-films/#classic

On 4/3/2020 at 4:00 AM, JorgeDamien said:

'm looking for advice on car tint, I found a local shop that can do it for about $200 depends on what material I want to use (good, better, best). I want to do the whole car, door windows, back windshield, and the front to that little mark.

I live near Pittsburgh and I drive 2017 Nissan Altima, my main concerns are the legality of it and getting my car inspected. Any other advice is definitely welcomed and appreciated!

I'm aware that it's all illegal where I am, but I don't think the cops care. However I do have a heavy foot and drive faster than I should. I want 20% I think, it the darkest I think I can get away with. Anything lighter doesn't seem worth it. omegle discord xender

I read something online saying i might not be able to get my car inspected if my windows are tinted?

I also recently put in channel rain guards on my car, will that damage the tint?

In PA your car will pass inspection with tint, if you were to get something like 5% tint all the way around the police will pull you over and make you peel it off or tow the car home because you're an idiot, but 20% is ok-ish but i wouldn't do it on the fronts, my most common recommendation is 35% for 2 fronts and 20% on the rest or all 35%, i don't tint windshields, i often refuse dark tint jobs and most of my film is 20% and 35%. If a cop pulls you over with tint turn on your dome light or roll down your windows so he won't have to worry about someone with a gun in the back seat pointing at them that they can't see, that's the difference in getting a ticket or not, and attitude.

NY will fail an inspection with tint.

On 5/8/2020 at 11:52 PM, Guest Timothy Trulock said:

I have been tinting for years.  But I'm just now really trying to get more in the business. My question is, even though I have watched numerous you tube videos on heat shrinking the back glass I still can't get the technique. I've tried it with the dryer sheets I've tried it wet but always ends up the same, a mess. Im tired of doing these back glasses in pieces. Is there some tip or some where I can go to get some help with this issue? 

Best for a novice to use baby powder for shrinking. One thing i've noticed with people new to shrinking and using dryer sheets is they go too heavy and don't let it fully dry. I'd suggest wetting the dryer sheet with alcohol instead of water so it'll dry quicker and fully after wiping it on glass, with a thin coat on the glass, not wet solid caked up dryer sheet j1zz.

When you are learning to shrink and get a crease or burn on the first corner when you just start shrinking still complete the rest of the shrinking so you can use that piece for practice, you gain a little confidence practicing on a piece that you're not worrying about destroying. Good luck!