6aeten

Nice that was cool....
 
we need somebody to write a book or podcast or something crazy in depth about the history of tint and anything/everything that involves tinting.
 
anybody know if something like this exists 

you should be good yo. i dont know how inspections go in Pennsylvania but i know here in bengals country they dont care at all...
 
20% is by far the most popular shade for window tint... like 90% of cars i tint is in 20% and nobody around here gets in trouble..
 
Rain guards should not mess with tint at all... assuming it is installed correctly 
 
WHODEY 

We use old paper towel cores and roll them up including shield strip patterns. We use old 40" film boxes and mark them as honda/dodge/lexus etc....   Will follow up with a pics later
 
 
 
Yea they are the clear liners that I pull off on the 1st vehicle I do, for example..... The new 18 Camrys/whenever there is a new body style we have to "make the patters" which means hand cut. Save the liners off everything tinted (4doors, qtrs., rear window, shield strips, sunroofs) and use next time that car comes in. I always keep the 4 doors but I usually only use the driver side templates because I hand cut the passenger side, make necessary adjustments to the driver side and then use that one in the future.
 
I also keep at least 2-3 versions of the rear window, just in case you need to "sweat off" a rear window. The template works perfect! possibly better than a garbage bag!!!
 
 

So if you have the "Perfect Pattern", which most of the ones I have made are pretty dead on, then it makes for very quick cutting (arguably faster and certainly more accurate than plotters). All you have to do is pull your 2 pieces (one for passenger side rear and driver side rear) put them together (opposite of each other because you are double cutting) and take it over to the vehicle and cut JUST the top edge (the only edge that is seen and needs to be a perfect cut). Then I take it back to my cutting table, line up the top edge of the pattern on the piece I just cut, take a strait edge to each side and bottom round corners and there is your pattern. I have timed myself cutting every window and can usually have everything cut in ~6-8 min (assuming it is a simple car like most 4 doors) stuck on peel boards ready to go (including rear which I just free hand). I have used a plotter before and I agree that it is fast, but it comes with issues like top edges not fitting perfectly, a little bit of static or one bad cut and then you have wasted 36" of film, and the dreaded weeding time.... I don't have any of these problems especially the wasting film, which you can be very attentive to using patters.

We use old paper towel cores and roll them up including shield strip patterns. We use old 40" film boxes and mark them as honda/dodge/lexus etc....   Will follow up with a pics later
 
 
 
Yea they are the clear liners that I pull off on the 1st vehicle I do, for example..... The new 18 Camrys/whenever there is a new body style we have to "make the patters" which means hand cut. Save the liners off everything tinted (4doors, qtrs., rear window, shield strips, sunroofs) and use next time that car comes in. I always keep the 4 doors but I usually only use the driver side templates because I hand cut the passenger side, make necessary adjustments to the driver side and then use that one in the future.
 
I also keep at least 2-3 versions of the rear window, just in case you need to "sweat off" a rear window. The template works perfect! possibly better than a garbage bag!!!
 
 

Keep one set of templates for EVERY vehicle.. im talking all 4 doors each qtr and rear glass.... mark each one, ie front driver, 36x18, panels 2 screws easy,..... store until needed next time that car comes in....
 
I have patterns for every car/truck I have done since since '85-'90.... makes window tinting life sooo much easier

I don't even shrink sides if I am bottom loading without seals in the way
 
Unless the time it takes to shrink sides is LESS than the time it takes to fight fingers like on the accords, cavaliers, there are only a few out there that actually need to be shrunk
 
and it takes literally 30 seconds to shrink sides anyway   

I call em footballs!     WHO DEY!!!!
 
2 doors..... a weird hate/love relationship

Freaking Hilarious!!
 
 
I wonder if someone would spend time in the Big House if you kill someone because you cant see out your windshield? Gross Negligence
 
Is it worth someone's, or your own, life just so you car can look cool or gangster?  

Its not about eliminating steps to get things done faster.
 
Its about learning a routine and repetition and mastering the craft of window tinting..... then comes speed.
 
it use to take me 4 hours a car when i first started. Now (5 years later) i can complete a whole car in 1.5-2hrs, pulling panels hand cutting and sticking super clean windows out the door.
 
AND its not work if it is FUN!!!!

i usually check to see how far the glass goes below the second seal and then cut accordingly. just make sure you don't cut it to big and the tint goes below the glass.
 
Some cars (cant think of any off hand) have glass that barley goes below the seals, so just make sure you check each one individually.
 
Always do passenger side 1st, and then adjust driver side accordingly  

i usually check to see how far the glass goes below the second seal and then cut accordingly. just make sure you don't cut it to big and the tint goes below the glass.
 
Some cars (cant think of any off hand) have glass that barley goes below the seals, so just make sure you check each one individually.
 
Always do passenger side 1st, and then adjust driver side accordingly  

yea as long as you have good shop lighting 
 
you can use white printer paper as well but i like the garbage bag because you can stretch it out so you can see the whole bottom edge, and you can move it around behind lights and tight panels. just make sure it is below black edge, which should be pretty punctuated, or you will cut it short.
 
I usually stuff garbage bag down there before i lay film on, just to make sure everything is good with it and it is below edge.
 
 

stuff a white trash bag down there with your bulldozer and you will never need a light again

yea as long as you have good shop lighting 
 
you can use white printer paper as well but i like the garbage bag because you can stretch it out so you can see the whole bottom edge, and you can move it around behind lights and tight panels. just make sure it is below black edge, which should be pretty punctuated, or you will cut it short.
 
I usually stuff garbage bag down there before i lay film on, just to make sure everything is good with it and it is below edge.
 
 

yea as long as you have good shop lighting 
 
you can use white printer paper as well but i like the garbage bag because you can stretch it out so you can see the whole bottom edge, and you can move it around behind lights and tight panels. just make sure it is below black edge, which should be pretty punctuated, or you will cut it short.
 
I usually stuff garbage bag down there before i lay film on, just to make sure everything is good with it and it is below edge.
 
 

Its not about eliminating steps to get things done faster.
 
Its about learning a routine and repetition and mastering the craft of window tinting..... then comes speed.
 
it use to take me 4 hours a car when i first started. Now (5 years later) i can complete a whole car in 1.5-2hrs, pulling panels hand cutting and sticking super clean windows out the door.
 
AND its not work if it is FUN!!!!

Its not about eliminating steps to get things done faster.
 
Its about learning a routine and repetition and mastering the craft of window tinting..... then comes speed.
 
it use to take me 4 hours a car when i first started. Now (5 years later) i can complete a whole car in 1.5-2hrs, pulling panels hand cutting and sticking super clean windows out the door.
 
AND its not work if it is FUN!!!!

Its not about eliminating steps to get things done faster.
 
Its about learning a routine and repetition and mastering the craft of window tinting..... then comes speed.
 
it use to take me 4 hours a car when i first started. Now (5 years later) i can complete a whole car in 1.5-2hrs, pulling panels hand cutting and sticking super clean windows out the door.
 
AND its not work if it is FUN!!!!

Its not about eliminating steps to get things done faster.
 
Its about learning a routine and repetition and mastering the craft of window tinting..... then comes speed.
 
it use to take me 4 hours a car when i first started. Now (5 years later) i can complete a whole car in 1.5-2hrs, pulling panels hand cutting and sticking super clean windows out the door.
 
AND its not work if it is FUN!!!!

I usually counter and say that since you made it worse the price goes up..
 
but i always say that i need to see it before i give a quote

Hand cut 4 LIFE!!

This is exactly what i do.... but add one more step after 4 but before 5....
 
HIT it with the air duster to get any loose fibers out

I had to redo a 2015 f-150 (i think, cant remember exactly what kind of truck it was) rear solid window (yes the easy one) 4 times.
 
The 1st time because the new guy at the shop i was working at cut the wrong shade for me,
2nd time was because that same new guy dropped the piece helping me stick it and needless to say there was way to much dirt/dust in it,
the 3rd time I slipped on my stool trying to get in rear door and me and the piece went tumbling to the ground,
and the 4th time i had to redo it was when i was completely done with the rest of the truck i was cleaning it up, putting headrest back in and sure enough it slipped out of my hand and put a huge rip in film
OH MY it was one of those days....

I had to redo a 2015 f-150 (i think, cant remember exactly what kind of truck it was) rear solid window (yes the easy one) 4 times.
 
The 1st time because the new guy at the shop i was working at cut the wrong shade for me,
2nd time was because that same new guy dropped the piece helping me stick it and needless to say there was way to much dirt/dust in it,
the 3rd time I slipped on my stool trying to get in rear door and me and the piece went tumbling to the ground,
and the 4th time i had to redo it was when i was completely done with the rest of the truck i was cleaning it up, putting headrest back in and sure enough it slipped out of my hand and put a huge rip in film
OH MY it was one of those days....