Clear over aged clear?

[Patentagosse]

*'also dropped this post in Vehicle Wrap forum here 'cause I wasn't sure where was the best place to ask this question. Sorry if you already have read it.

Here's one I need your opinion on. I have this guy coming to my shop this morning with his new rig he wants to put graphics & letters on before the end of the month. We agreed on price and he dropped a deposit. I walk out to take some measurements and pictures but to find out the trailer his badly faded. In fact, colors are good but the clearcoat is turning matte everywhere and tent to start craking a li'l on some spots. I know the unit has been wrapped by a company that uses liquid laminate (fleet) on their prints. The black spots are kinda dark gray due to fading so I suggest him to "re-clear" the trailer in order to extend the durability and bring back some luster to match the tractor. My graphics will be laminated with gloss film (Oracal 290 or Avery 1460).

Have you ever considered / tested such a job? I won't be doing it, client will, using a foam roller probably... I offer to supply the material after I've done some researches and asked the question on this forum.

Here's a shot of the unit. 'Waiting your inputs

 

[visual800]

I would not clear over bad clear until it was completely removed

 

[Patentagosse]

Removing the clearcoat is something I cannot figure how-to... The actual surface is exactly like if I had wet-sand it with a 1500 grit paper so basically a proper finish to get the clear bond. Sure I would make a test on a small part and 2-3 days later try to pull it off with a piece of masking tape. If it doesn't come off, maybe it could be considered good enough to complete the trailer (?) They don't have the budget to remove & re-wrap the whole box (these graphics were provided by Bombardier but they won't pay a 2nd wrap after only 3 years...) This is just to extend the durability for few more years before swapping the trailer for a new one. If the surface would have been smaller, I had used automotive clearcoat (urethane) but the price would be out-of-range vs. Neschen or ClearStar products.

 

[rjssigns]

If I understand correctly it is not a full wrap. If so, before wrapping can't the exposed areas be prepped and painted with One Shot or something similar? Or make sure all the chalking is gone and cover with black hi-perf vinyl.

 

[J Hill Designs]

he just wants to freshen up the trailer graphics by reclearing - i believe the lettering job is on the cab if I am reading correctly

 

[Patentagosse]

The tractor is brand new so my job is to put nice graphics on. The trailer is fully wrapped but the clearcoat used is now turning matte everywhere. Colors are still pretty decent but upclose, you can see that the clearcoat is severely dull so I told the owner maybe it could be re-cleared in order to bring back some gloss and extend the life of the actual wrap by few years. I will not do it myself, I simply offer the owner to investigate if it's something feasible and what would be the best brand to use. Personally at the shop, I only use automotive paints & clearcoats so it would be out-of-price for a job that size but I've seen some other brands like ClearStar (or ClearShield, can't remember) so maybe it could work.

'Hope I'm making myself clearer.

 

[Patentagosse]

Tractor will look like that next week. (it's just the demo for approuval)

 

[CanuckSigns]

The tractor is brand new so my job is to put nice graphics on. The trailer is fully wrapped but the clearcoat used is now turning matte everywhere. Colors are still pretty decent but upclose, you can see that the clearcoat is severely dull so I told the owner maybe it could be re-cleared in order to bring back some gloss and extend the life of the actual wrap by few years. I will not do it myself, I simply offer the owner to investigate if it's something feasible and what would be the best brand to use. Personally at the shop, I only use automotive paints & clearcoats so it would be out-of-price for a job that size but I've seen some other brands like ClearStar (or ClearShield, can't remember) so maybe it could work.

'Hope I'm making myself clearer.

Ahhh that makes sense, i'm not sure if any of the liquid laminates used for signs would hold up long term, they are kind of cheap alternatives to a proper vinyl over laminate for prints, I don't think they would stand up on a vehicle.

Most likely the graphics were "laminated" with clear shield or something similar when they were originally made, it's my understanding that a lot of these big fleet jobs are done this way from the factory as a cost saving measure, you can see how well it's stood up so far, not sure I would want to apply the same product again, most likely end up with the same results.

 

[Patentagosse]

Mr. Watson, liquid laminate are really good usually. I had a supplier for large format (before I bought my own printer) that were specialized in fleet graphics and the stuff they use is simply amazing. That's the setup currently used by those who run big HP TurboJet. They need something quick, reliable and cost-effective (at over 1000sq.ft per trailer with production capacity of over 6 trailer / day, you can't go with film unless you have open budgets with your customer...). I know the Neschen and Seal device are the usual choice in the "big leagues". The clearcoat remains glossy for 5-7 years. The one pictured is like 3 y.o. so maybe they selected the "economical" one.