My '37 truck has gloss black fenders, the front ones are the first thing that gets hit by bugs and road trash. They are getting chipped faster than I would like so I thought maybe some vinyl wrap about 12" up. Will the vinyl do any protecting or will it get damaged just like paint? The chips are normal road rashes, and I know it going to happen if you drive them, I just want to slow down the damage. The clear coat was really slow drying, self leveling, and hard, so it chips really easy. They are glass fenders if that makes any difference.
Yup! A couple buddies I work with use some on their late models for that exact thing. I’ll ask what the name of the product is. It’s clear you’d probably never notice it if you weren’t looking for the edge
https://fellers.com/cheetahwrap/cat...n-film/set/cheetahppf-cheetahppf-chip-defense https://fellers.com/fellers-shoppin...ub/paint-protection-films/set/bodyfence-gloss I would suggest to watch any application videos as this stuff is kind of tricky on a shape like your fenders.
https://a.co/d/1RXg12O ^ that’s a link to Amazon 3M Scotchgard Clear Paint Protection Bulk Film Roll 12-by-84-inches That’s what we’ve used.
As mentioned by by @Tim you are looking for paint protection film. If you google that you will come up with a bunch of people in your area that do it. Regular daily drivers are not that expensive (less than $200 Cdn around here) to get done but most of the surfaces are fairly flat so might be more for the curved fenders. I wouldn't even consider doing it myself if it was in that price range.
Theres a place up the road from me that does window tint and wraps, I drive and get a quote next week. I'am all for giving it a try, I've done everything else on the truck, might as give this a go if the price is right.
Wife bought a 2017 Mustang brand new (newest car we've got out of 8 ) and we got the front fenders, hood , grill and rear vision mirrors done, everything from the A pillars forward. Cost was $1400 for top quality film and guy did a great job. We live in the country on a dirt road and it has saved the paint lots of times. Touch up paint jobs don't match after a couple of years so I've saved there. If you go ahead do the whole fenders then there won't be the join line between paint and film.
Hello, A neighbor had an old sporty sedan painted a dark color. He spent his daily time wiping off that paint almost daily. But, once the wraps came out, he investigated and came up with a clear wrap for his sporty car sedan. Since the local hot spot dealer was well known, the coverage was tucked into the whole grooves between the hood and fenders. it went back to the nearest edge and no one knew it was clear over his cool dark paint. No lines were showing... Everyone looked at his immaculate car, I am sure no one noticed any lines as they were hidden in the cracks. Jnaki So, why stop with just the front part of the fenders? A line of some extra layering will still get noticed on a smooth surface, if it is like a car bra. Have a good reputable dealer install the clear wrap around the fenders, and grille. That way, no one can identify any external lines on the smooth surfaces. It may take a little extra, but your truck deserves great treatment, since it is driven a lot. YRMV
The front end of my 2020 Silverado I had wrappd as soon as I bought it. 3M Clear, Self Correcting wrap. Like the name says, rock hits, scratches, mars simply melt away in the sun. Still looks brand new. You will have to deal with the edge when you wax or polish your rig.
Make sure you are getting paint protection film and not just regular vinyl wrap. They are not the same.
The good PPF (Paint Protective Film) stuff is self healing and pretty much invisible. There's a place down the road from work that does this stuff on high end sports cars and I've seen them up close and can't really find the edges unless I really look for them. Here's the stuff they use, and it ain't cheap... https://suntekfilms.com
I went up to the local tint shop, he looked over the truck and quoted $400 for about 15" up the front of both fenders and the front bumper. This is the self healing clear. He had a '24 Vette in the garage finishing up the front of it with the same stuff, door forward including hood. I wouldn't have know it was done if he had told me! They also fix the nicks before coating, said they use colored crayons, nothing permanent. Still deciding if I am going with it.
A few years ago there was a product, I feel like it was from Armor All, that was a temporary (I think a year or so before re-application) spray-on paint protectant film. My dad uses it on his Model A fenders, I could ask him what it is and see if it's still made. It was made for DIY install, tape the area off and spray it on. Works great keeping the fenders protected on my dad's A.
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