Ali Panniers, how to change the colour.

[MikeP]

Duncan,

I don't see why it shouldn't work. I'd have thought that the fuel vapour is not going to bleed through the plastic.

I have used the vinyl on the tank on my bike to protect the surface from inevitable scratches caused by tank-bag and tank-pannier straps.

I'll take a photo and post it here in the next few days.

 

[MikeP]

I've done this to protect the paint from straps causing damage and to cover a dent/scratch.

It's only a temporary measure until I can find someone who will laser cut some sheets of the vinyl for me.

 

[Captain GSA]

.........this is a great thread. This is the way to go with panniers...

 

[Duncan Richmond]

Many Thanks Mike,

Looks pretty good - might give it go. I had some stickers on there and they bubbled up, then again the adhesive will be far better than a cheap sticker.

 

[digga]

Any chance this would work on an acerbis plastic tank? I have one on my airhead which should be white but has turned nicotine yellow.Or will the petrol fumes bleed through ?

Thx

Duncan

The vinyl from grafityp will not be suitable for plastic fuel tanks..(unless you cut fine slits in it) the fuel will leach out and cause blisters in the finish.
the alternative is to use something from DangerUK, thats if they will supply you with it.
The motocross boys use that stuff for their plaggy tanks.

 

[digga]

I've done this to protect the paint from straps causing damage and to cover a dent/scratch.

It's only a temporary measure until I can find someone who will laser cut some sheets of the vinyl for me.

Mike..its not cut with a laser, just a drag blade.

it would be fairly dificult to cover your tank shape anyway, the vinyl can only change shape so far then it wrinkles.

look in your local area to see if any of the signwriters do 'vehicle wrapping'

this process uses an image printed onto a special vinyl that is capable of conforming to complicated mouldings. This could have an excellent effect on your bike. It is used extensively in the commercial world. Have you seen the SKY TV transits running about?? they are white vans with a wrap. They are not airbrushed! when they come to the end of the particular season/promotion the wrap is removed and the paint is as good as new

 

[digga]

Its a Wrap guys!!

Following on from the above posts, have a look at this. It will give you a better idea of what its all about..
i'm no aux fait with embedding stuff you'll have to do it the old fashioned way.....


http://www.signsexpress.co.uk/productsVehicle.cfm

watch the video

 

[digga]

Vinyl

If any one wants to give this ago i could supply some vinyl dependent on it being a stock colour (and its a pretty wide gamut) at a reasonable price.

As a side note, there are some 'WOW' vinyls out there.... 1 was mentioned earlier - chequer plate. There are carbon and colour change stuff available as well but this does tend to be more expensive, but its oK for highlighting /detailing stuff.
The 'sand blasted etch' effect (as per pub windows etc) gives a nice subtle effect on strong colours.

 

[(RIP) Bobble]

Following on from the above posts, have a look at this. It will give you a better idea of what its all about..
i'm no aux fait with embedding stuff you you'll have to do it the old fashioned way.....


http://www.signsexpress.co.uk/productsVehicle.cfm

watch the video

That's cool

 

[MikeP]

Mike..its not cut with a laser, just a drag blade.

it would be fairly dificult to cover your tank shape anyway, the vinyl can only change shape so far then it wrinkles.

Thanks for the info.

What I was hoping for, was someone to produce a series of templates that follow the tank contours (a bit like my attempts) but with much finer gaps between the sections, so that I could re-use them when I wanted to change the vinyl for any reason.

That 'wrap' process has made me think though.

 

[Big Lee]

Following on from the above posts, have a look at this. It will give you a better idea of what its all about..
i'm no aux fait with embedding stuff you'll have to do it the old fashioned way.....


http://www.signsexpress.co.uk/productsVehicle.cfm

watch the video

Thats brilliant! I wondered how they did that

 

[John Armstrong]

Thanks for the info.

Guess you've already seen this: http://www.mandp.co.uk/productinfo.aspx?catRef=548458 and it's not what you want on your tank?

 

[Deleted account 220427002]

I'd love to see a close look after they finished to see the bubbles and bits of dust they got traped

I'd take it also some special type of thin cast vinyl they use for the wrap it seems to stretch quite easy

 

[swissrob]

why albert got a Bern plate thingy attached to his UK plate? what is it also?

 

[digga]

I'd love to see a close look after they finished to see the bubbles and bits of dust they got traped

I'd take it also some special type of thin cast vinyl they use for the wrap it seems to stretch quite easy

Contrary to what you think, its not thin - its the opposite TBH.
It is a specially formulated vinyl that is fairly easy to handle. If it sticks to itself it can be parted and still be useable! it is ultra conformable without 'tunnelling'. If you misalign it, you can remove and start again and the result will be perfect. You'll notice that they used a little heat, this is to help the 'moulding' process. When satisfied with the fit more heat is applied..(this is the bit they didn't show!!) this 'sets' the vinyl if you like. This stage is very important and digital surface thermometers are used to ensure that it reaches the right temperature.


as for dust,there would be very little in the atmosphere and the work area would be damped down and the vehicle would be 'grounded' to minimise static.