[Dark Silver S]

[I did a search for this, and after much reading, did not find even the subject, let alone the answer.]

This weekend, I tried to add some tint to the fixed side windows. Although the interior trim is set up wonderfully for tinting, the painted stuff on the windows absolutely barfled the tint material. Even with a heat gun, I could not get the bubbles to stop running in from the edge.

Apparently, the painted stuff does a fade - solid going to dots - and the dots let air in.

Anyone know a solution to this?

[dinlo]

I take my car to a Tint shop, they did a great job, I don't have any problem on bubbles. It's kind of tricky tint around the dots. You might want to have a shop to do it, plus they give you warrenty.

[Dark Silver S]

Yeah, most of the threads I looked at had tinting done by a shop. I've done my own tinting before, just not with painted windows.

Any clue what they did? I saw one thread that 'suggested' that tinters may actually trim the tint just to the inside of the dots. Can you speak to that?

[Mini1380]

My tint just goes over the edge of the dots. There are a few minor wrinkles that I just smoothed out by hand. My tint has only been on for about 2 weeks.

[Dark Silver S]

I must have been doing something wrong. I'll give it another try tonight. The other times were easy, compared to this.

(BTW, a credit card works to get bubbles out better than a finger. Like you should take advice from a guy who can't get the film to lay down over bubbles.)

[Dark Silver S]

Thanks for the (good) advice, Max, but we're talking EGO here. And cheap EGO to boot. I fully realize that you gets whats you pay for, but we gotta keep me busy and off the streets. Besides, while reading these responses, I had a brain-f@rt, and I want to try that idea tonight.

[AussieMini]

You'd have to have balls the size of footballs to attempt DIY Tinting. I see too many bubble jobs in traffic and it looks tacky.

Just my opinion

[Mini1380]

Quote:

Originally posted by SCooperS
BTW, a credit card works to get bubbles out better than a finger.

I didn't have any bubbles, just a few minor wrinkles less than half the size of a pea and on the edges of the tint.

P.S. I was told that the main reason that you see the big bubbles on the tint is because of an inferior/sub-standard tint composite that breaks down in the sunlight. If you do it yourself, don't get the cheap stuff.

[Dark Silver S]

Yeah, Ozzie, I've seen those too. The last tint I did was putting reflective tint (rather oxymoronic, there) on a van, and when I was done, it looked like a glazer had replaced all the windows with mirrors. No bubbles, no wrinkles, no purple-blue degrading. Mini1380 is right - the correct film makes a big difference.

If we were talking compound curve windows - I WOULD have balls the size of footballs - that's not for me. But straight windows is really not that hard. Ask me again tomorrow.

[BruceK]

Down here in Texas where tinting a car is almost a matter of summer survival, I can tell you that it takes several weeks for all the little bubbles and trapped water distortion to disappear. You're not going to get a finished result in just an afternoon! I have not done DIY tint job myself, (it's as cheap as $99 to get a car done professionally with a warranty), but I've had it done on a number of vehicles.

Plan on at least 5 days of not being able to roll the windows down. Yes, there will initially be some adhesion problems where the "dot matrix" window sections are by the edge of the windows, but they should go away in a couple of weeks.

I know it will certainly cost more, but it really is worth it to have it done professionally with a very good quality film. The cheap film is just not worth it at all - turns purple and cracks, peels off, looks like crap after just a short time.

[Dark Silver S]

For me, the worst part was having some damn gnat fly between the film and the window just as I was putting it up. This in the hot sun, too.

I'm practicing now, I'll report on results later.

[dinlo]

Good luck
I know you can do it, if you really want to get it done. So good luck, don't forget to take some of the picture of the windows

[Dark Silver S]

Second try better, but still not there. Each time I learn a new feature about the window.