Rvinyl pre cut PPF?

I searched but didn't find anything. Anyone ordered the pre cut clear protection film from Rvinyl.com? Since I got a black truck I'm thinking about putting it on the hood and rockers. Can you ceramic coat it after or would you ceramic the paint first then put the PPF on top?

 

I would assume if you ceramic first, it will reject the PPF.

 

Also, personally i would never put that stuff on my paint. It wont look great forever and will need to be removed leaving residue. Just get some nice water based ceramic coating and build some layers. Takes time, but best protection IMO. Dont forget to add ceramic top coat when done.

 

Respectfully, that is the complete opposite of my experience. I wish I had a competent installer in my area to have done my entire truck.

All quality films will have a 10 yr warranty and will remove with very little residue that is easily removed.

No amount of ceramic coating will actually prevent scratches and trail rash. PPF will, and will self heal in the sunlight/ heat. If it scratches through, it will massively reduce the damage to the paint, and you can simply have that panel of PPF re applied.

Check out some of the torture tests on YouTube.

 

https://usa.gtechniq.com/products/auto/halo-flexible-film-coating

Looks like Rvinyl uses 3M brand which is "ok." You should go with a better brand like Stek, Xpel, LLumar, etc. and use a reputable installer.

 

I’m familiar with xpel. I was interested in the 3M one from rvinyl because it was pre cut and figured I could install it myself.

 

Says it has a 10 year warranty. I can get residue off if it left any. If I had to replace it even every five years I would be happy with that return on investment if it reduced scratches and chips.

 

Doesn’t your truck come with the clear protector on the rocker panels?

 

I’m looking to do the hood and mirror caps and any other of the pre cut stuff too.

 

I don’t know about one brand over another, but I had the clear protection on a 90 Ford probe, had the car 10 years and the stuff looked as good when I got rid of plot as it did new. I was happy to see it on the Tacoma

 

Most all these PPF can come precut. You can get Xpel precut directly on there site. Most all installers as well can precut them and some can even ship them to you to install yourself. Be aware though it's not as easy as you think it is to install as a first time user.

https://www.xpel.com/paint-protecti...ks/2018/Toyota/Tacoma/Double-Cab/TRD-Off_Road

Also, be aware there are Different versions of 3M PPF. a version that's not self healing(cheapest) and another pro version that is self healing(more expensive).

 

You know what else doesn't look great? Rock chips and bumper scrapes, things a ceramic coating will provide zero protection against. You're fooling yourself if you think ceramic coating provides abrasion protection. PPF has come a long way since the days of bubbling and yellowing film.

If you're doing PPF I'd have a shop do it. It takes a lot of experience to install correctly, as even the professionals have to re-do panels. Wrapping around compound curves is not easy. Unless this is something you really want to learn how to do, I wouldn't spend the effort. Any money you would have saved is lost the first time you have to pull and re-do a section.

 

Ive seen some bad examples of stubborn residue and i guess it left a bad taste in my mouth. Ive been happy with my ceramic, it actually protects from minor pinstripes when i go offroad. Just gotta build those layers and apply the ceramic topcoat. Also, to get the PPF applied professionally costs like what 4-5gs?

 

Ok thanks for the info. That precut xpel is quite a bit more expensive than the 3M stuff. A buddy has an Audi that's fully wrapped with xpel and it's nice but I don't have that much cash after buying a brand new truck lol.

 

If you build layers with water based coating then apply nano top coat, you would be surprised at protection it gives you. But yes PPF is more durable, no question about it.

 

It just costs a small fortune to get it done professionaly.

 

It does not provide ANY protection, outside of making the paint more slippery, allowing tiny branches and twigs to slide more easily and maybe not leave a mark. It will do squat against a rock or a carelessly flung shopping cart.

As someone who used to detail professionally in the early 20-teens, this cult of ceramic coating is absurd. It's a fancy sealant, not a magical force field.

I had my entire front clip, hood, roofline, mirrors, door cups and edges wrapped with Suntek Ultra for $2k. Cheaper than a re-spray 10 years from now, and since I garage my truck I expect it to last a few years beyond that.

 

Ceramic coating is a fancy sealant? Ha. Sir, you clearly dont know much about ceramic coatings. They have come a long way. Sealants are garbage. You can make it thicker than your clearcoat. You apply primer, 3-4 coats then a topcoat. Ceramic coating is 9h, nothing gives you same hydrophobic properties. When ceramic coating cures, it becomes a crystal, which is pretty hard. Also its got 125° molecules that let everything just bead off.
Im not arguing that ceramic is better than PPF though, of course PPF Is more durable. Just you saying how you detailed cars for 20 years and said ceramic is a fancy sealant haha.

Look up cube bond man.

 

I know plenty about SiO2 coatings, thanks. It's a two-stage sealant loaded with ceramic particles. It's harder wearing and longer lasting than previous sealants, so it beads longer, but that's it. Well, that, and there's about 5000% more marketing effort behind this stuff, to justify the ridiculous price markups. Great, you can layer it on thick. You can do that with literally any wax or sealant, if you want to spend the time.

The amount of woo-woo snake oil present in the auto detailing industry is almost without peer, and this is just another cycle. Before it was "revolutionary wipe on no-buff sealants", and before that "artisanal super high carnuba waxes, hand crafted by monks in the Amazon rainforest" and so on and so forth.

I'm not knocking ceramic coating as a great paint protection treatment, but if expect to rely on it to physically protect your paint from scratches or rock chips, well, more power to you.

 

Haha, ok man.