stone chip film
Discussion
polish is slightly abrasive - you should never polish armourfend otherwise it will start to look misty and creamy after a while
just wash it as normal, and use a polymer sealant or a proper wax if you want to make it shiny ...polish by its nature is an abrasive product
..also try not to use a really dusty polish and wax, as you can get a build up line along the edge of the armourfend - use one that dosent dust so much and when applying, do it in strokes away from the edge of the film
this is my old Elise being coated with Gtechniq polymer at about 70K miles/5 years old, it is covered with armourfend (whole clam front, sides, most of rear) - the Polymer went on top
see if you can spot it
http://good-times.webshots.com/album/560135980KLyy...
just wash it as normal, and use a polymer sealant or a proper wax if you want to make it shiny ...polish by its nature is an abrasive product
..also try not to use a really dusty polish and wax, as you can get a build up line along the edge of the armourfend - use one that dosent dust so much and when applying, do it in strokes away from the edge of the film
this is my old Elise being coated with Gtechniq polymer at about 70K miles/5 years old, it is covered with armourfend (whole clam front, sides, most of rear) - the Polymer went on top
see if you can spot it
http://good-times.webshots.com/album/560135980KLyy...
What kind of prices are they running now for Armourfend and the like?
What has always put me off is the fact you can (could) buy rolls of it for $1 a square foot in the States, yet I think I was quoted £400 or so for the front end?
I have no doubt it is an excellent product, but still have a mental block about such exorbitant profiteering.
I think Halfords sell a 1metre by 20cm strip of it, too, for £40??
What has always put me off is the fact you can (could) buy rolls of it for $1 a square foot in the States, yet I think I was quoted £400 or so for the front end?
I have no doubt it is an excellent product, but still have a mental block about such exorbitant profiteering.
I think Halfords sell a 1metre by 20cm strip of it, too, for £40??
you can buy the material in rolls for what looks like cheap
but the kits that are pre-cut are £500 ish ...again, this usually includes installation though...which can be a days work for a skilled person with travel expenses etc, so 1/2 of that could be labour
..I had a custom kit (some bits just done for my car how I wanted) and it was about £700 fitted, quite a few years ago - done by Sinclaires....I didnt want any joins on the clam, wanted extra bits doing etc
Its certainly cheaper than a good respray every few years, and even then you have a chipped car in the meanwhile ....black car, with white undercoat, give it 2000 miles and a couple of track days, it will be buggered in a couple of months and you will be regretting that £3K respray without the extra £500 of film
but the kits that are pre-cut are £500 ish ...again, this usually includes installation though...which can be a days work for a skilled person with travel expenses etc, so 1/2 of that could be labour
..I had a custom kit (some bits just done for my car how I wanted) and it was about £700 fitted, quite a few years ago - done by Sinclaires....I didnt want any joins on the clam, wanted extra bits doing etc
Its certainly cheaper than a good respray every few years, and even then you have a chipped car in the meanwhile ....black car, with white undercoat, give it 2000 miles and a couple of track days, it will be buggered in a couple of months and you will be regretting that £3K respray without the extra £500 of film
Just to add an opposing opinion, a car with armourfend looks like a car with armourfend on it. It shows up, it isn't invisible even when new and just looks worse over time. A front end respray is not going to cost you anywhere near £3k (I'd have thought £500 max). Stonechips are part of life with Lotus and unless you protect everywhere, you're going to end up with stonechips somewhere. I'd rather respray every couple or three years when they get too annoying than have the outline of a plastic film all over my car.
You pays your money, you takes your choice of course.
You pays your money, you takes your choice of course.
thats always been the other side of the coin - poor installation = you can see the armoufend (especially after the owner has waxed it a couple of times and left the white dust line all around it)
..also the cheaper kits have lots of (easier to apply) joins, rather than whole clam sections with join lines only on natural panel lines in the car etc
this is the difference between the cheapest, dealer installed armourfend off the shelf kit, and the best, custom installed film by a pro
price wise then yes, to get the front sprayed im sure you can have it done for £500 every few years
all depends on what you want of course - I tried both over the years, had a respray about 2 years in, with no film, and wished I hadnt, but then I was doing a lot of track/airfield work and 500 miles a week in it at the point in time, it was gonna get chipped pretty quick anyway...when I had an excuse for film later, part of insurance job, it was a no brainer
..also the cheaper kits have lots of (easier to apply) joins, rather than whole clam sections with join lines only on natural panel lines in the car etc
this is the difference between the cheapest, dealer installed armourfend off the shelf kit, and the best, custom installed film by a pro
price wise then yes, to get the front sprayed im sure you can have it done for £500 every few years
all depends on what you want of course - I tried both over the years, had a respray about 2 years in, with no film, and wished I hadnt, but then I was doing a lot of track/airfield work and 500 miles a week in it at the point in time, it was gonna get chipped pretty quick anyway...when I had an excuse for film later, part of insurance job, it was a no brainer
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