rc wrap

[p3]

Ya. We supply a lot of helicopters as I work for www.amainhobbies.com. I think just getting something to conform would be the biggest deal. Some people even get them prepainted or whatever. But if you had a canopy that was a base color, and somehow made the design so it didn't have to wrap the whole front and fit into the design you would be able to wrap it a lot easier. A lot of them are electric, and as far as fuel sitting on it, most of the people that fly are going to clean their stuff up and take care of it as the helis are very expensive to get into. If you do get into it, maybe I can help you out with getting the different canopies to make the templates for or something like that. There are a bunch of places that do it with the cars, one of our biggest vendors that does this is UpGrade-RC. The vinyl they use for the lexan bodies is the same thick stuff you would use on a dirtbike. I don't know the exact material. But then the body is painted a base color or sometimes half & half. Like the front half black and the rear half white then when the graphics are applied the seams are kind of the same color and it doesn't look like it was applied in pieces. Send me a personal message if you are interested. I can also talk to our heli tech to see what he thinks about the fuel, but like I stated before I don't think it would be a big problem because most of the people that spend the money for the helicopters are not going to let it get torn up.

 

[SlightlyChilled]

What do you think you would charge for a wrap... I just thinkl it would be more of a pain in the ass to wrap... I fly a 450 size... And with that I for got about the big boys..... They might be better. Would you do the install or mail order??? If you can find the nitch then rock it out.... I just think its alot of work for little cash hell I maybe wrong and I hope I am...

slightlychilled, why do you think it wouldnt be profitable?

 

[datablitz]

Maybe a mix of install and mail order, judgin by the market I would expect to sell them for 50 to 100 depending on the design for larger helicopters. Material usag should be less than 4 sq ft

 

[MikeSTK]

Our knowledge is more car/truck based. Also they primarily use lexan bodies. As far as the profit margin goes an awesome design makes the body worth 6-8 times retail of the shell alone.

So if you can hit it right there could be alot of room for income. And you are right in the footage of material required is minimal at best.

Our reason for getting out of R/Cs was purely internet sales. Availability of parts for pennies on the dollar became commonplace. But as I said anybody offering really cool shells was killing it (I watched the completed sales on Ebay alone for years and it was staggering).

Good luck!

 

[CRD]

Hi Tress,
All OK?

P3 say Hi to your BOSS Kendell from Paco.

Datablitz.

I run modelcars for 25 years or even more .
Doing modelcar wraps for something of three to four years.

What I do is for a side business I do not have to life from it (yet).
We charge not enough for time we put into it.
If we have to charge hourlabour the stuff is to expensive.
For me it is a hobby for the things I like to do and it brings some monmey but not piles. If a customer is happy we are too.
Sofar only happy customers that come back.

Since shortly we use Arlon DPF5460GTX for the modelcar bodies including !:8 and 1:6 scale offroad buggies using nitro and petrol engines.
They hold up fine for the time the customer requires it.
We have no problem with the nitro fuel.

We laminate with regular 60 um lamination.
All polymere vinyl nothing special.

Other wrappers use thicker vinyl but we see no benefit as everything holds fine sofar except for one wing brand and design.
They also make you need to use paint inside the body to cover up open seams and spaces.

Remember for 1:8 scale buggy the lifetime expectensy is around 1 year depending on the crashes. Vinyl enhaces the strength of the PC bodies as we at CRD do not use an polycarbonate paint. They are full body wraps. Paint weakens the edges over time making the body prone to tear.

We apply the decals which are panels for a fee or customers do ti themselves and we provide manuals for each type of body and some are even video manuals.

For your heli canapese the problem is the round curves.
If you use cast vinyl you can warp it but prefix designs on it will distord.
If you make a panel design taking the outlines of each canape is taking much time..........take care of that.

Do you have your own printer and cutter?

If you need more info let me know.

I am here to share .............. and learn where possible.

Paco

 

[datablitz]

I do own my own machine, a roland sp300I print/cut. So I can do it all in house. I woud love to get ahold of some templates if you wish to share or sell them. I need to get some car bodies to test on. The canopys will definatly be a challenge bt I am going to see what I can do

 

[CRD]

Datablitz,

OK so you can print, that is one step in the right direction.
What are your other things you have done with design and vinyl?

I hope you are not such a guy who bought a machine and then asked what can I do with it to earn piles of money as quick as possible.

If you like to go in to this you really need to get known to what you are doing. Just copy and paste is not working.

Buy a regular 1:8 scale body many people use for example the Mugen Seiki MBX6 buggy kit body.
Maybe "P3" can hook you up together with some Heli canapese.
Try to make a template for it.
I know it takes time but you need to get this skilled as you will do more of them later for sure once you get the hang of it.
Better start with car wings as they are easier to make outlines for to learn what you are doing.

Or go to a modelcar club and offer a first free of charge test for a local top driver in your region!
That is what I did too.
The first design was for myselve.......!

I take outlines for the bodies like this:
Take some thin paper and press the lines you need into it.
Redraw this with a thin black marker.
Scan the whole and make vector lines of it.
I use Corel Draw X4 for this.
Cut from cheap vinyl and see if they are correct. (sure they are not :scream
Correct until it is correct. The hard way!

Decide if you do full wraps or the wrap and paint stuff.
For 100% full wraps you have to overlay the seams so this takes a little more time and precision.
When ready make a blank template and try to make a design so when panels touch the design is fluent as possible. (this is the hardest part)

So making a template is easy and only takes you to read some lines above. :Big Laugh

Really try to get known to it as a start.

From a sunny other side of the world, Paco

 

[datablitz]

i've been working with vinyl for a few years now, and have a decent customer base. i have not had the printer for long, but am quickly building more business with it. the rc wraps are just something i would like to do because i am involved the hobby and would like to offer that service to others in the hobby. i have a local connection for bodys and canopys that i can get at dealer cost and a few people that will give me some for trials. ive been working on some rough designs, waiting on some sample material to see how its all going to layout on the bodys and canopys. thanks for the advise!

 

[TresL]

CRD,
power is staying on now, just lots of rain..CRAZY Storms.
Thanks for asking...