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Vehicle wrap materials

Y

York

New Member
Hi All,

I'm new to the forum and new to the business. I am in the midst of gathering intel for a startup wrap business. I have a warehouse and large format printing capabilities. I am looking for input on materials.
- What is trade cost on vinyl materials? (3M vs Oracal vs Hexis)
- Is a laminate necessary for all materials (Assuming the wrap needs to last 2 years)?
- How much material is necessary for a midsized sedan (ie. VW jetta). How much material for a Mini or smart car?
- What is the total time it takes to wrap a full car?

Thanks in advance for your help.
 
Y

York

New Member
Pat White said:
Welcome to Signs 101.

1. Talk to your supplier for prices - if you already have large format printing capabilities you surely order vinyl.

2.Yes

3. Depends on your skill level. Times will vary
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply. I am partnering with someone that has large format print capabilities but has never printed on cast vinyl used for vehicle graphics. We have been quoted prices of approximately $650 for a 25 yd x 48" roll of Oracal material which seems high.
 
tomence

tomence

New Member
York said:
Thanks for your reply. I am partnering with someone that has large format print capabilities but has never printed on cast vinyl used for vehicle graphics. We have been quoted prices of approximately $650 for a 25 yd x 48" roll of Oracal material which seems high.
Click to expand...

The price you are getting is probably for 54"x50yrds. Otherwise is too much for 25yrds.
Also vehicle wraps are not cheap.
 
Y

York

New Member
tomence said:
The price you are getting is probably for 54"x50yrds. Otherwise is too much for 25yrds.
Also vehicle wraps are not cheap.
Click to expand...

Right - that is for 48" x 50 yds. Laminate is an additional $200 or so. So total wrap and laminate materials is $525. How many midsize cars could I get out of that?
 
tomence

tomence

New Member
York said:
Right - that is for 48" x 50 yds. Laminate is an additional $200 or so. So total wrap and laminate materials is $525. How many midsize cars could I get out of that?
Click to expand...

I don't know where you are getting this info but Oracal's vehicle wrap vinyl does not come in 48" size, not in the Fellers catalog. The prices that i see in the catalog are as follows

Oracal 3951RA 54"x50yrds = $655.99
Oracal 290 Laminate 54"x50yrds = $517.99
 
Scott Reynolds

Scott Reynolds

New Member
The only ship that won't float is a partnership.

If your partner has the print capabilities and you do not, you're doomed. The best thing for you to do is to keep your partnership separate. Get your own business license, and sell (outsorce) to the printing to your partner, and you keep the markup and the install on your end. You're bitting off a lot here, you're trying to jump into vehicle wraps and you don't even have the first clue on what vinyl to use and if it should even be laminated. Vehicle wraps a something that most sign professionals and printers migrate into after they have a fairly firm grasp on their equipment and general material handling.

99.3% percent of car wraps should be laminated. You need a good or at least a decent laminator and the knowledge to use it correctly to do vehicle wraps. You're laminate should be roughly three-quarters of the price of good vinyl. If you're looking for the cheap stuff, you're already in trouble. Most of the guys here are professionals that use upper mid range to high-end materials because they stand behind their work and want the best possible product to sell to their customers.

What kind of machine does your partner have? Not all wide format printers are suited for doing vehicle wraps.
 
Last edited:
Y

York

New Member
Scott Reynolds said:
The only ship that won't float is a partnership.

If your partner has the print capabilities and you do not, you're doomed. The best thing for you to do is to keep your partnership separate. Get your own business license, and sell (outsorce) to the printing to your partner, and you keep the markup and the install on your end. You're bitting off a lot here, you're trying to jump into vehicle wraps and you don't even have the first clue on what vinyl to use and if it should even be laminated. Vehicle wraps a something that most sign professionals and printers migrate into after they have a fairly firm grasp on their equipment and general material handling.

99.3% percent of car wraps should be laminated. You need a good or at least a decent laminator and the knowledge to use it correctly to do vehicle wraps. You're laminate should be roughly three-quarters of the price of good vinyl. If you're looking for the cheap stuff, you're already in trouble. Most of the guys here are professionals that use upper mid range to high-end materials because they stand behind their work and want the best possible product to sell to their customers.

What kind of machine does your partner have? Not all wide format printers are suited for doing vehicle wraps.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. Like I mentioned, I am in the information gathering stage. I don't expect to be able to buy a bunch of materials and wrap a car with no previous experience and very little knowledge. I am trying to better understand the process so I can make an informed decision.

My current understanding is as follows:
- $600 for a 54" x 50 yd roll of Oracal 3951RA (number of cars?)
- $500 for a 54" x 50 yd roll of Oracal 290 laminate (number of cars?)
- Perforated window film (cost per car?)
- Installation (assuming I will outsource to a professional) - number of hours?

I'm essentially looking for answers to the above bolded questions. Any help would be very much appreciated.
 
V

Vinyl pusher

New Member
Scott, Gave you very good advice. Wraps are not something you want to jump right into.
the "cheaper the material" the more it is going to cost you in the installation.
wraps are selling for anywhere from $8-$12 a sq depends on your market.
if you have never installed a wrap i would recommend try wrapping a bowling ball first and don't stop until you can do it without any wrinkles or creases
Good Luck
 
J

john1

Guest
York said:
Thanks for the reply. Like I mentioned, I am in the information gathering stage. I don't expect to be able to buy a bunch of materials and wrap a car with no previous experience and very little knowledge. I am trying to better understand the process so I can make an informed decision.

My current understanding is as follows:
- $600 for a 54" x 50 yd roll of Oracal 3951RA (number of cars?)
- $500 for a 54" x 50 yd roll of Oracal 290 laminate (number of cars?)
- Perforated window film (cost per car?)
- Installation (assuming I will outsource to a professional) - number of hours?

I'm essentially looking for answers to the above bolded questions. Any help would be very much appreciated.
Click to expand...

Your asking questions that really isn't a easy "oh you can get 6 cars out of that roll".

What type of cars? I am sure if your wrapping 20 limos you will need more material then wrapping 20 smart cars. It really depends on the car sizes and how many times your going to mess up being you are a new installer of wraps.

I would HIGHLY suggest taking a wrap class if there is one near you sometime so you can learn the ropes. I think Avery and Fellers has some every now and then (i think)
 
Y

York

New Member
john1 said:
Your asking questions that really isn't a easy "oh you can get 6 cars out of that roll".

What type of cars? I am sure if your wrapping 20 limos you will need more material then wrapping 20 smart cars. It really depends on the car sizes and how many times your going to mess up being you are a new installer of wraps.

I would HIGHLY suggest taking a wrap class if there is one near you sometime so you can learn the ropes. I think Avery and Fellers has some every now and then (i think)
Click to expand...

I definitely plan on signing up for a class in the very near future. I have tried in the past, but they sell out months in advance!

A compact car such as a Hyundai Elantra would require how much material? My current understanding is that 25 yds x 4' would work.
 
phototec

phototec

New Member
Let me get this straight:

You don't have a printer (your partner has a printer).

You don't have a laminator (you didn't even know that almost all vehicle wraps need to be laminated, not just for protection, but to help you install the vehicle wrap so it doesn't stretch).

You didn't know the you need perforated window film for the vehicle windows.

You don't know how to install vehicle wraps (going to sub it out to a professional).

You most likely don't know very much about designing the graphics for vehicle wraps, the do's and don'ts, what software to use, penalization, etc.

You don't know how to figure square footage of a mid-sized car and then calculate how much material it will take to print a vehicle wrap for that size car, including the waste factor.

I would strongly suggest you do lots of homework before getting into this start-up wrap business you mentioned. There are just to many variables to give you simple answers to you r questions, as already mentioned there is much you need to learn first.

Here is a idea for you, design a professional logo for your new start-up wrap business and create your own wrap design for you car, then take it to a professional vehicle wrap business and have them print, laminate and install the wrap on your car, and make a deal with them to allow you to watch (help) as each stage is being done.

Bingo, all you questions will be answered, you will see first hand how each phase is done and how long it takes, and all the steps involved. You will see how much material it takes, including the waste factor, etc.

As I leaned many moons ago, experience is the best teacher.
 
SightLine

SightLine

║▌║█║▌│║▌║▌█
Agree with what's been posted. Fwiw, on average around 2-3 wraps at most out of a full 54" roll if you are planning on smallish cars. Full size vans, transit's, sprinters, etc..... less than 2. A GOOD qualified professional contract installer will cost between $700 and $1200 or so depending on the vehicle, more if you use crap material since they are who will have to struggle to get the crap installed decently. The cars you mention though, does not sound as though you are targeting commercial work. Have fun..... lol Be sure to post pictures, closeups of your designs and installed jobs.
 
premiercolour

premiercolour

Merchant Member
You won't know until you try. Too many cans or cants do are not necessary. You got what you needed as far as information/pricing goes. Work close with your partner(you must trust him in some degree to partner up with him/her) so overhead cost is low in the beginning. After you got all machine/software/Rip/installation well, then you finance to open up your own wrap company. Just by going out on your own will bring too much overhead at this moment where you aren't too familiar with what's going on.
 
C

customeyez

New Member
Buy a good tape measure and a calculator to figure square footage... and never under estimate high quality material and equipment. A bad laminator can send you backward faster than you will be able to sprint forward. I was in the vinyl business for about 10 years before attempting my first wrap and dozens of wraps later I'm still learning. I use 3M IJ180Cv3 with 3M 8519 laminate. It is about the most expensive material you can get but I have tried several brands and 3M costs more for a reason.
 
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