Alpha Vinyl hood blackout with red pinstripe on silver JL Rubicon

tobyw

Member
Well done. I'm usually not a fan of hood blackouts, but for some reason I am getting so much sun off of the hood of the JL. This is something that I may consider.

It's funny, I'm finding the same thing on ours... I've had at least a half dozen other white Jeeps over the years and never had hood glare like with the JL :idontknow:
 

YAHAHA

New member
You did a really nice job on this. The red pinstripe is a great finishing touch.

I'm looking for a kit that covers the whole dome, including the hood vents.


It's not just a Jeep, it's an amusement park on wheels.
 

Ibustem

New member
That looks amazing! How hard was the pin stripe to do? Would you post a link were you got the red stripe. I would love to do this to mine but want to make sure the red matches.


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Actually, the red stripe was the easy part. I ordered mine with the alpha vinyl hood decal. A similar product is 3M Scotchcal 72666 Dark Red Striping Automotive Tape - 1/4 in Width x 2 mil Thick. Unfortunately, it is out of stock almost everywhere. Here is the Amazon link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0010AT0A0/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_7018BbAKJ4X8E.

Good luck,
JC
 

Jeeeep

Member
that looks good :thumb:

How long did it take to apply and any hints on getting it on so flat?

I usually end up with air pockets, slightly crooked lol
 

ddays v2

Member
that looks good :thumb:

How long did it take to apply and any hints on getting it on so flat?

I usually end up with air pockets, slightly crooked lol

Spray the hood & back of the vinyl with a weak soapy solution - I use Murphy's oil soap diluted way down. Lay vinyl down and make sure it's positioned where you want it. Now place a big piece of wax paper over the top of the vinyl
and start at the center and squeegee the solution out with a plastic body putty applicator. Repeat until all water & bubbles are out. If you screw it up or find dog hairs under the damn thing, you can still peel it back off easily until the solution evaporates out. :thumb:
 

Ibustem

New member
The bottom of the decal from Alpha Vinyl does not want to lay properly at the bottom of the hood. That is what makes this install difficult. I would make sure that you prep the surface and the decal with a good amount of application solution ( spray bottle of water with 3 or 4 drops of dish soap or baby shampoo). position the decal starting at the top of the hood (it should be easy to work with if you used ample amount of solution) Once in place, start in the middle of the decal with credit card wrapped in microfiber cloth moving from top to bottom. The bottom 1/3 of the decal is the hard part. I used a hair dryer to make the decal more pliable and slightly shrink the larger bubbles. I also massaged the last few creases and bubbles out to the end of the decal with my fingers. it took a while and some patients, but eventually it worked. Once the decal is completely dry, apply the pinstripe from the top being careful not to stretch it.



Good luck,:thumb:


JC
 

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Jeeeep

Member
Spray the hood & back of the vinyl with a weak soapy solution - I use Murphy's oil soap diluted way down. Lay vinyl down and make sure it's positioned where you want it. Now place a big piece of wax paper over the top of the vinyl
and start at the center and squeegee the solution out with a plastic body putty applicator. Repeat until all water & bubbles are out. If you screw it up or find dog hairs under the damn thing, you can still peel it back off easily until the solution evaporates out. :thumb:

The bottom of the decal from Alpha Vinyl does not want to lay properly at the bottom of the hood. That is what makes this install difficult. I would make sure that you prep the surface and the decal with a good amount of application solution ( spray bottle of water with 3 or 4 drops of dish soap or baby shampoo). position the decal starting at the top of the hood (it should be easy to work with if you used ample amount of solution) Once in place, start in the middle of the decal with credit card wrapped in microfiber cloth moving from top to bottom. The bottom 1/3 of the decal is the hard part. I used a hair dryer to make the decal more pliable and slightly shrink the larger bubbles. I also massaged the last few creases and bubbles out to the end of the decal with my fingers. it took a while and some patients, but eventually it worked. Once the decal is completely dry, apply the pinstripe from the top being careful not to stretch it.

Good luck,:thumb:

JC

Thanks for the tips!

The wax paper or micro cloth, good to know! no pre-scratches :thumb:
 

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