chrome wrap

I can't remember in which topic I actually mentioned that I will be visiting a local company that deals with nickel and chrome plating.

I enquired but to no avail.
They cannot handle plastics in any shape or form so the only thing left I see on the horizon is chrome wrap.

Cheap too:
link

Good find Marcin. Well worth having a couple of sheets of that in the cupboard for a mod.

Nice one, that stuff could come in well handy for the modders out there

Yes, especially that we don't seem to have an alternative for re-doing these parts.

I need to take some measurements and I will order some to coat my neck covers as they were badly mistreated by previous owner... or his cat by the look of the scratches...

Excellent find Marcin

Same here neck covers cheers Marcin good find

Just ordered 2 rolls 50cm x 75cm.

As usual you can expect photos, report and videos from me carrying out the work.

Not hanging about then Marcin

There too many things in life that "hang about" my friend

good stuff, i was directed here in the hope of saving my cat scratched neck cover. Can't wait to see how it turns out

has anyone tried this chrome wrap yet? On the verge of ordering some

I'm planning on trying tomorrow matey so stay tuned.

good luck!

Looking forward to the outcome Marcin good luck mate then i can order some

Well after over 3 hours spent in the garage I can honestly say:
"F* THIS SHIT!"
I'd rather buy new covers.

I've ran out of patience several times today, waste around half of the material.

When I had enough beer I will post photos.

Oh Marcin, your stress goes to prove that we would have enjoyed one of your videos on this installation.

You're not wrong... 44 minutes in I realised that I was still recording and I just switched off as at this stage is was all going royally tits up :)

Don't get me wrong....the material seems great....but the curves and the fact that you don't have the part attached to anything and you can't pull properly is a killer.

Right...so...

This is the reason I actually wanted to go with the wrap.
It appears the previous owner was firing the bike up with a wire brush.... :7348:


This is the result of the left neck cover...looks nice on flat surface...


..but when you look at the curves...well it sucks
And that's only the left one..the simpler one. I started off with the right one and the area around the ignition proved to be an obstacle I just couldn't deal with... all went tits up.


..and that's how it all ended up in the end. One half completely mangled and the other partially saved..for God know's what...I may wrap some of my son's car toys...



I'm clueless...
I did my research...prepared everything...had the hair dryer on stand-by...heated everything nicely...but I just couldn't cope with the fact that I had to hold the piece in one hand and stretch with the other...just not stable enough...you need both hands for that.
Maybe it was the temperature in the garage....I don't really know.

I will try again with the rest of the material I have.... side covers should be much easier to do...but not today...and not tomorrow...some other day when I'm less stressed.

Sorry...no videos this time.

The flat bit and less curvy bits look good! I'm sure with practise you'd master the tighter edges

[quote="MarcinG"]. 44 minutes in I realised that I was still recording and I just switched off
cumon marcin with 44 mins i could get some popcorn for this one vid vid vid vid
is there anywere that does sines or stickers (for cars work van so on)near were you live theres a place near me that do that sort of stuff and he's great i'v got him to do stuff for me in the past even if its a pain in the arse the gye does it for a livin so he's good at it i normally give him a 5er got him to make me sum stickers once he charged 20 quid made me two sets (so i had a spare ) they were for a petrol tank each side had a sticker with another sticker on top to get it how i wanted it i rubed down the tank sprayed it took him the tank he put them on for me then it was ready to be laquerd cuple of blokes that work there like bikes though i think i had a bit of a tuch
by the way looks not bad for your first go

Maybe when they wrap a full car, they use a higher heat than a hairdryer?

Even so Marcin, for those of us who like tinkering, even when something doesn't go 100%, it's still fun trying, and you learn something in the process.

I agree with dave and morgan that would have made for a good bit of entertainment and we would probably have learned a few polish swear words along the way
Seriously tho mate, sorry it went tits up

VID VID VID VID VID i think this could be your best yet

He could have gone bloody viral with that one

You Two are cruel, however I gotta agree with you.

Haha Ill see what I recorded but all the swearing came after the camera was off... i think.

Well you gave it a try, nothing ventured nothing gained, as the saying goes.

not to bad maybe more practice or more heat or perhaps an extra pair of hands & don't do it if your tired

more temperature and extra pair of hands might be an answer... I'll try

Could you hold the part to be covered lightly in a vice or maybe a pair of mole grips?

The wrap is a rather thick material and it takes quite a bit of strength to stretch it. In addition, if you pull with one hand only it tends to warp towards the pulling point so 2 hands to even it out would be a must I think.

Bear in mind we're talking here about really light bike parts...they're hard to grip.
If you watch any of the wrapping videos, they always wrap parts attached to the bike/car/whatever. I can't and it's posing problems :/

Never mind...it was only 5 quid I wasted. I can live with that.
I'll get my beautiful half to help me and I'll have a go at side covers.

EBAY LINK

Found this on Fleabay some have different colours too.

Why not just go to a graphics/vinyl specialist? I have has loads of bikes in the past fitted with new graphics and its not that expensive.
Search for IMAGE WORKS that's where I go and they always do a top quality job. There are many companies round the UK that do the same thing so it might be worth a look.


Jim.

Why?
Because ( swearing and problems aside ) it's fun and rewarding to do something yourself.
Many members here take pride in work they do opposed to just paying to get it done.

And I doubt that a specialist company would charge a fiver. :)

Point taken mate but it seems like you gave it a go and hats off to you but maybe its time to let the pro's do it, still cheaper than new covers too !!

Jim

I agree there is the satisfaction that you did it yourself and even if it all goes tits up well start again and learn by the experience. I would love a go.

Excellent links