DIY clear bra anyone?

CheapBastard

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 12, 2019
Location
California
TDI
2014 JSW
Thinking about doing it, picked up a small chip already, looked at YouTube and looks doable but just want to hear from someone that’s actually done it, I’d put my tinkering skill set at a 4 out of 10
 

Votblindub

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 22, 2010
Location
NY
TDI
MK4 Jetta Wagon
Thinking about doing it, picked up a small chip already, looked at YouTube and looks doable but just want to hear from someone that’s actually done it, I’d put my tinkering skill set at a 4 out of 10
You can order vinyl online or from local shops. This makes it a little more difficult, because you will be cutting it to shape. This is the most economic choice, but the most time consuming.
Have you looked at pre cut pieces for your specific car? Dealerships (yes, i know it's expensive) will have a paint protections package or something along those lines for most cars. They're pre cut pieces that cover the front portion of the hood, headlights, side view mirrors (typically plastic, so not as important), front bumper (though it's plastic and can't rust) and even fender flares on occasion.
 

Nuje

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 11, 2005
Location
Island near Vancouver
TDI
2015 Sportwagen; Golf GLS 2002 (swap from 2L gas); 2016 A3 e-tron
I got a package (gift from wife) from InvisibleMask.com (I think was the name) for my Mk7 GSW - included pre-cut pieces for mirrors, hood, front bumper, rear bumper sill...install requires patience, and particularly with the larger pieces, another set of hands (preferably belonging to someone to whom you're not married, as this may place second only to teaching a spouse how to drive a stick, on the "So you think you're relationship is solid...?" test bed.)

The one thing I learned, though, is that the pieces are cut short/small - that's so you can stretch them to fit, which makes getting ride of little wrinkles easier.

As an aside: My wife, having taken a look at the car, figured out that the headlights have a plastic lens, so she figured, "Why buy plastic to cover a plastic lens?" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So, for the headlights, I bought a roll of 3M ClearBra, went onto the Lamin-X website, copied one of their graphics, and then scaled it up to be a cut-out template for my headlights.

If you're wanting to see if your skill/patience is up to the task before going all-in, you'll need a little over 2ft. of 12" wide ClearBra™ with this template (runs over two pages because I don't have 11x18" printer). For the "other side" headlight, you just flip the template over.
 
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