decals and stripes for a cargo trailer

[pete42]

I have ordered a 7X14 V-nosed cargo trailer which I will pick up after labor day.
I am trying to gather "stuff" for the build one thing I would like to add is
some decals or stripes to the smooth sided gray colored tralier.
has anyone added decals to their CT, if so can you show me pictures.
thanks Pete

[dudleydoright]

Hi Pete,

I was wondering the same thing for my CT, but also wondering where to buy the decals. Any help would be appreciated.

thanks,

Mike

[Oldragbaggers]

You can find tons of RV decals on eBay for very good prices. Lots and lots to choose from. I usually get tired of looking before I make through all the pages of listings they have.

[pete42]

I too have seen the ones on e-bay not sure I could install them
I'm begining wondering if other people add decals

pete

[Oldragbaggers]

Pete, we've been doing the self-applied decals to our boats for years and have always found them to be easy to apply, long lasting and beautiful. I haven't put them on my trailer yet. The main difference will be that the trailer decals will probably be a bit larger, and maybe a little bit more tricky to handle, but I don't foresee it being too difficult. Having an extra pair of hands to help you hold it up and line it up might help though.

[pmowers]

Pete, Many of the graphics come with 2 layers of "paper" and adhesive. The graphics have a permanent adhesive and then they are held together with a layer called transfer tape, which has a much lower strength adhesive, resembling painters or masking tape. I would normally draw a very faint line with a pencil on the trailer to line things up. Peel off the backing on the transfer tape and stick the decals/transfers where you are going to put them. When everything is lined up the way that you want, you gently peel off the backing paper on the decal, having the transfer tape holding it in place. Once everything is smoothed down, just gently pull off the transfer tape, leaving the decal. Sounds much more complicated than it is. Here is a link that has some pretty good pictures illustrating the procedure.
http://www.signindustry.com/vinyl/articles/2005-01-14-Avery_VinylApps.php3

Pat

[pete42]

Sounds like a couple of extra hands would come in handy
I've been messing with sketchup 8 doing some stripes and swoops GF said she
likes the stripes better than the swoops we'll see when the time comes
if there is a local place that does them I may just use them.
I have sometime before I head to Florida but cold weather will be here soon also.
lots to add to trailer but I may just add bare esentials then finish more next year.

[Shadow Catcher]

We had custom graphics done by Bad Brush Design, It was painless and easy to do. These are vinyl and on a reverse backing, peel off the the back apply to a clean surface peel off the front and you are done.

[Gadget Man]

Pete:
Yes, Check E-bay there are thousands of different sticker decals available. Most sellers will offer instruction on how to install.
If you are just doing a random design vs. lettering on a commercial vehicle you don't really have to be 100% perfectly level or centered.
I have done a lot of vinyl lettering stickers on Heating & Cooling service trucks over the years.
First you lay it out straight and stick it down on the top (like a hinge) with blue painters tape, then lift up the entire decal and remove the backing paper, then just let it slowly fall back into it's original position. You will smooth out any air bubble as you go down. Then rub hard on the otter layer of the protective paper with a squeegee. Once you are satisfied, you remove the outer paper layer and you are finished.
A little soapy water in spray bottle helps get things moved around before final setting.

Don't let decals or lettering scare you, it's actually very simple.

Gadget Man

[flboy]

E-bay is a great place to find all sorts of stuff for your build. My CTC is mostly E-bay and Home Depot..

[accrete]

Hi Pete,

In this picture of our van, if you look closely you will see some pin-striping on the lower edge of the fiberglass top. Our thought was the graphic would break up the van enough so that the casual observer would not notice the slight difference in whites of van-body/van-roof.



We got our graphic-stripe(s) from http://www.stripeman.com Be sure to click through the various left-navigation-bar links...lots of fun ideas!



What we were not prepared for was that the 8 pin-stripes, though they are on a single _roll_ are actually individual stripes! I thought it would be some clear graphic with black stripes. It was a PAIN to put on the van, but then my wife and i are sort of OCD anal when it comes to our projects (read both perfectionists). Sure looks nice, but we needed some Zen time after that project! Hint, make sure you do it on a calm day with no wind-gusts!

As a side note, the black hood of our van is a decal too...of sorts. It is a 3M vinyl wrap in carbon fiber. It even feels like CF. We put it on within a few weeks of having the van as we wanted to preserve a clean look in case rocks, etc tried to find their way to the hood. Two years later and the hood looks perfect.



Thom

[GarArnett]

I want to do a full wrap of my 6x10 in "urban camo" - the grey/black/white camo. What I really want is this: http://www.morningwoodcamo.com/

[cuyeda]

I have purchased reflective stripes. It comes in a variety of colors, and widths. Boaters like the stripes, and can apply your own designs. I have not applied it to a trailer yet, but my thinking was it would be highly visible at night for safety reasons.

[pete42]

I thank everyone for their replies I had to cancel my order
for the trailer but I guess if someone else needs decals or stripes this thread
may be of some use.

pete

[accrete]

I want to do a full wrap of my 6x10 in "urban camo" - the grey/black/white camo. What I really want is this: http://www.morningwoodcamo.com/

Took me a couple takes to figure out what was going on in the pattern. way funny. my wife would kill me!
Thankfully she picked out a camo that she worked into our van interior that is a bit more PG rated and still kewl ; )

inside our van with my wife's work on customizing the stock smittybuilt seat covers/backs and finding trim to match along with installing the marine grade carpet on walls/ceiling... all for a very clean interior:



Cheers,
Thom