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Blacking out exterior chrome parts?

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Where are you located? There are film wrap companies all across the country all whom have worked with more than 2+ handfuls of Teslas.
Signature Customs in So Florida.
SS Customs in the SF Bay Area.
Protective Film Solutions in Orange County, CA.
...and many more.


DIY will take some major innate skill working with vinyl film.

I'm definitely a DIY'er myself, but after seeing what goes into wrapping trim, no thanks. I'll hold the film guys accountable for my Teslas.




Anyone know how I can "black out" the exterior chrome parts of my Model X? Do you know any online vendor who sell these kits so I can DIY, or if you have any other recommendations? Thanks!
 
I have noticed some completely black out the Tesla strip in the back of the MX. While others leave the letters “Tesla” visible while the other part of the strip is blacked out. Is one painted and other not painted?

Lol revive a 3yr old thread..where u see the letters visible the vinyl is cut around the letters ..takes more time ..to do it right u would remove silver trim completely and than remove the tesla letters than wrap
 
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I didn’t know you can remove the Tesla letters. I thought it was embedded into the chrome strip. A shop said that due to the raised “Tesla” letters, they have no choice but to cut out the letters because if they tried to cover the entire strip, the “Tesla” letters would cause the wrap to bubble. Wasn’t sure if it was true or if they just didn’t know how to do it correctly.
 
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I tried Plastidip and got sold on it

$10 -15 a can plus drape is way cheaper than professional chrome deleters (2 cans covered all wheels and chrome trim). It might not be as durable, but peels off and you just reapply. Hardest part is the masking and that's not even hard.
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Does anyone know the difference in vinyl brands? Some shops use 3m and others use Avery Dennison. Does the brand matter?

To the end user, no. Must colors look identical. But some colors are special to one brand like the metallics or color shift . To the installer, my wrap place said one stretches better while the other needs heat to coax it. I don't remember which is which but the seasoned wrapper will use whichever is best. My 3 was wrapped in Avery while chrome deleted with 3m.

Wow that looks awesome, great job.

Thanks! I was surprised myself. Bought another 6 cans for future use/experimenting .
 
When I first looked into deleting the chrome, I called around and got some ridiculous quotes to use the vinyl wraps. Many over $1K for all around. Professional painting was even worse with some wanting almost $3K. (But, then again, I live in a high cost region compared to say the Midwest). So, I just did it on my own. As long as you have patience and time, it's not incredibly difficult to vinyl wrap it yourself, including the emblems. The side mirrors were the hardest as those have bends in three dimensions versus something like the window trim. Just do the mirrors in more than one piece and have the seams under so it doesn't show. Also, I used Plastidip for the rear chrome trim and model designations. The only bad thing about Plastidip is, if you need to redo it after a couple years, it's much harder to take off than vinyl wrap. It kind of becomes brittle and comes off in very little pieces.

Does anyone know the difference in vinyl brands? Some shops use 3m and others use Avery Dennison. Does the brand matter?

3M's solid and matte blacks are deeper in color, more durable, but harder to work and apply. Avery is easier to work with but not as black and not as durable. I went with 3M because I don't want to have to redo anything and it looks better as it's deeper in color. But, I had to spend more time being slow and careful to make it turn out well. But, once you do it once, just like anything, the next time is much easier. My second car only needed half the time of the first.
 
When I first looked into deleting the chrome, I called around and got some ridiculous quotes to use the vinyl wraps. Many over $1K for all around. Professional painting was even worse with some wanting almost $3K. (But, then again, I live in a high cost region compared to say the Midwest). So, I just did it on my own. As long as you have patience and time, it's not incredibly difficult to vinyl wrap it yourself, including the emblems. The side mirrors were the hardest as those have bends in three dimensions versus something like the window trim. Just do the mirrors in more than one piece and have the seams under so it doesn't show. Also, I used Plastidip for the rear chrome trim and model designations. The only bad thing about Plastidip is, if you need to redo it after a couple years, it's much harder to take off than vinyl wrap. It kind of becomes brittle and comes off in very little pieces.



3M's solid and matte blacks are deeper in color, more durable, but harder to work and apply. Avery is easier to work with but not as black and not as durable. I went with 3M because I don't want to have to redo anything and it looks better as it's deeper in color. But, I had to spend more time being slow and careful to make it turn out well. But, once you do it once, just like anything, the next time is much easier. My second car only needed half the time of the first.


for the mirror trim, did you use the strips of cutting tape to make clean edges? i'm thinking of wrapping that section for more durability
 
for the mirror trim, did you use the strips of cutting tape to make clean edges? i'm thinking of wrapping that section for more durability

For all trims including emblem, I just cut my own pieces from the large rolls you can order online. BTW, best to draw and cut a template from the various trim pieces to see how you can maximize the vinyl material, instead of making rectangular cuts for all the trim. Not difficult since you only need to do own side and flip the template for cutting the other side of the car.

For the side mirrors trims, I did it in 2 pieces basically. I cut the vinyl into "L" or crescent moon shapes if you can imagine what I mean so that it would go around the actual mirror.
 
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I tried Plastidip and got sold on it

$10 -15 a can plus drape is way cheaper than professional chrome deleters (2 cans covered all wheels and chrome trim). It might not be as durable, but peels off and you just reapply. Hardest part is the masking and that's not even hard.
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That's commitment, nice work! I'm going on a limb and say this isn't your first time taping off for spraying/painting
 
Thank you! I'm still getting the hang of it, hence the folders and paper used as masking before I decided to get the right stuff. I tested the waters first with the dual motor emblem on the 3 and was surprised with how well it turned out (despite the horrible texture) that I figured why not try it on the trim. With a different technique, I was able to get it on there so that it's smooth and not bumpy like the earlier spray on the 3.
 

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