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I put a stripe kit on my 69 442, on top of the clear-coat "thin stripe kit".
Then sold the car.
Not sure how well the strips will hold up over time.
Now I plan on repainting my 71 CS with a Stock Hood. Not OAI.
If I get a stripe kit, should I put the Stripe Under or over the clear-coat?
The tentative strip plan is the picture below.
Stock Hood.
Strips just like the picture.
I have seen many companies selling strip kits. But when they show the sample picture on the WEB, its always on a OAI hood.
I need a longer set of decals. Any suggestions?
Sample Picture, No my car. My color will be Saturn Gold with a white stripe.
I would think it would take a ton of clear to level the transition from the stripe to the body. You would need to be very careful blocking and buffing the clear to prevent cutting thru where the stripe ends.
Im not much of a body/paint guy, so maybe this concern isn’t that big a deal.
Just personal opinion, but if you are having your car painted, I would have the stripe painted on as well before the clear coat. The belly stripe on my '68 4-4-2 was done that way and it's perfect. On my '69, I have the W36 stripes painted on the hood that were put on like they were at the factory - I much prefer the former than the latter.
It all about cost. One shop quoted $12k. which is too much.
Another shop that I used for the 442 (which came out great) wants only $4k, if i get the car stripped before painting.
And i have to install all the trim and interior after paint.
This shop cant paint stripes.
They did install the 69 Decal stripes on the 442 and that looked good. So I am leaning towards the decal setup and save a few $k.
Decals go on OVER paint. DO NOT clear over the decals. Here's why...
If they're premium cast vinyl decals, like the Oracal 900 series vinyl for example, they likely won't shrink, but the clear could soften or change the color slightly of the vinyl and as mentioned, leveling at the edges could be a nightmare, even with a thin mil decal. You will be sorry down the road that you cleared over them.
If they're calendared vinyl stripes, to go along with the potential discoloring, etc., mentioned above, they also have more of a tendency to shrink over time. Guess what that will do to your top coat clear? Not a good look.
If you want decals, have them put on AFTER the clear goes on, and try to make sure they're cast vinyl if at all possible. A little pricier than calendared, but will last longer. (7 plus years for the most part). Good part about it is if you don't like them after a while, you can take them off. But if you want them permanent, I'd suggest painting them on if at all possible.
Coming from someone who literally just picked up my '72 Supreme hours ago from the body shop after having the hood repainted and striped, here's my .02.
When I dropped it off, the discussion was whether to go with decals or painted stripes. The body man was dead set against decals, and I agreed, so the stripes were painted then 2 coats of clear coat was applied. There is a slight ridge at the stripes, but it's a smooth transition, it looks way better than decals, and it's more durable.
Bottom line, if you can afford it and have the patience, have the stripes painted. You'll be much happier that you didn't take the short cut with decals. Obviously I can't speak for other body shops, but the tab for the insurance company was $1300 and some change... money well spent IMO
Just to add...When I painted the '78 Tans Am I had, the bird went on top of the clear. The bird that was on it when I bought it was cracked throughout and was clear coated over the decal.
Some have cleared over it with success but, there have been many cases of the clear and/or the decal cracking. Solvent based clears may be the culprit as it reacts to the vinyl decal...or whatever the substrate us.
Another issue could be expansion rates of the decal vs the clear. IMPO, the best approach is decal over the clear.
Then, of course, adhesion, as Joe mentioned...If the finished decal has not been surface treated via chemical or Corona Discharge (which is highly unlikely) it is doubtful that that the decal has the surface energy to support a water based clear.
It seems like Decals should be on Top of the clear coat. Thanks.
I am looking at the possibility of Painting with a Stencil.
Not sure of the price, etc.
I did find a company that sells the decals and Stencils for a Non-OAI hood set of stripes.
My car currently has the Chrome trim that runs front to rear down the side of the car. This trim will need to be removed when I put on the stripes.
Both Stripes and trim will clash.
PS Nice TA. I assume that's the 6.6 Oldsmobile 400.
No...Pontiac 400. The 403 Olds saw its largest entry in '79. In fact, all T/A automatics were Olds 403. The Pontiac 400 blocks leftover from '78 were reserved for the T/A 4 speeds in '79.
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