Has anybody out there ever installed any kind of vinyl graphics or decals? I ordered some up but they did not come with an install kit or instructions. I heard you can put them on wet and use a squeegee to apply them. Should I just pay somebody to put them on? Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

 

Put them on yourself. I learned this method from owning many dirt bike motorcycles which have tons of vinyl graphics. Make a 50/50 mixture of water and rubbing alchohol. Make sure the area is clean. Spray the mixture on heavy. This will allow you to move the decals all around until you get them in the spot you like. Once you have them situated where you want use a wet sponge or rag and work out the air bubbles and any excessive mixture that is underneath the decal. They will come out perfect. Even though you think you are ruining the adhesive you are not. This method is bullet proof. Need to wrap vinyl decals around corners and into inside corners? Bullet proof. This works on autos, glass, and plastics. When it dries those decals are on forever.

 

My decal runs along the entire rocker panel front to back but needs to be cut obviously for the door and bed joints so I can put apply them in sections but I want to make sure they are all even so if I move them around too much I'm worried I'll never get them perfectly. Do you think a "dry" run would work so that I could mask off a straight line and work with that? I'm very surprised that the alcohol won't ruin the adhesive but if you say it works I might have to try it. I would like to do it myself just to say that I did it. Your help is greatly appreciated.

 

Also will taking my truck through a drive thru car wash where the waterpressure is obviously high strip off the decal?

 

They are going nowhere. They may rip off but they sure won't peel off. You gotta keep it wet so you can get it in place. If you let it dry then it most likely won't come off with out tearing it unless you use something to make it come off.

Let's say I was putting a 2 foot wide racing stripe down the hood of my truck. I would saturate the hood where the decal will go. Then I would slowly unroll it and work it a little at a time. I think the alchohol helps the water evaporate or dissapate. But when it's dry it's staying. This is how we all did them on our dirt bikes. And we had some very tough bends to go around and they stayed put. My 4x4 F150 came without decals. But I did buy the factory ones and installed them using this method. If you go to a motorcyle store go read the instructions for the vinyl kits. I have heard people using soap and water to apply them also. But all the people we knew with dirt bikes did it my way.

Go buy a small decal and try it. But try it where you won't mind it staying. Because when it dries, its permanent.

 

Great I think I'm going to do it tomorrow thanks for all your help!

 

A mixture of 2 drops of dishsoap to 1 quart of warm water works well too. This way you get an even coverage on the surface without the water beading off. This makes it easier to apply the emblem/decal. One last thing is to heat the area where you're putting the decal just a bit. I used a hairdryer to keep the area lukewarm and make the decal a bit easier to work with. DO NOT OVERHEAT!
Don't mind the nutz!

 

[QUOTE=cyberart4] A mixture of 2 drops of dishsoap to 1 quart of warm water works well too. This way you get an even coverage on the surface without the water beading off. This makes it easier to apply the emblem/decal. One last thing is to heat the area where you're putting the decal just a bit. I used a hairdryer to keep the area lukewarm and make the decal a bit easier to work with. DO NOT OVERHEAT!
Don't mind the nutz!

I've heard of people doing it this way but I've never tried it.

 

Let me know how you make out.

 

I installed my decals today and it went perfectly..they look likey they came straight from the factory a big thank you to 6T6CPE and cyberart4 for their info...pics to follow soon!

 

Great!. Now don't take them through a car wash! Just kiddin. They're on for good.

 

LOLOLOL That's freaking hilarious! I wondered about it myself until I went through one. The emblem was fine but the mirrors were to big!

 

Here's my pics tell me what you think!

https://www.f150online.com/galleries....cfm?gnum=7139

 

Had I known they were Roush decals I'd a given you bad instructions. I'm a Tony Stewart fan and Roush is the enemy.

But they do look good and it looks like a factory job. The closeup photo of the wheel looks like a photo made for a magazine ad. Nice job.

 

We all know Tony Stewart learned everything he knows from Mark Martin!