A package of stone chip guards arrived from OPC Leicester yesterday. After putting on the fourth one I'd figured out the technique, so thought I would make a tutorial.
First make sure the paint is really clean and degreased. I washed the car and then wiped down the area with IPA
Fill a squirty bottle full of water and add a few drops of car shampoo. Thoroughly soak the area where the stone guard is going to go. There needs to be a film of water when you apply the guard so it doesn't just stick straight away.
Now here's a great trick! The stone guards come stuck to some shiny backing paper. Take come offcuts of that backing paper and stick it under the two corners, between the guard and the backing. When you remove the backing you will now have two little pieces to hold, to avoid getting fingerprints on the guard material. Remove the backing and soak the adhesive side with the squirty bottle as well.
Now apply. The guard will 'float' on the film of water, so you can slide it about, take it off and reposition it until you are happy with the position. When you are happy, use a squeegee (I used a plastic scraper, the sort used for body filler) to squeeze the film of water out, along with any bubbles. With the film of water gone, it sticks!
Now it looks something like this. I used a cloth to rub it down and make sure there are no bubbles at this stage. The beauty of the water film is that any bubbles will be water and so will slide out to the edges...
Now you can peel off the outer protective film (OPC stoneguards have this which makes them look cloudy, not sure about the others).
All done!
First make sure the paint is really clean and degreased. I washed the car and then wiped down the area with IPA
Fill a squirty bottle full of water and add a few drops of car shampoo. Thoroughly soak the area where the stone guard is going to go. There needs to be a film of water when you apply the guard so it doesn't just stick straight away.
Now here's a great trick! The stone guards come stuck to some shiny backing paper. Take come offcuts of that backing paper and stick it under the two corners, between the guard and the backing. When you remove the backing you will now have two little pieces to hold, to avoid getting fingerprints on the guard material. Remove the backing and soak the adhesive side with the squirty bottle as well.
Now apply. The guard will 'float' on the film of water, so you can slide it about, take it off and reposition it until you are happy with the position. When you are happy, use a squeegee (I used a plastic scraper, the sort used for body filler) to squeeze the film of water out, along with any bubbles. With the film of water gone, it sticks!
Now it looks something like this. I used a cloth to rub it down and make sure there are no bubbles at this stage. The beauty of the water film is that any bubbles will be water and so will slide out to the edges...
Now you can peel off the outer protective film (OPC stoneguards have this which makes them look cloudy, not sure about the others).
All done!
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