Blue painters tape on front?
 

Traveling from jacksonville to Tampa soon, and am already tired of the numerouse mini rock chips I have suffered. I dont have a clear bra and still havent gotten one of those leather nose masks. I have b0th heard and seen that blue painters tape put to use on nice cars, but I am skeptical. :confused:

However, I am a baby when it comes to taking care of paint, and it just doesn't seem possible that after a 3 hour drive in either Florida rain or heat that the tapewill remove easily and cleanly at the end.

Does anyone have experience using blue painters tape sparingly on parts of the hood, front bumper, and if so could you advise me if any paint/cleaning prep or precautions are necessary.

PS, I am sure there is numerous google threads about this, but I trust the judgment of you guys because you can share in the obsession we all have with this car and understand what I mean. Also, I have briliant silver if that helps any of the experts out there make a more informed suggestion

Thanks

I've see it done on Zs and I've never heard of it being an issue. It's also recommended by most tracks to protect your car.

I remember seeing pics of the whole front bumper being done.

I did it on mine for a little 3.5 hour roundtrip. About 6-10 inches of the hood and fenders, the entire bumper and side mirrors. It rained and I left it on for maybe 3 days and it peeled off clean. I washed/waxed the car prior just so there wouldn't be any dirt and the paint would stick well. Just make sure you apply the tape horizontally from the top down so the wind doesn't lift any of it up.

Yo DD .. when are you coming down to Tampa? Unfortunately, my Z is up on stands while I get the rims / calipers / strut bar done. A lot of my 350z club members use the blue painters tape without issue. Remember that one car at The Run ... no issues, it comes off without issue and does not leave any residue.

^ good tip. They do make "automotive" blue tape that I think is easier on your paint and finish.

Jason, where in Miami are u at?

Works fine. We both had some new paint to protect here before a 500 mile trip. Anal guys typically do a neater job, but...Hey...it worked!

http://images114.fotki.com/v646/phot...SC00741-vi.jpg

ive done cross country with it and worked fine.. through the snowy rockies into death valley. just dont let it sit too long.

if you have adhesive goo left behind, try some goo gone, wd40, RC car motor spray, etc and wax afterwards.

tape hood from top to bottom overlapping about 5mm. this will prevent air from lifting up the tape while driving. :D
and bottom to top on the front bumper to prevent water to get in between the tape. dont forget the side mirrors.

Another option would be to get an OEM bumper (they're something like $200) and swap them out. Just put the unpainted on on the front, and travel away.

That said, it'd probably look just as odd as driving around with a mass of blue painters tape on the front...and it does nothing for the hood, fenders, headlights, grill (bugs!), windshield, roof, A pillars, mirrors and side skirts.

Here is a better solution. I have used it on my Roush Mustang for several trips and used it after detailing it to take to car shows. Easy and works... (this might even get me a rep point...lol)

It's called road wrap and you just put it on, cut out your openings and wa-la..

Paint Protection Film for Car Care Trucks SUVs RVs Bug Shield

Audio warning on link...

interesting. cheap at least too.

Road Wrap 18 in. x 100 ft.
$29.99

Road Wrap 6 in. x 100 ft.
$12.99

Rug Wrap 18 in. x 50 ft.
$19.99

my bro used it to go to a car show said it did fine [ATTACH]Attachment 9195[/ATTACH]

If I don't get a nose mask before Zday I'm using blue tape.

well blue tape/blue car.....

yea my car is blue to haha

I'm in the Miami Lakes area. I'm kinda all over the place though. You? I've probably seen your car around. Seems like PG is a popular color on the forums but I don't see too many on the road.

I rarely go on long distance trips so i just used blue painter's tape. Worked like a charm and only cost $5 something. I could care less what people thought of it, chances are the people talking crap drive boring cars anyway. I heard someone at an auto show bash a Ferrari because it was automatic (chances they could ever afford a manual are probably slim), someone else on a Lotus saying the seats felt uncomfortable. Some people are just *sigh* never mind. I guess the world needs them too. :)
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a55...13/photo-1.jpg

nice tape job

As much as I commend you all for protecting your finishes, I just can't get over how bad the blue tape looks. Although the example above is the nicest I have seen to date. :)

Its hard to imagine paper tape protecting from flying rocks....

The wrap looks like heavier pallet wrap.... wonder if you could just double up....

On Monday/Tuesday/Friday of this summer, I drive from home to school.... its about a 36 mile drive. And I get alot of bugs on the front of my car... so I wash it Thursday. But I still cant get alot of the bug resin off.... even with the "Rain X:Bug Off"

I am about to leave for Louisiana from Tallahassee in 16 hours.And I am worried about driving at night and there being WAY TOO MANY BUGS on the road. I already washed the car and handed dried it. And I thought about putting the blue painters tape on it already, but my friend that works for nissan told me not to cause it would be too long of a time.


3 days? thats a long *** time!!! my trip will be from Wednesday night to Saturday morning. Do any of you guys recommend leaving it on there for this long?

free bump..... no idea never done this ill be doing it in june tho

it'll be fine if you leave it on for days. i read somewhere the sticky side is meant to peel off safely without leaving any residue within 2 months. the only problem aside from that is maybe the paint fading unevenly because part of it is protected and the other is exposed - that won't happen in 3-4 days..

I taped up my Z the night before a track event, drove to the event and ran the track all day Saturday. Then drove home Sun, too tired to remove tape and wash the car, I waited until Monday late afternoon to take it all off. Paint was fine!! :tup:

Wish they made it in red or black

I bought the road wrap stuff from Griot's Garage as did a few other guys that are caravaning down to ZDayZ from Northern VA next week.

It looks like total *** on the car but 1) it's thick to protect against rocks and will make cleanup a breeze and 2) I'm not the only one doing it so I won't be the only one looking ridiculous for 600 miles.

just wanted to post this up again... I use it all the time and never had an issue... works great!

Don't forget


AutoSKIN - Temporary Protective Coating for Vehicles. Another PAW Industries Product.
and
Shield

THANKS!! I'll post this up on the club site....

you can layer the tape as many times as you want. i did 3 layers on the front when i drove 2200miles to move 2 of my hobby cars back to back 10yrs or so ago. no issues. :p

it's a proven method.

The DupliColor shield looks interesting. I wonder how it would hold up in rain...

Here's the post with a couple pics I took http://www.the370z.com/523485-post27.html

I'm going to do a test fitting this weekend on the entire nose of the car and will post pics of the silliness. :icon18:

Nice! Has anyone tried any of these? So the duplicolor shield sprays on grey color?

I just ordered some bright red "Racers Tape" from OG Racing.

My plan is to lay down a layer of the clear film from Griot's Garage and then pretty it up by layering the red tape over it. :D

why dont you guys just get a clear bra and call it a day? :confused:

This is for ease of cleanup. You'd still have to wash the thing after a long trip with a clear bra. You just peel this off and voila! :tiphat:

Good choice if your saving up for a clear bra lol some people don't just have $800 laying around!