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I thought I'd do a quick write up of my DIY vinyl wrapped door handles. I was flipping a coin between a 2018 Lariat Sport or a 2018 Platinum a couple of weeks ago and ended up going with the Platinum. I really liked the Lariat Sport because of the lack of chrome and it had majority of the tech I wanted in the platinum, but my wife was sold on the massage seats. Plus I felt like I could "de-chrome" the majority of the truck to make it a Platinum Sport style. I considered PTM door handles, Plastidip, or Vinyl wrapping the handles. I decided for $13 (1'x5' piece), vinyl wrapping was the way to go. I watched a ton of videos on wrapping door handles, whole cars, mirror caps, everything just to make sure I knew what I was getting into, but for the price, if it didn't work out I wouldn't be too worried. I couldn't find a whole ton on what vinyl to get and what matched, but I settled on Avery Gloss White Pearl. It is very close to the tricoat color, but maybe slightly warmer and less sparkle. Either way, its close enough that I cant even tell the difference and as mentioned before, its $13 and removable.
I started by cutting a piece of vinyl slightly larger than the handle.
I then started by rolling the handle to get the vinyl attached to the face first.
I just kept working the vinyl until I could get all the streaks out, heat is your friend here. I used a hair dryer like a lot of other people out there instead of a heat gun and it worked just fine.
There are streaks, I think its from stretching the material so much around the tight edges, but its only noticeable under this direct light.
after getting everything smooth, I started to cut away excess material and tuck it inside the handle.
for the smart key button hole I made a cut from the center of the hole to just before the edges that way when I folded everything in there wouldn't be any vinyl bunched up.
I screwed up here, I made the cut prior to pushing the material down and accidentally cut too much. I will end up redoing this one at some point, but by the time you're done with all the tight corners your fingers really start to hurt. In hindsight, I should have used heat to loosen the vinyl and push it down with my finger into the recess. after it was flush with the hold I could have then made my cuts.
Overall, I'm really happy with the result for 13$. We will see how long they last and if I ever feel like removing the vinyl and doing something more permanent I will get them painted most likely. To clean the handle I used a tablespoon of dish soap in a quart spray bottle to help remove grease and dirt, then wiped it down with a microfiber cloth to keep lint away. I also bought a small squeegee tool to help, but I didn't really end up using it. If you want the look of paint matched handles and don't feel like shelling out a ton for new handles or getting them painted, I'd say vinyl wrapping is the way to go. It was a cool project and I learned a lot about wrapping with vinyl a long the way. I could see a huge improvement from my first handle to my last and I definitely messed up a couple times so get extra material, a 1'x5' strip was enough for me. Let me know what you think or if you have tips to make it better.
Overall, I'm really happy with the result for 13$. We will see how long they last and if I ever feel like removing the vinyl and doing something more permanent I will get them painted most likely. To clean the handle I used a tablespoon of dish soap in a quart spray bottle to help remove grease and dirt, then wiped it down with a microfiber cloth to keep lint away. I also bought a small squeegee tool to help, but I didn't really end up using it. If you want the look of paint matched handles and don't feel like shelling out a ton for new handles or getting them painted, I'd say vinyl wrapping is the way to go. It was a cool project and I learned a lot about wrapping with vinyl a long the way. I could see a huge improvement from my first handle to my last and I definitely messed up a couple times so get extra material, a 1'x5' strip was enough for me. Let me know what you think or if you have tips to make it better.
You did a great job.
I have a white platinum metallic colored truck. That paint is a body mans bad dream. Just curious, in the sun, how well does it really match?
04-04-2018, 01:36 AM
White Platinum Vinyl Wrapped Door Handles
