We had an odd request today from the police. We letter the Pontiac Police cars and they like what they have BUT one of the policemen is on a task force that is NOT Pontiac Police. He would like to be able to change the car up so when he is in town he can leave the car lettered as it is but when he is out of town, on the other task force, he can have NO lettering on the car or he can cover what's on there. He thought maybe magnetics but we told him that wasn't a good option with a high speed chase or people removing the magnetics, just because they could. I asked how often this would happen. He said he would be "covered" or without lettering more than having it lettered. The problem is how HE could do this quickly and easily. Any of you have any ideas? We are at a loss for ideas. Posted by Joy Kjer (Member # 3026) on :
He is asking for the impossible.
Posted by Tony McDonald (Member # 1158) on :
good one Jane Tell him to get a jeep, then he could have two sets of doors and just swap'm Posted by Dale Feicke (Member # 767) on :
Have you tried the removeable vinyl, Jane?
You could letter the car, they cover it with a sheet of this stuff.
I don't know if this will do the trick, but Orajet (Oracal) offers a Series 3268, that says it can be removes and repositioned a number of times....or.....they also have a Series 3620 clear, that has a removeable adhesive. This could be painted or have regular vinyl put on it.
Hope this might help.
Posted by Brian Dish (Member # 10782) on :
I saw some where a few years ago about a paint the became visible by heat. They placed hot plates in the doors and turned them on for the lettering to become visible.
Posted by Don Hulsey (Member # 128) on :
Tell him, "Sure, we can do that, and it will only cost $125,000.00" If he doesn't catch on, and goes for it, you buy him another car that looks like the first one with no lettering. When he wants to change all he has to do is use the other key. 125 should cover the car, and a little profit too.
Posted by Tom & Kathy Durham (Member # 776) on :
I'd say letter one side and only make turns in that direction when he wants to hide, turning the opposite way when he wants to be seen. Or maybe if its a white car, letter it in white so its there but not seen? I don't know......never mind.
Posted by Bill Modzel (Member # 22) on :
Actually, you could probably get away with Phototex for awhile. It does hold outdoors and is reusable to an extent. The thinks is, it's fabric and doesn't stretch when it's removed. If he keeps it on a chunk of backing paper when not in use it just might work.
Posted by Marty Happy (Member # 302) on :
I once had someone ask for plain white magnetic cut to size to cover/hide existing vinyl door lettering while they were travelling.
Posted by John Arnott (Member # 215) on :
I would make cheap printed decals. You CAN make em look nice in the design. Sell him a set that will last for as many changes as he wants! Stick & toss. Make some money. Everybodys happy.
Posted by bill riedel (Member # 607) on :
We have lettered some stealth cars that are black with black reflective vinyl. It works for them.
Posted by Glenn Taylor (Member # 162) on :
Have you tried Gerber's Instachange vinyl?
Posted by James Donahue (Member # 3624) on :
Just a thought, but...in our line of work, the biggest cost is labor. There's not a lot of labor in a -blank- set of magnetics. My guess is that statistically, the average officer only does a high speed chase once in awhile. So, sell him 3 blank ones. The odds are that even if one blows off, it won't be both, and he can retrieve the third one from the trunk. I'm even willing to bet that the magnetics might make it through a high speed chase. What makes it a "high speed chase" is that it's high speed for that given area. I bet they seldom reach 200 MPH. Even THEN, I'd like to see the video...one car filming while the other ones accelerates untii the signs blow off; record the speed. Start new slang..."buddy, my car's so fast, it'll blow your signs off".
Posted by Bill Lynch (Member # 3815) on :
I think the only realistic option is magnets. Paint them with a touchup rattle can of the same paint that is on the car and they'll be less noticable.
Posted by Don Hulsey (Member # 128) on :
Actually, when I started my businesss, I used magnetics for a while. They saw 140 a few times, and never even moved.
When I pulled the trailer to Arizona in 2006 I covered the lettering on my van with mags. The only problem was hanging a 2'x8' piece by myself, and getting it straight. I cut it to fit the window dimple on the van.
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