Tearoffguy's passion for film

A day in life as a Window Tinter

2010-08-27T20:33:00.000-07:00

How does Window Tint benifit you?

When Window Tint is applied to an Automobile or Home it starts doing it's job for which is was designed for immediately by blocking the Ultra Violet Rays and the Suns Heat coming through the glass, in return keeping the interior of your car cooler and fabrics in your home from fading but thats not all Window Tint will do for us. Window Tint provides privacy and It also becomes an added Safety feature in many ways like preventing glass shattering from breakage because of accident, vandalism, or mother nature. These are all great reasons to invest in Window Tint for your Auto, Home and even your Business.

Does it have to be "dark" to produce benifits?

No! it does not have to be "dark" to have benifits! Window Tint has made many improvements over the years by becoming cleaner to look through and more effective with technoligy. Most manufactures of Window Tint have produced products that provide the best protection by not having to be "very dark" at all and they are getting hard to even see on the glass if the right installer does your work as well as offers you the better films rather than only offering you the "cheapest films" they can purchase from there supplier. Window Tint is definitely a must in todays life and as the manufactures improve there products the cost goes up making it a "difficult decision" for some on which products they want to offer the public! It's real easy to figure out which Tint Shops are not buying the more expensive products like the "True Lifetime Warrantied Films"!

Is there limit to how "dark" you can have on your Car or Truck?

YES! every State, Province and Country have Laws in place on how "dark" you can have Window Tint installed on each and every particular window on your Automobiles.

When we are young we are faced with the ultimate question to what are we going to do for a living, I had No idea what I really wanted to do because I had the world in the palm of my hands. One day I watched a friend apply a film to his car when I was 14 years old,, funny thing is I never even thought this is what I would end up doing for earn a living. 23 years later I'm one of the best installers you'll find! and Yes I can back that up! Just give me a shout and you can see first hand on your New Car or Truck.

As a Window Tinter by trade I installed Tint soley to make a living as honest as I can and it is becoming very hard to do that because of several things.

#1 Laws on how dark I can install Tint to a Car, Truck and Suv.... Why? you ask... If I as an installer break the "Law" I am subject to be arrested, fined, or worse case scenario forced out of work! Here in Florida it's a second-degree misdemeanor.

#2 The increasing problem not only locally but Nationwide! What am I referring to? I'm talking about the amount of "Illegal Tint" being installed everywhere! Why does this effect me? When I refuse to do it I'll lose business to Tint Shop down the road because alot of them will install anything a customer ask for! There are also several ways to see and understand that this problem is way out of control. How you ask? Look at the car or truck next to you in traffic or in the mall parking lots! can you see in it? 50% of the time your answer will be No. also drive around to all the Tint Shops in your and just tell me what you see parked in the parking lots. Last but not least how many Window Tinters do you think have there own vehicles tinted legal? that answer will disappoint you if you started looking.

#3 one of the biggest reasons why it's getting hard to make a living as an honest Window Tint installer!!

Installers everywhere are giving out "False information" on there products by encouraging the "dark stuff" by claiming "darker tint" protects you better from the Uv and Heat. in return another ilegally tinted vehicle on the road!!.

the biggest request I get from my customers is "Can you match the front to the darkness on the rear of my Suv" ,,, the answer to that is NO thats too dark to be up front because 90% of those come from the factory with a 19% VLT rating. Many installers will do it anyway just to make a quick buck with No regard for anyones safety much less what the "Law" requires. I constantly get a response from customers like "the guy up the street said he will do it for me".

Ok it's about time I wrap this up! but there's one more thing I want to talk about.

What is right or wrong? doing it or refusing to do it? the answer to that is it's wrong no matter if I do it or not!

I've been having problems lately with trying to stay within the guidelines that I'm supposed to follow because an alarming amount of Off Duty Police officers asking me to tint there personal vehicles way beyond the legal limits. The last 3 have accured in the past 2 weeks as all 3 expressed to me that they are allowed to have whatever they want because of there job title (law enforcement officer) and that is FALSE!.

I found this in a great article about "Law Enforcement cracking down on Dark Tint" and in the article

qoute: "" Agency-wide checks are routinely conducted to make sure the deputies' vehicles are compliant, he said.

"Since we (the traffic unit) are the majority of the ones writing tickets, we want to be legal," Goreck said. "It's hypocritical if our tints aren't legal."

There are some exceptions to the rule. K9 and undercover vehicles are exempt, Goreck said. Anyone with a medical condition that makes them sensitive to light is also exempt, but they will need to keep their paperwork handy in case of a traffic stop""

that article can be found here,

www.theledger.com/article/20091030/news/910305032?p=1&tc=pg

If have to turn down something that I know is wrong to do just to keep my integrity, Well just ask me to Tint something illegal and you'll get the "Same answer everyone gets"!

I take great pride in my work and I also take my work seriously!! I will not fall into the same category as those non-professional installers by going against my "Passion for Film"! I will continue to provide my customers better products and installations as well as the knowledge of knowing what they purchased from me and how it benifits them.

If you would like to experience what drives my Passion for Film visit me at www.ocalatint.com

2010-07-25T15:41:00.001-07:00

Bored today,. Day off and too hot outside for any fun. Stuck inside<:-/>

"Lifetime Warranty"

2010-07-21T18:32:00.000-07:00

had a strip job today,,, you ever wonder why we charge for removal? ever wonder how Bad Window Film is removed? what goes into getting the Film and Glue all cleaned up? here's another one for ya, ever wonder how long the cheapest tint jobs last?

well here ya go,, pics and videos ,, take a moment to see what went on with this removal.

I started to pull the film off the driver door and the top layer wanted to seperate from the "color" layer,,, I already knew which method I wanted to use,,, the heck with smelling that nasty "ammonia" or any other harsh chemical.

so I grabbed the steamer and went to town,,, I first pulled the "clear layer" down and let it over hang the door panel and applied steam directly to the "film layer" ,,, worked it a little bit and off it comes ,, "glue and all" .,...

on the rear glass I knew what I was going to have,,, a 1 million piece mess, ,,, no worries I had this beat!! I pulled the "clear layer" down to cover the rear deck for the mess to come :mad ,, this is usually the part where the other guys give up,,

I started in one spot and just worked with it until I had 98% of the "film layer" off the glass using Nothing but the steamer and a "pink chizler" .. this method worked the best this because of the film being so brittle,, it just wanted to come off in a "million pieces" ,, however it left "all the glue"

ok ,NO worries! I got this alllllllll taken care of,,, Remember the "Clear Layers" ,,, used to catch the mess to come,, hehe ...

I used this "stuff' called "Tuff Stuff" ,( foaming carpet cleaner ),,, sprayed the glue and proceeded to whip it off, "literally", thats all it takes!, Glue is gone ,, I did a "once,twice over" with my soapy solution for the final clean,, the rear defrost lines are still in good working order because the removal was done in the safest way possible. I enjoyed this removal because it made me feel better about saving my customers from having this kind of headache with there tint job in the future. Unfortant for this customer, she did not have any warranty paper work given to her only the magic words "we offer life time warranty with our tint" where spoken and that does not count when if comes to warranty claim.

front driver door

rear glass from outside

from inside looking out

the fun begins

Look at all that nasty glue :boogie I used the "clear layers" from the side doors to catch any mess

All Done with this removal,,,

In my closing thoughts on this Window Tint removal I began to think about how it really bothers me that the average consumer keeps there Car for 2-3 years anymore, Maybe that's the reason why "over 80% of phone calls or drive by and walk in consumer's are only interested in the Price" and the other 20% have been down that road of "going with the Cheap guy" in the past and know what they would be getting if that was the only choice out there.

Well there's definitely a choice when it come's to spending your own money, but the problem is which deciding what part to compromise "Price" or "Quality" because that's where the "Cheap guy's" make there decision on what Window Tint to offer the "Average Consumer".

Here are a few tips on how to "AVOID" paying for a Cheap Window Tint like whats above in the pictures.

First thing you need to ask,, Brand Name & "Particular Film Name".

why is that SO IMPORTANT? simply because you can actually do your "Homework" on the Window Tint before you purchase it.

Reason behind "My Encouragement for you to do your Homework"

NOT all films come with a "Lifetime Limited Warranty" some only have a "3 Year Limited Warranty" or less.

Last thing you should do is Make Sure you have all your "Paper Work" before driving off with your New Tint Job, without All Warranty information filled out completely in hand at the time of install then you really have No warranty! Not one Window Film manufacture will warranty a tint job with there product without "Complete Warranty information".

Believe me when I tell ya! This kind of "Homework" will help you get you Best Bang for your Buck and with that being said, Go do your Homework. :) Or just come see me..

If you have any questions about a Window Film your interested in I'll be happy to help in anyway please visit my website for details and more. http://www.ocalatint.com/

Thanks for reading

My First 2010 Camaro

2010-07-17T17:12:00.000-07:00

This was my very first 2010 Chevy Camaro, WoW what a car! This New creation from Chevrolet has some sweet body line's that will take you back to the good'ol days when cars where cars. Since this was my first 2010 Camaro I wanted to put something on it that would perform well against today's elements and look great on the car. The film installed is backed by a strong Manufacture's limited lifetime warranty that include's color fade, rejects 42% heat and has 99% UV protection.

Film: SunTek Carbon Series 35% all glass

Film Type: Non-Metal, Non-Fading, Carbon Construction

Z4 make over

2010-07-03T18:35:00.000-07:00

2005 Bmw Z4 Roadster

Full strip and retint, Reason another window tinter's poor craftsmanship

The Bad!

Window tinting should not be expected to be perfect but this is just Way too much dirt!

This also should Not have been allowed to leave the shop looking like this.

So the process begins with one thing in mind, Save the defrost lines at all cost! Which sometimes can be very difficult and in some cases not possible. There are several way's to remove the film and adhesive it leaves behind when pulled off the glass, in this certain situation I had to use a very old method that I learned in the beginning of my window tinting career, No Razor blades where used to remove the awful sticky glue residue!

Here's a good shot of what the adhesive looks like after the film is pulled off and just before my using an adhesive remover(secret formula). The chemical breaks the adhesive down so it can be safely removed off the glass without needing razor blades.

Off with the side's! all cleaned up and ready for a quality tint job.

The good.

SunTek CarbonXp

Non-metalized color stable

When I start any tint job the only thing I can think about is someone looking over my work and passing judgement on something they only know in there head as "got to be perfect".

Even though I know I can't make it perfect I still go that extra mile to try.

I managed to leave the defrost lines in tack and get the film on the rear glass without all that nasty stuff in the above pictures.

Another thing that's very important is to get the film to fit the glass nice and tight on the edge's at the top as well as getting the film down below the first seal to prevent peel ups after installation. I have always done a great job on not having light gaps on all roll ups or rear glass installations, recently I improved in one particular area and that's my micro-edge.

I never felt like mine where bad, in fact I've always got great comments from my customer's but some of my peer's brought it to my attention that I need to "tighten up those gaps" , LOL....

I stepped up to the challenge and now my micro-edge's are so tight that sometimes you have to look twice to see the edge of the film.

I owe all that to several of my peer's that I continue to sharpen my skills by listening too and sharing techniques in this trade that I call my passion for film.

the location I like to hangout at and share some of my work is http://www.tintdude.com/ I'm an active member in the forum community and I feel it's a great place to learn from rather your a window tinter or just a consumer looking for more knowledge in the window film world.

I really enjoyed making this bad job look good, sometimes the guy dong the work can have a bad day but there was no excuse for this one.... I always ask my customer's to bring the car back for a follow up to ensure that the work I did for them turned out as good as I could get it, that way they have a great tint job for along time to come.

Thanks for reading.

http://www.ocalatint.com/

2010-07-03T17:13:00.000-07:00

2005 Toyota Matrix

Retired Law enforcement officer

Solargard

Hp TrueGrey

High metal construction/Low dye

My Customer asked for UV protection, I gave him 37% heat rejection and 99% UV protection with this film, This film is called TureGrey 50. This film is practically undetectable by the naked eye but by fell it's very noticeable inside the car while driving down the road.

Not alot of customer's request just a light film to cut just the UV, most want the privacy but not this guy, he has had bad taste for along time now, seems the last few tint jobs changed color's so bad the it made it very hard to see out of the windows.

After I was done I pulled the car outside in the direct sun to get a good look at the finished job I noticed he had a smile of his face, as I was doing a walk around he came up to me and his response was WoW that's exactly what I wanted. Not only was he concerned with getting another film that could possibly go bad like before he wanted it light enough for almost anywhere he may want to travel. It's a good feeling when I can give my customer's what they want.

When it comes to UV and Heat protection it's not only the dark film's that give you the best result's. In this case darkness was not wanted, UV and heat protection is offered in many different type's of film's, Solargard has a very nice IR film called Ultra75 that rejects 40% of the heat out of the window's and it only block less than 25% light after installed to the glass.

www.ocalatint.com

2010-05-26T15:19:00.000-07:00

2008 Mitsubishi Eclipse

Her Favorite Car

Solargard

Hp Quantum

Sputtered-All Metal

When this car rolled up into my shop I thought "wow" that's a cool color on a cool car! I have several films that would look great and hold the heat out

but there's one that would look the Best!

As I talked to the owner I learned that it was her first car and her favorite car to boot!

The Hp Quantum really looks great on any color car but on some it just looks fantastic, while holding as much as 65% of the heat out on this cool car it give this film a new meaning to staying Cool!

The Hp Quantum also takes on the hue of the paint of the car and blends very well with any color while most All metalized films tend to be very shiny and creates a contrast.

Keeping it legal is always the best thing to do no matter where you live, Law enforcement everywhere is trying to generate as much revenue
as they can. Window Tint is an easy target for them, if it looks too dark it can give them a reason to stop you, and most officers are equipped with VLT meters. I enjoyed tinting this car alot because it belongs to an owner that has always wanted one of these cars, for those who work hard for what they have deserve the best! Thanks for allowing me to provide the Solar Protection for your car. www.ocalatint.com

Her First New Car

2010-05-05T19:09:00.000-07:00

2009 Honda Civic

Film selection: Solargard

Film name: Hp Charcoal

Film type: Sputter-Metal and Dye construction

This film offers high heat rejection #'s while giving a clean, sleek look. The Hp Charcoal film's compliment any color on a car and is one of the most popular choice of film's in the industry.

After talking with the customer for a few minutes before getting started I was able to understand what she was looking for the film to do for her, the top 3 things she wanted from window film
#1 be easy to see out #2 hold out alot of heat #3 have a good warranty.

Hp Charcoal 38% all the way around was the final choice, it offers 53% heat rejection and comes with a lifetime warranty, also the clarity of this film make's it a great choice. The ultimate goals where met easily by this Solargard window film.

I enjoy talking to my customer's when they come to me for there Solar Protection needs. I like to hear about there past experience's with other film's because it enable's me to give them exactly what they are looking for. The biggest enjoyment for me is to see the smile on the customer's face when picking up the car.

Thanks for reading.

www.ocalatint.com

2010-05-04T13:39:00.000-07:00

Today's special is a sweet little 2010 Honda Fit.

Goal in mind : Heat rejection with a stylish look.

Film selection : SunTek

Name of film : InfinityOP

Type of film : Sputtered, All Metal construction, No colors or dye's

Each and every car has a certain amount of color in the glass from factory, my task is to install a film on the glass without going below 28%VLT combined with the factory #'s and film #'s.

I used InfinityOP 35% on the front doors giving the customer a close call by being a mere 1% to the good.

Here in Florida the law allows no lower than 15% VLT in the rear of any car

I used InfinityOP 20% to give a 19% VLT measurement keeping the car fully legal for the State of Florida.

This InfinityOP blocks 99% of the harmful UV rays and reduces glare by 70%. With being one of the highest heat rejection films on the market this Nichrome Technology give's it a slick clean look on any car.

VLT is the term for "visible light transmission" means how much light it lets through.

one more thing to be concerned with reflective films, the VLR.

VLR is the term for "visible light reflectance".

Some states don't allow any type of VLR "shiny films".

The InfinityOP has a low VLR with the 35% and 20%. Both only have a 11% of VLR making it perfectly legal for Florida.

I think this was a great choice of films for this car.

The InfinityOP is backed by strong manufacture warranties covering color fade/change, peeling,cracking and delaminating for as long as the original owner has the car.

This car is always fun to work on, I bet it's fun to drive. All work was performed at Kent's. total time to tint this ride was 1 hr and 50 minutes.

Thank for reading about my latest car, I have a something else in mind for my next story. stay tuned.

http://www.ocalatint.com/

A touch of class with this Cadillac

2010-05-03T13:32:00.000-07:00

This Cadillac was new when it rolled into the shop, by doing the window tint early you can help preserve the interior a bit longer, cutting glare down and providing Heat/Uv protection will keep this ride looking good for a long time to come.

Choice of film on this ride was Solargard Hp Supreme 35% front doors and 16% on rear of car.

this film offers 44% heat rejection in the front and 49% heat rejection in the rear as well as 99% UV protection.

To ensure a good job that will last a long time a one piece installation on the rear window is a must.

cars like this one and more can be found here: www.ocalatint.com

thanks for reading.

Project save the Honda

2010-05-03T12:50:00.000-07:00

I enjoy working on cars making them looks better or go faster.

Here's one of my latest rides I worked on, task at hand: Remove old window film and give it a fresh new look. This job took about 3 1/2 hrs to complete and the results are fantastic.

Removing old film is never easy or fun, there are several ways to remove the film and glue residue from the glass, my first choice is using a steamer and if that fails I use razor blades and scrape the glue away.

after removal of the Old Tint and New Tint installed on this Sweet Honda Accord it totally changes the looks, the customer was very happy with his first choice of "project save the Honda" upgrades. With times hard now days who can afford a car payment he state's to me when picking up his car, my first impression was "wow" it looks new again.

After working on this Honda I was able to see the biggest reason why not to look for the cheapest price around, in this kind of aftermarket business you definitely get what you pay for.

I take great pride in providing better products to my customer's, friends, and family and by doing this I know they will be happier in the long run.

Window tint is the cheapest and most effective way to make your ride look different. The benifits of tinting your car is Heat rejection, glare reduction, and Uv protection. If you have any questions feel free to contact me at http://www.ocalatint.com/ , I am mobile and may be in your area from time to time.

thanks for reading, I'm new at blogging so Yes you are going to find booboo's and slip up's, but for the most of it just enjoy because I like talking about my work and I have lot's to share.