Vinyl or laminate for first timer?

cueball

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I have a 25" cab that I stripped and want to fix up and flip, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to do black vinyl or laminate. I don't want to get involved with painting at this time.

My hesitation with laminate is trimming with a router . My hesitation with vinyl is getting any kind of debris contaminating the surface when trying to put a big sticker on.

Opinions?

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Honestly, if you are concerned with difficulty, I'd just assume paint it. It's what I've done with all of mine and they look much better than if I attempted vinyl or laminate.
Pro
 
With the time involved in painting... much more prep and time, I was considering laminate.. I'm just nervous with the whole router/trimmer issue.. sure painting is cheaper but for a good hand rolled paint job, it takes me a while . And with fall upon us, good painting conditions in an unheated garage become scarce
 
If you're trying to flip it for profit, paint is probably your only real option.

If you want to use vinyl you'd still have to paint, and even at that the surface must be *perfectl*y smooth else it will look like shit. Every speck and bump looks 10x worse under vinyl. Plus it tends to peel at the edges.

Laminate probably costs more than you're thinking it does. Plus the expensive glue that is worthless for anything but laminate (melts vinyl). And, yes, you're going to have to route the edges flush. AND unless you lathe your surface you're going to be left with a super sharp edge that pokes past 3/4" molding.

I feel ya though, I hate paint. If you're not going full auto paint/clear it never comes out well (unless you're masterful at thinning and do lots of proper finishing -- sanding, clear, buffing, etc).
 
I think you are really over thinking how much goes into painting. You can get a decent and presentable finish that most people will thinks looks perfect by just sanding and two thin coats of paint you can get at Home Depot. I know, I've done it and I'm not a pro painter by any means. Add in some new t-molding and you are good to go.
Pro
 
With the time involved in painting... much more prep and time, I was considering laminate.. I'm just nervous with the whole router/trimmer issue.. sure painting is cheaper but for a good hand rolled paint job, it takes me a while . And with fall upon us, good painting conditions in an unheated garage become scarce

Sand it down and paint it with semi-gloss oil based -- thin with acetone to get the paint to flow. Use a foam roller and do a couple of coats with light sanding in between. It will look good enough.

If you want to laminate don't worry about the difficulty it's pretty hard to screw it up with a trim router and a laminate bit. Even if you laminate you're still going to need to paint front so you may want to rattle can that first, then laminate. My first laminating experience was with an arcade cabinet and it was super easy. Laminate is a little expensive though.

Good luck either way.
 
If you don't do multiple passes of filler primer and sanding on a particle board substrate, it will look like ass. Just sell it someone who wants to put the work into it. If you do a proper paint job, or laminate, considering how much in time and materials, and how much more you'll get for the game, what does that break down to if you were paid by the hour?
 
Thanks for the feedback. I do want to clarify that I have painted a couple dozen cabs and flipped.. but the hours in prep/paint for a VERY good rolled finish is extensive. I have a picky eye so I make sure that I am happy with the job. If painting can take 10-15 hours and laminate can be done in a few, then laminate may be the way to go. This cab will likely sell for close to $1000 when done..so I have some wiggle room for the laminate cost.. I continue to go back and forth on this myself, so I like reading the other opinions
 
I don't get the hate for vinyl. Perhaps for the cheap, Home Depot box store variety vinyl, but I picked up some rolls on 3M Automotive Vinyl wrap and covered my cabinet. The automotive vinyl sticks strongly to the surface of the cab and is very easy to apply and trim due to the air-channels in the vinyl.

My Dynamo HS-5 cab came out fantastic. Yes, you still need to prep the surface properly and seal it/smooth it out, but you don't have to go crazy sanding it glass smooth.
 
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