What do we know about parts express vinyl?

I used it on my MAME machine about 6 years ago. The only complaint I have is that I should have painted the MDF black across where the seams would be before I installed it. When it was new it was a perfect fit, but after 6 years it appears to have pulled back a tiny bit to reveal the MDF in a couple places on the seam. Other than that, its held up well and I would have no complaints if there were no seams.

Dave in Des Moines
 
The biggest complaint I hear is that it's not wide enough to do a side with one run. (see above re: seam)...
 
Sounds good so far. Frizzle, it's wide enough for me. Im making a cabaret cab.

spauldingd, Was it hard to do the sides with out getting wrinkles or bubbles?


Thanks guys!
 
Its real easy to get that stuff on. Dont peel the whole backing off at once. Peel back 3 to 4 inches and get that stuck down and use a staight edge to smooth it down and then slowly start peeling a little more at a time and repeat all the smoothing. Just take your time and do it in small chuncks and you shouldnt have any problems.
 
I used it to refurbish a Pacman cocktail cabinet. Worked great. If you get even the tiniest speck of dirt under it though, it will show through.
 
I've used this stuff. It looks GOOD. I think it's a really good deal compared to the alternatives. Just be sure that you clean the surface really well before you apply it. The smallest particles seem to show through!!

Dave


HI guys. Has anyone used any of the vinyls from partsexpress.com? It would cost me 20$ to do a cab from them opposed to $90 for kings oak from arcadeshop.


http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=261-614



Thanks guys.
 
I've used the black vinyl for years to cover control panels for conversions / homemade / multi's.

I first bought a 10' roll for ~$14 back in 2004. I just used it up and purchased their new 20' rolls for $20.

There is a significant difference in the vinyl over this time (for the black one). The old pattern was more like a sheetrock 'knock-down' pattern, albiet very very fine, that didn't seem to repeat. Also the stuff was so sticky you could not lift it once adhered without ruining it (from metal) or without lifting tons of fibers (from particle board/mdf).

The newer stuff is more of a non-random dotted pattern instead, not as much relief to it. On the positive front, it's a hair more forgiving if needs to be lifted from metal if it sticks before you get a bubble out.


They have had about 6 colors for years, and are now clearancing out the beech (very light) or the silver (same texture as black). But they finally started carrying Walnut and one other pattern.

The problem is the 2 new patterns don't have the same closeups of the pattern like the old ones did, and in fact the Walnut looks the same as the Oak now, so clearly they reused the same picture.

If anyone has recently ordered the new Walnut, if you could scan or take a picture of it and post that would be really nice. I have a couple of Bally/Midway mini's that need their sides redone, and I would like to see what the Walnut looks like to see if it's worth it.


BTW--If you don't need it immediately, PartsExpress offers free shipping on $49+ orders from Mid-November through December, in case you don't have enough to hit $98+ now. Also, they sell the items through Amazon.com and you can sometimes get a better deal there with shipping charges depending on where you're located and how much you order.


I agree with the others -- Anything that will show through spray paint will show through this. Make sure it's absolutely clean, and good luck if you have a 90 degree inside corner (Like a Frogger control panel to recover) -- it's nearly impossible to get it to bend just right due to the extreme stickiness.

Has anyone used a liquid to help repositioning with good results? If so, what did you use?
 
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