Mike_TX

This may not be new to some of you, but it's the first I've seen of it:


3M Paint Defender Spray Film. Sprays on and peels off.

Anyone used this?

singlecoilpickup

This sounds cool, but I think I'll let somebody else play roulette with their vehicle's paint and let me know how it turns out.

Dimcorner

There are a few reviews out there on other forums. Seems to be OK but won't last very long. Also a pain to put on. You have to mask the car well and be inside the garage since any dust on it will just stick to the material while drying.

vanderrg

Okay- I had used 3M's professional paint film on my previous car. It cost me $500 and so when I saw this thread I figured I would investigate.

I bought the kit and spray handle and everything and applied the spray film yesterday.

Here are summary points but I am happy to answer direct questions beyond this:

1. Both of the cans of spray film I bought clumped terribly when spraying, almost the entire time. It was about 82 degrees. I live in FL so humidity may have played a factor. Wiping the foam clumps off the nozzle did nothing to keep the clumps from immediately re-appearing.

2. Although there were small clumps continually spraying on the car the whole time, I was pleasantly surprised to see that as the stuff dried these almost completely leveled out. there are one or two small places where if you get down and look really close you can see where a clump exists but virtually 100% of those simply went away after it dried.

3. Overall I am very impressed with the way it looks over almost all of the car. Especially when I compare $25 to $500.

4. Cautionary note #1- make sure you tape the plastic drop cloth very securely because if it touches the stuff it will ruin the part where it touches. I sprayed my film on, then left the vehicle in my garage (garage door open but the nose of the car was fifteen feet inside of it) with the plastic taped and weighted down with spray cans to prevent it from blowing. Even so I was shocke dto see that in two small places SOMEHOW wind had blown the plastic into the wet film and it blemished it in those places.

5. Cautionary note #2- if ANYTHING toches the wet film it blemishes it. I was holding a towel underneath the sprayer while I applied the fils to catch the clumps it was continually shedding and at one point the towel barely touched the surface of the wet film. There was a sivible mark there. Fortunately it leveled out pretty well as the stuff dried but if you look closely you can still see the blemish.

6. I thought the spray handle was totally useless. For some weird reason the white nozzle on the can kept turning around inside the spray handle. The instructions caution that this can happen but they say it is unlikely. It happened four times in the first 30 seconds to me and so I quit using the spray handle.


Even though my application ended up being imperfect I think I will leave it on and see how it wears and looks and protects. I can always pull the film off in a few months and re-apply it. I am at least happy that the car is protected from rocks and stuff and even if I ripped the stuff in disgust I am only out around $25...

If anyone is interested I dont mind trying to upload images...

Mike_TX

Thanks for the report, vanderrg! Iwas going to ask for pictures, but i don't know how well it will show up. If you think it will, we'd appreciate seeing how it came out.

vanderrg

Well after wondering like crazy why I couldnt upload pictures I finally realized it is because I don't have five posts/15 days yet and am still a trial member...once I meet criteria I will post them...

Rocket_man

Well I was going to start a new thread on this but I found this one so I will add to it. I spent the long weekend working on my 1G TSX. 7 years old and still running like day one. I did the following but will only detail the clear Bra (3M Paint Defender): 1) polished the windshield on my and my wifes car. Wow what a difference. Touched up paint. Removed the old clear bra from the hood and quarter panels (left it on the bumper). This is the 2nd clear bra on the car and it was failing like the first. I just decided to get rid of it. What a PITA to remove. 90% of the adhesive came off with the bra, but on a few sections the adhesive was left on the car and it was very very difficult to remove. That took a day. Polished til the car looked better than new. Applied Opti-coat 2.0 (I really really like that stuff). Then if was time to experiment with the clear bra.

I figure I will have my car for another year so I thought I'd test this out and see if I would put it on my next car. I agree with everything vanderrg states above. I will post some pictures of the application. There is definitely a learning curve here. If I had to do it again I think I would do a much better job. The good part is that if it doesn't work out you can peal it off. But I doubt I will do that. Here are my lesson's learned, some may repeat what Vanderrg stated:

- You really need a garage to do this work in. Either that or a really calm day in the driveway. I bought the 2nd part of the kit that included the plastic protective sheeting, tape, and the optional spray handle. The sheet is very very thin and blows in ever the slightest breeze. I used painters tape and objects I had around the garage to hold it down. It still bellowed even in the garage. In hindsight any plastic or even newspaper would have worked. I detected overspray on the plastic all the way to the windshield. I would recommend covering the entire front end including the windshield. Same with the area around the car on the floor.

- The spray handle isn't worth it. The spray can has a nice wide trigger and yes the nozzle tends to rotate inside the handle when you wipe it off. Save a few bucks and skip this.

- I used a string and painters tape to mark out the position of the clear bra. I went down the quarter panel too. I was concerned I didn't have enough in one can but there was plenty. In fact I could have gone bigger.

- The instructions and the video show the can being held ~8 inches right over top of the car. Making passes left-right, up-down. As vanderrg states the material clumps up on the nozzle and drops like whipped cream onto the car. At first I tried to clean it up but that just caused a thin spot, so then I sprayed some more in that section. I ended up applying too much product on the car, especially on the left side of the hood which is where I started. I modified my technique and held the can more upright and sprayed from a further distance spreading the spray pattern out. I also held a paper towel just under the nozzle to catch the clumps. I cleaned this every 10-15 seconds of spraying. This seemed to work better than the technique 3M tells you to use. It applies more evenly and less clumps which you need to catch in your paper towel.

- Don't touch it. Avoid the urge. You will want to touch it up because it clumps or some other reason.... just don't do it. Stop right there.. get the thought out of your head... like your mom used to say.. Don't touch it! You did it anyway though... but this time just don't touch it.

- I sprayed too much product. More is not better. The material self levels pretty well, this means on vertical surfaces like the quarter panel it will slowly flow down. I kind of wish it would set up faster but you do want it to level out. Even though I over-sprayed and did the quarter panels I still had a bit of material left in the can.

- The bra was still curing in the garage as the Sun went down, bugs found their way onto it. They got trapped like a giant sticky trap. I could grab them by their little legs and remove them. Something to consider when planning your install. It is wet for a few hours.

- Don't touch it! (just a reminder). I tested one spot to see if it cured, it had, another spot looked the same but was not cured. Now I have my finger print in the clear bra. This may come in handy if the car is stolen, but didn't mean to do it... DON'T TOUCH IT.

- Take the edge tape off immediately after you spray. Leave yourself a courtesy tab on the tape. It will get soaked in material and with nitrile gloves on it will be hard to take off. One of the pieces of tape fell onto the quarter panel and took the material off, I quickly resprayed and can't see the mark anymore. Just take this tape off and let the masking stay on the car until it sets up. You can very easily disturb the material while it is wet and mess it up. Remember.. Don't touch it!

- It cured to clear in about 2 hours, the heavier spots took longer but still got clear not too long after. It won't get a full set for 4 days. It says to stay out of the rain for the first day. I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow!

- Did I mention don't touch it?!?!?

I think I will end up liking this product. I'll wait for it to cure completely. But it was fairly cheap to apply. The hardest part is masking off the area, the spraying was quick. The second time I can do a much better job. This is not rocket science but like any of these products you need to learn the tricks and try it yourself.

I will see how it holds up over the next year in the Texas heat. Even if I have to re-apply it once a year it might still be worth it if it holds up well.

Now for some pictures....

Rocket_man

This is where the old clear bra used to be. Now polished and Opti-coated.



I used some string and painters tape to make a line across the hood and quarter panel. I used used landmarks on the car (1" from the lens opening) and pulled it a little tight and taped it down.



At the joint between the hood and quarter panel, secure the string in place and cut it with a razor. You need to raise the hood and you don't want to lose your mark.

Rocket_man

I used the plastic sheet in the Application Kit. It is huge, very thin, and blows around, but did the job. Lay it down over the car and onto the floor to catch overspray. Secure it to your car with lots of painters tape.



Cut the plastic and tape it down just outside the string line. Oh, I used two Propel bottles to prop up the hood.



Then use the tape that comes in the Application Kit and follow along the string line to make the final masking line. You can probably use regular painters tape for this. The tape in the kit has a nicer edge to it. You can find better masking tape at AutoZone. I used maybe half the roll. Plenty of tape. Don't forget to leave a tap for easy removal. I forgot.



I applied this wax that came with the can even though I just Opti-coated the car. Just want to make sure I followed this step for easy removal someday.

Rocket_man

The can with the optional Spray Handle. Don't need it.



This is the left side, the first side I did. You can see the clumps. One or two I tried to remove then I sprayed again because that left a low spot. This just made it worse. You can see there is too much material here.



One of the clumps... after a brief cure...



This is the left quarter panel. On a vertical surface it tends to sag.... plus I probably sprayed too much again. More is not better. I had already removed the masking tape in this pic.



Masking tape removed...

Rocket_man

This is about 2 hours later... It is setting nicely, even the thick spots. Those are the white looking areas. But it is still tacky... remember Don't touch it!



Right Quarter Panel after all masking removed. Maybe 3 hours??? This is the spot I messed up with the tape falling right here when wet. I quickly re-sprayed. It is pretty clear already!



My thumb is about 1/4" above the clear bra. Can you see the line? You can if you look for it, but it is curing very clear. It is MUCH clearer than the old bra I removed.



if this holds up it will be a nice product. There are some thick lines where the material flowed and made a ridge. That is user error. But from a distance it probably won't be noticeable.

I will post more pics when it cures completely.

Rocket_man

24 hours later and the material seems to be pretty much set. The few spots with build up have completely cured and can only be seen close up. From a few feet away it is hard to tell there is a clear bra on the car. It does seem to reflect light differently depending on the angle that you are looking. Head on you can hardly tell there is anything on the car. I'm more impressed today than I was yesterday. It seems pretty forgiving even with my amateur application. It does have a slightly 'grippy' feel to it. I will give it 4 full days to cure and see how it feels. I might wash it at that point and see if it will take a coating of Opti-Coat and see how that feels.

24 hours and I really like this material. It does not seem as durable as a traditional clear bra but it does seem like it adds a decent amount of protection to the paint. I hope it will get a little less grippy or I can wax/Opti-coat it otherwise it may collect dirt more quickly than the rest of the car. We'll see. So far I'm pretty happy with this, especially at $25/can.

vanderrg

Haha yes as I read your account I was nodding. I too have the OVERWHELMING feeling that the next time I do this I will get it perfect. Wish I could go back in time and start over knowing the details of applying this stuff. I also have the sense that with some practice I will come to love this stuff. It is just so cheap. And unless you touch the stuff it really is forgiving regarding clumps as it dries and cures. FYI my application is now 3 days old. It got rained on quite a bit today but it doesnt seem to have affected it. I have held off on washing it to make sure it cured before it got too wet but after the rain today I am guessing it wouldn;s have mattered much. I plan on washing it and applying liquid glass tomorrow. Rocket man...was your previous clear bra also the 3M stuff like mine was on my previous car? I had mine on that car for about 5 years and by the time I traded the car in a few weeks ago I thought it was looking crappy in a few places. I am liking the fact that this stuff can be removed and re-applied whenver you want for only $25...

vanderrg

By the way from the pictures your car looks fantastic for being 7 years old. Heck it looks new.

Rocket_man

I noticed today the bra is a little less 'grippy' feeling. So it seems to still be curing. It did rain a little on mine today but had no effect. I might do my wife's car this weekend. I still have some left in the can. Probably not enough for a whole car. If I hadn't sprayed so much on mine I might have been able to squeeze out a coat on her Civic.

Yes I agree if I did this again I could do it much better. If 3M included a paint thickness gauge in the kit you would have a better idea of how much you are putting on. I also wonder if a heat gun on low setting or a hair dryer could be used on vertical surfaces to help lock the material in place so it won't run so much while it cures.

My previous clear bra was Venture Tape. The original bra was replaced at about the 3 yr point because the material on the hood was deteriorating. The top surface was no longer smooth and the bra was very noticeable. It was replaced under warranty and the installer told me the new bra was made with a better material. But that one lasted about as long. The Sun and heat in Houston just abused it. I left the bra on the front of the car because it was still looking okay and after the pain taking the hood off I was not up for it. Removing the old clear bra adhesive was very painful.

Yes I agree at $25/coat even if this lasts only a year or so it might be a good alternative to the much more expensive clear bra. But in a year there is no telling what the sun and heat will do to it. I guess we'll see.

Hmmm.. liquid glass. Interesting. I'll try Opti-coat and see if it can better match the feel of the painted surface.

Rocket_man

The old clear bra did its job even if it broke down over time. Not a single chip in the paint in that area. But I did put some scratches in it removing the old adhesive.

I used my DA polisher, an orange pad, and Meguiars #9 to polish it up. There was a slight difference in the paint between the covered and uncovered part of the hood after I removed the old bra. But the polishing fixed that right up. The Opti-coat made it look fantastic. I was going to follow up the polish with a lighter glaze but I was beat after days of working on the car in my ~90 deg garage and the surface was good enough for me.

The first thing I will do to my next new car is polish it up nicely and Opti-coat it. Then maybe this clear bra. That will go a long way to keeping it nice and clean for years to come.

vanderrg

More to report:

As of yesterday it has been 4 days and since it was fully cured I washed it this AM. There were a few places where bugs had gotten on it:

1. The fully cured surface is not "glassy-smooth" like the professionally-installed tape was. This stuff is a little grainy and it is not an easy surface to clean. I had to use my scrubber to get a couple of the bugs off, which leads me to...

2. When I used the scrubber, after just a few seconds of scrubbing, before the bug even came off...the film ripped and came up due to the scrubbing! I was shocked. With the old professional film you could treat it pretty much like you would have treated the car's paint. You could scrub it and stuff and it was never a problem. Since I knew I was going to rip the stuff off anyway I tried it in a few places on the hood and the same thing happened. now I was not using steel wool folks! This is a scrubber sold for use on cars and I have used it for years to get bugs off of the cars.

After that I just used my regular soft mitt to wash the rest of the car...and on the other bugs on the front I just painstakingly went over them over and over with the soft mitt until they eventually came off. The film appeared to tolerate that approach.

So further additions to my recommendations if you choose to use this stuff...

1. Do not use a scrubber on it. Like ever. Just be patient with a soft sponge or mitt.
2. After it cures and you wash it for the first time, apply a coat of whatever you use for wax or whatever (I like liquid glass personally) and keep it coated frequently with a nice slick layer of protection like that so that you wont HAVE to scrub to get bugs and stuff off of it in the future.

After the episode today I went ahead and ripped the stuff off of the hood, and I had enough spray film left over to re-do the hood nicely. I was able to apply it much better than I had the first time since I knew how meticulous to be (and bizarrely the stuff didnt clump at all...how weird).

Another observation: When I pulled the film off of the hood it took about 20 minutes. It doesnt come off as easy as the documentation purports but it wasn't that bad. There were a few places I really had to scrub it off but much of it came off in big pieces. It did not appear to have done anything to the paint and the hood looked and fine after I pulled it off. There was no leftover residue or anything like that. When it peels off it peels off clean.

Rocket_man

I'm not sure what you scrubbed it with. I just used some Optimum no-rinse that I had in a spray bottle and my bare hand to wash it. It did improve the look. If you look at it at a low angle you can see that there are some uneven spots and some spots that are thicker. The hardest part of this clear bra is getting the material on evenly and the right thickness.

I think it definitely needs 4 days to fully cure. It has a little bit of a soft surface so when you drive before it is cured tiny things can get stuck to it. So cleaning it off with a MF or even your bare hand can make it look better.

After I washed it I Opti-coated it and it is pretty shiny. It is not as 'flat' as a traditional clear bra but it looks pretty good. From a foot or two you can hardly see it is there. I'll see how it holds up.

bigwavedave

You can order a 3M Clear Bra Kit that is exactly what dealers install. These are pre-cut pieces and bottles of spray. 3M has a video showing how to install. Looks pretty simple as long as you are patient and follow the directions. It is NOT a spray on film as reviewed above. It will last a lot longer than the spray. I read that the spray from 3M lasts about one year and then has to be re-done. This makes the film pieces a lot more attractive since they last much longer.

Rocket_man

I'm sure I can install a normal clear bra on the hood. I think the front of the bumper is much more difficult and requires some experience. There is stretching and heat gunning etc... easy to ruin an expensive piece of material.

The point of my install was just to test it out and at $25 it was pretty cheap. If I still have the car in a year I will report on how it has held up. If it is a good product I might put it on my new car. We'll see.

Rocket_man

Well I said I would report back in a year and tell everyone how this product held up. It is not quite a year... I installed this the end of May 2013 and here it is mid Mar 2014. But I was washing the car this weekend and I was looking at this 'thing' on my car and decided I wanted to get rid of it. My final judgment of this product is...

It is CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP!!!!

You can see in the installation pictures that it looked really great after it had cured. But it was all downhill from there. Pretty shortly it began to break down on the surface. It actually got a little tacky. That may have been due in part to the heat in Texas, but it gets hot in many places, so if a product can't hold up in the summer it is no good. Once it started getting tacky/grippy then it began to get a dull finish, then it got worse and worse. It was downright ugly. Bugs would hit it and it was difficult to get it clean. They kind of stuck because the surface was so dull and rough. It had to go. I was washing the car Friday and thought I'd just peel it off like those cool pictures.... oh if it were that easy! No it does not peel off like those cool pictures. I did put down the protective wax just like the instructions. In a few places I could get a few square inches to peel up, but in most places it would only come up a fraction of a sq cm at a time. The basic problem is that the material strength is less than the adhesive strength, so as soon as you pull it up, it just breaks away. The few places that it came up in larger pieces are places where I think it was applied thicker. But there in lies a problem. I applied it as thick as the directions say, I even put it down more thick in places. So thick that it ran down the hood. Maybe if I pulled it up right after it cured it may have come up cleanly, but not after it had been down for awhile. It may have thinned out a bit, or lost strength because it just broke down. Anyway, I will never let this stuff near any car I own ever again and I don't suggest it to anyone to try it. Surprisingly it is still for sale.

This picture does not do it justice since I had just washed the car and the bra was still wet. The water soaked into the surface makes it look better than when it is dry. But I didn't want to wait for it to dry out to start taking it off. It is so porous that it does not dry with a towel, you have to let it dry by evaporation.



Here you can see how hard it was to get off. Only small pieces would come up and then it just broke off. I ended up getting a can of 3M (yes how ironic) Adhesive Remover and spraying it on the surface and letting it soak a bit. That breaks it down into a sort of goo that you can scrape off with a putty knife. I covered the putty knife with some packing tape so it would not scratch the surface. So after several hours of peeling, spraying, scraping, it was finally off the car.

However, the Adhesive Remover, which I think contains copious amounts of acetone, will damage plastic parts on contact. Like my headlights. Which now have streaks etched into the surface. Now I have yet another car project to work on.



After several hours of removing the bra I now had a hood that had two areas of different surface texture. Just like removing any clear bra. So I spent tonight with a clay bar, polisher, and opti-coat 2.0 and got the hood looking good again.



So learn from my experience and avoid this product. It does not live up to its claims, and the removal process damaged my headlights. That cheap clear bra is sure costing me a lot of money and effort.