do all shops tint the same way. i was told the better thus more expensive shops take out your windows and tint it. are there differnet kinds of tinting process other than sticking film over the windows.

 

you could replace the glass with darker privacy glass, but that would be expensive. film is the only cost effective way to "tint" your windows

 

Black Paint!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

Nothing duct tape can't handle

 

no, it's not neccesary to remove MOST glass from the vehicle. the only time glass is supposed to be removed is when it is held in place wiht a rubber gasket (e.g. truck back windows, old Tercels etc) or if there's a rubber surround only (no black ceramic border) and the window's just bolted in place - like the rear door 1/4 glasses on a 4 door Accord (or... the rear door 1/4's on an xB...). if there's some sort of obstruction and the removal is just to get around that or to avoid causing damage. Damage control is the reason for pulling 1/4's - like on an xB - many tinters simply cut the glass's rubber trim back to create a channel to hide the edge of the film, better tinters will NOT cut the trim and simply remove the glass and then reinstall after tinting - there by causing no damage to the car.

As far as removing back glass - 99% it's not done - nor should be. Same as for 99.99% of roll-up windows, it's just not needed.

Long story longer - removing glass is only done when absolutely needed, we're not getting paid to take forever on your car - get it done, get it out.

 

who was talking about removing the windows to install tint film? he asked if there were any other methods of tinting your windows other than film... darker privacy glass is all I can think of...

 

permanent marker--haha..
limo tint. stretch ur xb and it will be legal

 

Hey, FIREBALL - how about you REREAD the first post. Functional Illiterate.

I'll qoute it just to save you a little trouble.

I was told the better thus more expensive shops take out your windows and tint it.

 

We were just talking about that in my sociology class last night.

 

kind of off topic..
but i got my windows tinted today, 20%, and on my way back home when i look at my rear view mirror, the headlights looked like this

_ _
_ _
_ _
_ _
_ _

is this normal ?

 

A few things are causing that - it will DIMINISH but not go completely away. The tint is still new and there is still water under the film - the water is amplifying and bouncing the headlight around causing a distinct doubling effect. Ater the film has dried, you will still SOME of that effect as the lights will be reflected off the defroster lines against the film. The film does not fit perfectly over the defog lines and there are little air voids along the top and bottom edges of the lines - in those air pockets, the light reflects off the film surface and is then bounced back off the glass it just passed through and then enters the passenger cabin - you now see TWO (rarely three...) sets of lights along each line. It all has to do with refraction (think of a straw in a glass of water - the straw look broken when viewed from the side) and surface reflection. There's nothing that can be done to eliminate the 'problem' other than removing the film. You'll get used to it after a short while.

 

i knew it was because of the tint but didnt know why or how.
didnt think anyone was gonna understand the picture

its good to know that it will dimish though..
thx for the info! :D

another question
the guy said dont roll down my windows for at least 3 days..
any other things i should look out for ?
can i clean my windows the same way before i got the tint ?

 

really, you can roll the windows down as soon as you get the car back, the only reason if you SHOULDN'T is if they left a huge amount of water under the film (poor water removal job) - it would dry anyway, but takes 10x longer and the film doesn't stick as fast it should. No biggee- just irritating. The best thing really to clean the film side of the glass with is just a soft damp cloth and buff it clean with a dry one. If you get some greasy prints or something on it, you can use a little Windex on it. In general products like Windex should be avoided - not becuase it's tint, but rather 'cuase it's plastic. Many cleaning product will attact the surface of plastic and slowly degrade it. Somehting liek windex shouldn't be used on ANYTHING made of plastic (not just tint). One tip - about twice a year or so, you can clean the film side (inside) of the windows with PLEDGE. This will restore the shiney luster the new film has and will also help repel dust from the surface that causes minor scratches, it will also help the window roll down smoother into the door without dragging on the door trim. Anytime the film doesn't feel slick - you can polish it with Pledge (or your choice of $1 a can furniture polish)

 

perhaps you didn't understand what I was saying. you came out of left field about removing the windows, no one mentioned removing windows prior to your post, THAT is the point I was trying to get across to you. Maybe you should grow up and not try to make assuptions about people you don't know. I asked a valid question, as I thought YOU didn't read MY post correctly. get over yourself, and realize most people are here to help, not be Post *****.

 

No one mentioned removing windows prior to my post? You mean other than the FIRST post?? The person asking the original question??? Hmmm... 4 people posted before I did - only ONE (you) actually gave a reply that was usable - so... basically - only one person answered the first post before me - You. In your post - all you had to say was "film is the only cost effective way to 'tint' you windows" - mentioned you could replace with darker privacy glass - but that's not actually true, because they don't make darker privacy glass for this vehicle than it already has.

From 'left field' is hardly the case when I addressed his direct statement of "more expensive shops take out your windows and tint it." But I probably hacked his account and added that part to HIS post since no one had mentioned anything about glass removal until I brought it up. Not only did you not clearly read the first post , you've obviously not read AND comprehended the post you just qouted me on.

I only addressed glass removal - becuase you had already covered film application being the only feasible method (and it is)- BUT I didn't bust your nuts in my reply over your implication darker privacy glass was available. You started the ____ing contest by questioning my supposedly out of left field reply about removing glass. If you want to think about 'growing up', some introspection may be in order.

 

thanks a lot windowtint. very useful, very informative. if i lived close to you i would trust you with tinting my window. i did want to know if windows were remove to do a tint job. my co-worker's gf asked me if i knew about tint and if i was going to tint my scion. then she asked do they remove the window to tint it. now i understand that in some situations, the window needs to be removed to do a proper tint.

windowtint answered my question perfectly along with the replacing with privacy glass comment. she drives a audi, and is afraid of getting a poor tint job to save a few bucks. i too would gladly pay more than advertised prices if i knew the shop would do a good job on it. i don't want some idiot cutting any rubber when they are suppose to remove it and do a quality job.

also, great info on the light refraction. people should know about it when they consider a tint job.

one last thing, lets keep comments, all comments on the forum, to useful replies.

 

what tint would be needed to create limo tint. aka 5% i'm wondering cuz we have what 30% or 20% with the privacy glass.

 

to replicate the look of 5% when starting with factory 20% you need to add a layer of 20% film on top of the factory colored glass. 20% of 20% = 4% (.20x.20=.04) 4% (to the naked eye) would be indistinguishable from 5%. Only a meter could 'see' a 1% difference.

 

sweet. thanx. i'll be lookin for 20% tint then. thanx again