We got to wrap something we’ve never done before this last week: an off-road buggy made for forging over rough terrain and the crushed dreams of lesser vehicles. It was awesome! The owner, Steve Truman, belongs to an off-road rock crawling group and uses this buggy to bowl over rocky hills and mountains. Using a kit, he had the buggy custom made to use on these trips. The body of the vehicle is vaguely Jeep-like but it’s not an actual Jeep—it’s a hardcore conglomeration of a roll cage, body frame, and monstrous tires!

This thing is a beast! 

Rich gathered and plotted the graphics for the vehicle. He said the most challenging part of this design was laying out in 2D what was going to be installed on an atypical custom 3D object. With most vehicles that we wrap, this isn’t too much of a challenge because we can easily measure and map out the dimensions of standard cars, vans, and trucks. Because this is a custom vehicle, it made design a little more difficult. We were able to get it right, though, and the design turned out really well.

Here are the graphics being printed on our Roland printer.

Another challenge was that the fiberglass/urethane composite used to build the vehicle is notoriously bad at accepting wrap graphics. Thankfully, Steve had painted the buggy bright green so the graphics were able to adhere to the paint instead of having to try and cling to the fiberglass on the buggy. We were able to closely match the color of the graphics with the color of the paint and seamlessly blend the two together.

Mike and Rich wrapping the hood. This buggy has a definite personality, doesn't it? 

Our rock-crawling client’s inspiration for the wrap design came from a 42’ powerboat he had seen pictures of and had fallen in love with. The boat, owned by Anthony and Tammy Reece, was fabricated by Statement Marine of St. Petersburg Fl (one of their “42 Ultimate” custom models). The Reeces worked with Ratical Graphics (Pro Body Works) out of Union, MO to develop the overall look for the boat’s detailed graphics which, down to the bandanna on the cowboy skull, are an incredible, custom paint job!

The boat that inspired the wrap

Before joining the team at 12-Point SignWorks, Rich owned a business designing graphics and wraps for off-road and extreme sport vehicles like motocross bikes and ATVs. The design styles of extreme sport vehicles are really similar to the style of the boat's design, so he was able to carry over some of that experience when modifying the design of this wrap.

Saddle up! Seems like a pretty appropriate wrap for someone who lives in the Nashville area.

Mike was able to wrap the buggy fairly quickly and easily. He said his two biggest challenges were some of the odd cuts he had to make because of the buggy’s hardware and the fact that the side panels were made out of sheet metal. Because there were so many quirky and unique elements to the vehicle (like a hole for a foothold to help people get into the buggy) he had to be careful about how he laid and trimmed the vinyl. Because the sides were sheet metal, it was challenging to squeegee on the graphics because the metal sheets would wobble and bow in when pressure was applied to them. But, other than the little intricacies around the hardware, application was a cinch!

All wrapped up and ready to go! 

We loved working on this wrap and we think it looks pretty darn cool (if we do say so ourselves)! It was a new type of wrap for us, but our designers and installers really rose to the occasion and knocked this one out of the park. What unique thing would you like to get wrapped in graphics? If you think it up, odds are we can wrap it for you. Contact us below (you know you want to) to get a free quote on your project.