Sorry Spencer, forgot to address some of what you were asking. Most of the replacement products are going to be hi-gloss (except the JC Whitney and the 3M). I think part of the reason for this is to mask a lower quality print job. The funny thing is, you have to get up really close to even an average quality print job to notice how "average" it is, as long as the topcoat is glossy. The products from Phoenix Graphix and Auto Trim design do not appear to repeat too much. I have seen some like Blue Vista mentioned where a very obvious knot-hole type pattern repeats every single foot on the vinyl and It does not look good. Even the original Di-Noc woodgrain repeated, but the overall pattern was longer (between 4 and 5 feet) so your eye didn't pick it up on an individual body panel.
I hate to say it, again, but....Di-Noc....the biggest resto problem for woody wagons hands down, IMO. Even if you find one that is close to the same color and design (which would be miraculous) you have to be sure it will work on a CAR. UV protection, weight, etc. I don't envy any of you that have to replace Di-Noc. As 90merc and I have discussed elsewhere...the entire newer printing system used today and the materials used are just wrong. I have yet to even see a pattern or color that is correct. Except...I have seen some Ford patterns that were very close. Anyway, Spencer....good luck and take your time to look at all the conditions that should be met besides just color and pattern. 90merc has done a lot of research and Blue Vista also has good technical info.
Cheers guys, Yea replacing the Di-noc is hands down the hardest thing on this wagon. I have a huge range of samples of the new Di-Noc and I think I have one that will work color wise. I have seen a friend use the new di-noc film on a car, he doesnt seem to have too much trouble with it, as you have said he uses the primer and a tiny touch of heat on curves. I am still not looking forward to doing it, I just know its not going to look quite right
Check out this page of HMN digital for another alternative: 185 - Hemmings - April 2009 Woodgrain Specialists of Littlestown, PA, did the surround rails on my car. It's the same technique as woodgraining the metal dashboards of '30s & '40s cars. They can also do the entire side of a wagon. Of course, there are other companies that can preform the same technique. Some will do wagons, others won't (they make more money off Packard dashes).
My brother has heard me throw the term di-noc now and then and told me that they are now using it on synthetic furniture for guns to make the furniture look like wood. I'm glad they're finding new uses for it. All the more reason for them to keep making it.
CE, I am a die-hard original Di-Noc lover, but ctrysquire may have given me the perfect place to go if I need to re-wood the CP. I am goofy for the color and pattern combo of the 1970 Kingswood Estate Di-Noc, and I have downloaded sharp enough close-up images to be able to reproduce the grain pattern. I talked to one of the owners at Woodgrain Specialists, and he gave me a ton of confidence that they could look at my pictures and produce a good match with custom base color, rolled on ink pattern for grain and topped with glossy clear. I think this will be my solution when the time comes. Sadly, I just don't have confidence that the new Di-Noc is the right product, and the satin finish makes it look too fake for my taste anyway.
I know absolutely nothing about this company....I just stumbled on it and thought I should post it here in merc's thread. One of these looks very close to the light Buick B body vinyl, but, again, I know nothing about the company. It does say that it's 3M stuff. Might be worth some research if interested. Here is the link.... http://www.vinylgraphics.net/products/216-Wood-Grain-Vinyl/
Updates to post we based this sticky on Hi all, I was just checking the post that was the basis for this sticky and see that they have added useful updates. In my opinion, the best-looking replacement woodgrain di-noc is now offered by teamgrandwagoneer.com. It appears to be very close in tone and pattern to the original. I like the cherry oak tone, but the marine teak also looks great. There is a third pattern I would avoid. It is too yellow for my taste and the swirling woodgrain pattern repeats about every ten inches. If you go on google images and look for "1968 Caprice Estate Wagon", you can see how it looks on a car. Coming up on 3 years of fun ownership of my 1990 Colony Park. So comfortable and handy. Even took it on a ski day to Penn. with my daughter. The man parking next to us was smitten and told his young son about the pre-SUV days. Don't worry Fox, the roads were dry. You know I dislike a salt bath as much as you.
I knew that would get your attention. Not to worry, the undercarriage POR-15 and undercoating job from 2010 is holding up fine. For a 23 year old wagon with only 160 horse, it does quite nicely in the mountains going up hill.
A head scratcher: When I looked on the teamgrandwagoneer site yesterday, I read that you could buy the cherry oak and marine teak tones in kits that included two 16 foot sections for the sides and one 5 foot section for the tailgate. It did not say the width of the roll, but the length of the rolls seemed fine for many station wagon models. Now when I look on the site, it says that they are sold in kits with 9 pre-cut sections, so these kits would only work for the wagoneers, and not other wagons.
Woodgrain for Wagons I would not recommend Woograin4Wagons. Basically he took my money and sent me junk plus a couple of the pieces were broken. If you want all of the ugly details I have a 4-page Word document that I can email to you. I will recommend T/A Truck Painting & Graphics Website: ta-graphics.com Brandon tagraphics@sbcglobal.net 262-691-1410 Brandon did a lot of work trying to match my 1963 Ford Country Squire wood grain -- both the dark vinyl and the light trim. It looks fantastic! Seeing this man work makes me think that he can do almost any kind of wood that you would like. Tell him John with the '63 Squire recommended him.
