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Old 03-26-2007, 11:17 AM   #1
Mechie3
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Default Type RA-R Red Grill Trim, DIY for $5

First of all, this wasn't my idea, I can't claim credit for that. A picture thread by scrappydo (http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show....php?t=1226747) showed that he had done it and he mentioned he used stick-on pin striping. If you ask him though, he'll say it was Subaru's idea, but I still give him credit for a way to replicate it.

My pics are a little fuzzy, but they were taken with a cell phone. I don't own a real camera.

Tools:
Water/soap/cleaner/towels
#1 Philips Screw Driver
Wide Flat Head Screw Driver
1/4" Vinyl Pin Striping

Estimated Time:
1 Hour

I bought my pinstriping from advance auto parts for ~$5. It comes with enough to do about 5 grills at least. The picture shows how much was left after I did mine.




First, remove the center portion of your front grill. To do this, pull out all of the large plastic rivets from the top of the bumper. There are 6 or so. Then, pull out the two small rivets directly on top of the center grill portion. If you need pics for this look up the "how to paint 06 headlights" thread.

Reach your hand down into the space near the hood latch and, one by one, push the tabs holding the grill on towards the center of the grill. I find it easier to start on the passenger side, top tab, then the passenger side bottom one. The first time you do it may take a while, but since I've done it for my headlights it took my maybe 5 minutes to remove the grill.

Using the phillips screwdriver, remove the 13 self threading screws that hold the two black plastic pieces to the painted trim. Once the screws are removed, the pillar piece will come off. The plastic mesh piece has a single tab that holds it to the painted trim. Pop this out and you will have three separate grill pieces.



(pic from AxlxA)

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Last edited by Mechie3; 08-08-2007 at 09:16 AM.
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Old 03-26-2007, 11:17 AM   #2
Mechie3
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Use water/soap/cleaner to clean off the painted trim piece. This is important to ensure that your pinstriping won't look really stupid after a few weeks when it peels.

My pinstriping didn't unroll easily at first as the glue they used to hold the coil shut was too strong. I just cut off the first piece so I had a fresh edge to start with. Peel back about an inch of the backing to begin with and apply the end to the top underside of the painted trim. When complete, this portion isn't visible unless you get low (on the ground low) and look up. It's also blocked by the subaru emblem so the seam isn't visible when done. I didn't worry about making sure the outer edge (towards the front of the car) was even. Instead, I lined up the back edge of the pinstriping with the sharp edge/mold parting line on the back of the trim. This line continues all the way around the trim so if this is lined up (and it's easy to follow this) then the front will line itself up.



After the first inch is applied, peel the backing off 3"-4" at a time. If ound it helpful to cut the backing off so it wouldn't get long and tangled. I like to hold the stripes with the backing in my right hand with my middle finger and thumb and use my index finger to apply even, light tension. My left hand is used to guide the edge of the pinstriping and smooth it as I go along. This part took me about 30 minutes to do. If you press lightly you will be able to pull it up in the event of a bubble or wrinkle. Be careful around the bottom corners. It will most likely take a few tries to get it just right, but it's worth it to be patient. When you get back to the top, cut the pinstriping to match the beginning as evenly as possible. Mine overlapped maybe .050", but since it's hidden you won't notice it.

When you are satisfied the striping is even, free of wrinkles, and has no bubbles, use a soft cloth (or paper towel) to smooth the whole thing down. My pin striping had little tiny paper perforations every few inches as the striping was obviously made in thicker strips and cut. Running my fingernail over the edge when I was done popped these off for a clean edge.

Carefully place the mesh plastic and pillar plastic back on. Make sure the back edge of the striping isn't sticking out as the mesh plastic has a lip that goes over the painted trim. If the edge sticks up the plastic lip will catch it and wrinkle it/fold it over. Screw everything back together and admire your work. My pin stripes recommended a 24 hour period @ 60-80F for complete curing.





For those of you that don't comprehend the camera phone pics I took, Sylon did this mod (less than 6 hours after I posted this how to no less!) and took real pics with his hotshot camera. Looks nice.




From AxlxA:


Last edited by Mechie3; 10-31-2007 at 07:54 AM.
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Old 03-26-2007, 11:38 AM   #3
veightkiller
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nicely done! im going to do that mod some time soon.
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Old 03-26-2007, 11:41 AM   #4
sperry7
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Is that red really washed out and dull or is it just the pics? Very cool DIY I am going to do it when I find some good pinstriping. I saw that other thread and liked it as well.
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Old 03-26-2007, 11:52 AM   #5
Handsdown
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nice work!
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Old 03-26-2007, 12:02 PM   #6
imprezaowner27
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subscribed to be done later
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Old 03-26-2007, 12:04 PM   #7
SCRAPPYDO
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Very nice write up!!
I am glad you took the time to do this...I had many requests for a how to. Nice job by the way. The thicker stripe really looks good.

SCRAPPYDO
stephen
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Old 03-26-2007, 12:16 PM   #8
Mechie3
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Yeah, I read afterwards that you used a 3/16". I didnt even check for thicker stuff. The guy at advance auto parts handed it to me and said we have that, or we have flames too!

the red isn't washed out. Pics were taken with a cell phone. In person they matched the red calipers and are your basic primary color red.

Last edited by Mechie3; 03-26-2007 at 12:59 PM. Reason: said autozone, meant advance auto
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Old 03-26-2007, 01:06 PM   #9
Sylon
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Thank you for that great write up, I'm going to try this out!
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Old 03-26-2007, 04:15 PM   #10
STiShawn
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wow, that looks way better then I thought it would. Nice work
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Old 03-26-2007, 04:32 PM   #11
kogs
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mabey im loosing my vision, but that red sure looks pink to me in those pics.
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Old 03-26-2007, 04:36 PM   #12
Handsdown
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kogs View Post
mabey im loosing my vision, but that red sure looks pink to me in those pics.
maybe i'm losing my temper but the STI-RA-R has a pink grill not red. so either it's red and it looks cool or it's pink and it takes after the RA-R.

or maybe it's just that his camera phone sucks at replicating colors and that was already stated lots???? who knows.
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Old 03-26-2007, 04:37 PM   #13
SQ3.0dotJP
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just call it cherry blossom red then,lol. either way nice simple DIY
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Old 03-26-2007, 04:42 PM   #14
Mechie3
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Let's say....I like it and that's what matters to me!

As handsdown said, it's a camera phone (see paragraph two, post 1, or other places too). haha
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Old 03-26-2007, 05:20 PM   #15
Sylon
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Here, to stop any confusion, problems, and grief, I just did the mod with the same stuff, I took pics with my DSLR.









Right now its sitting on the floor in pieces waiting for it to cure.
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Old 03-26-2007, 05:21 PM   #16
RootUsr
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sylon View Post
Here, to stop any confusion, problems, and grief, I just did the mod with the same stuff, I took pics with my DSLR.
VERY NICE!
Looks awesome
as soon as I get this door ding taken care of, I'll probably do that!
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Old 03-26-2007, 05:22 PM   #17
Sylon
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Mechie3, I took pics similar to yours with my DSLR if you want to use them in your first post.
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Old 03-26-2007, 05:23 PM   #18
ScoobyBoy
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thats pretty cool!
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Old 03-26-2007, 05:29 PM   #19
Handsdown
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damn!!! that's like ... the fastest anyone's ever replimodded on nasioc. way to go! shows just how easy this is. if you have an afternoon, you have a ra-r grill.
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Old 03-26-2007, 05:45 PM   #20
WRBlueMeanie
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Haha, was going to post this same thing today when I got home for work. Looks like you beat me to it!!
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Old 03-26-2007, 07:25 PM   #21
ray101381
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To those that have black cars beware that the "Prostripe" pin stripe stuff in Red isn't really a true red. It has an orange tint to it and is really far off from matching the Red on the 06+ WRX calipers. I had originally done it with the Prostripe brand red and then really disliked the color. I went out and bought 3M Brand scotchlite reflective red tape, problem was i could only find it in 1" width so i had to trim it. It came out very nice and matches MUCH better with the red on the calipers. It really is not very reflective. Good luck picture were with flash.




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Old 03-26-2007, 07:57 PM   #22
Rippen Griffen
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Nice JDM-RA stripe!
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Old 03-26-2007, 07:58 PM   #23
Mechie3
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Thanks for the pics sylon. I guess the prostripe isn't as vibrant as the 3m stuff. Then again, I just bought what I could find.

WRBluemeanie: Thats why you post during lunch at work
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Old 03-26-2007, 08:08 PM   #24
Sylon
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The stuff that I used seemed alright with my flash, but we'll see tomorrow when I put my grill back on.
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Old 03-26-2007, 08:16 PM   #25
15secWRX
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looks pretty good
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