So to revive a somewhat dead thread....
I want to tint my tail lights and have been going over my options. There are a few so I'm going to go over them all and kind of ask for input.
1) Tint film. This is what
@jonnoriega used and I like the way his looks. I'm leaning more towards somewhere between his and the 'sport' tail light look, which I'm sure could be done with a slightly lighter tint. However, one of the things that worries me is the raised lettering on the lights creating 'bubbles' in the tint. His look amazing and that doesn't seem to be an issue. I have a few great places to go around here, but I'm not sure they'd be able to pull of the look without issues. And driving 350 miles to get it done wouldn't be 'optimal.' haha
2) VHT Nite Shades. The 'do it yourself' project. The best part? It's removable with a bit of elbow grease if you decide to remove it down the line. But it will take a
lot of work to achieve what I want to achieve. Wet sanding, etc. I've seen some done 'right' and they look amazing. I used to really get into doing things like this (and still do, as evidenced by my brake calipers), but this would be more 'labor intensive' and with two small boys around I'm not sure it's something I want to tackle. The positive side is that, outside of my time, the cost would only be in the $20-$30 range.
3) Tinting clear coat. Just recently stumbled upon this. Basically you mix your clear and then add black paint at a 2/1 ratio. This wouldn't be something I would tackle myself as I don't have the means. There are a couple of shops in town that I trust to do it. One of them did solid work on my Grand Cherokee before we sold it, the other one did work on my custom 2000 S-10 back in the day. The shop that did my Grand Cherokee earlier today quoted me in the $175-$250 range to do it today, but he seemed a bit 'hesitant' about it. I mean he offered to do it, sure, but I would be his first. And considering if it doesn't turn out right I'm looking at around a grand to get back to stock tail lights I'm not sure about it. The other shop....the one that did the mirrors and a few other things on my custom S-10 back in the day....was closed when I drove by so I haven't got a chance to get a quote from him, yet. He'll be more expensive for sure, plus his shop is 'slower' than the other guy.
Mrs. Squirrel is going to Germany for a week in late February for work and I plan on taking Alfred in to get the front windows tinted at that time. Depending on what I ultimately end up deciding on with the tail lights I would likely get the tail lights done then, too, if I opt for option three. Do it while she's away and I have her vehicle to drive at the time. If I go with option two I will likely attempt it while she's away, too. And if there's time I'll be plasti dipping the emblems at that time (as I already have the stuff.) Eventually I plan on getting them painted, but I need Mrs. Squirrel to see what they'll look like in something that's reversible before I crack them open into pieces and have them done by my shop.
Anyway, after all of this...what option would you go with? I'm leaning towards three as it will look the most 'factory' of all options, but until I talk to the second shop I'm slightly 'worried' (for lack of a better word) of being the first person to get them done at the first shop, haha.