Best Promotional Vehicles of 2013

FIRST PLACE

Fabricator
Signfarm
Nokesville, VA
(703) 753-0899
www.signfarm.com

Designer/Installer
Scott Lewczak

Client
Janine Driver

Selling Price
$13,000

When people think of authors going on book tours, they likely think of either an “up-and-coming,” cash-strapped author driving an old rattletrap Volvo from town to town, or a Stephen King-esque literary megastar flying first class and riding limousines to Barnes & Noble superstores, where they enter to great fanfare. Janine Driver, the author of You Can’t Lie to Me – a book that instructs its readers how to develop their “BS barometer” and detect dishonest individuals – crashed through both stereotypes with this wrapped RV she took on her nationwide tour.

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Before wrapping, Lewczak removed taillights, emblems and other protruding objects before wiping the RV down with denatured alcohol and applying Primer 94 to areas that required more adhesion. He unlocked the wrap concept using Adobe Photoshop, and printed the wrap with 3M Controltac with Comply air-release material on a Mimaki JV3-160SP solvent-ink printer. To protect the wrap from the elements on the coast-to-coast journey, he applied his proprietary, clearcoat mixture, and cured it to the RV’s surface with Infratech heat lamps.

The wrap spans 510 sq. ft., with seven panels per side. They installed the wrap with MACtac felt squeegees, as well as vinyl squeegees taped with Velcro. For very curved areas, he used rubber-handled spoons to conform material.

“I designed the artwork to promote viral advertising online,” he said. “The passenger side, where the broken-glass image is featured, would be an interesting place to take photos with the author and post it on Facebook.”

SECOND PLACE

Fabricator
Gatorwraps Inc.
Ontario, CA
(909) 390-1020
www.gatorwraps.com

Designer
Jeremy Webb

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Installers
Omar Paz
Armando Rodriguez

Warrior One, a guns-and-ammo store in Riverside, CA, wanted to create more curb appeal among the firearm enthusiasts, and hit the bullseye with these twin Gatorwraps Dodge Challenger installations. After Webb perfected the design with Adobe CreativeSuite 6, the shop produced the wraps with 3M Controltac with Comply air-release material, which was printed on the shop’s Mutoh ValueJet 1614 solvent-ink printer. 3M’s Scotchcal 8518 glossy-finish overlaminate will help the fierce-looking cars, whose wraps span approximately 250 sq. ft. apiece, keep their edge.

THIRD PLACE

Fabricator
Frogskin Graphics
Clinton, LA
(225) 683-9595
www.frogskinwraps.com

Designer
Billy DeMoss

Installer
Jacob Bennett

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Client
John Jackson
Out da Bayou TV

As much as my daughter Annabel loves the Disney movie The Princess and the Frog, an animated feature that depicts the journey of Tiana from New Orleans working-class girl to amphibian to bonafide Bayou princess, this fiery graphic more accurately conveys the spiciness of Cajun culture and food. Jackson’s show focuses on catching and cooking crawfish, catfish and other signature Louisiana seafood, and DeMoss’s Photoshop- and Illustrator-fueled, fiery color palette set an extreme tone. Frogskin printed the wrap on its Roland SolJet Pro III XC-540 eco-solvent-ink printer with 3M Controltac with Comply media, which is coated with Scotchcal 8518 glossy overlaminate. 3M’s Scotchcal perforated media covers the windows; it’s protected with Scotchcal 8914 optically clear overlaminate.

HONORABLE MENTION

Fabricator
Gatorwraps

Designer
Jeremy Webb

Installer
Armando Rodriguez

Client
McLaren of Newport Beach

HONORABLE MENTION

Fabricator
Xtreme Grafx
Albany, OR
(541) 926-9727
www.gowrapit.com

Designer
Arthur Meeker

Installer
Scott Madsen

Client
Dutch Bros. Coffee
Citrus Heights, CA