Ever have this happen? Hopefully not, but just in case you do and want to try and re-tint the window yourself, then this may help you out. Or, if you want to do the whole vehicle and just can’t afford to get it done at a professional shop, this will give you the little tips that can make all the difference in the world when it comes to tinting for the first time.

 

 

                                                   

If you do have a single window that gets broken and you do tint the replacement, there is more than a likely chance that the tint is not going to match unless you take it to a professional shop that has different grades, shades and manufacturers films. You can get tint at most automotive parts stores such as NAPA, Car Quest, Pep Boys, Checker Auto or any of the many others. I found a donor window out of an old door that a fellow XJ owner had that they were willing to donate (Thanks Shanna & Brian). Once the replacement glass was in it was time to tint. If you haven’t ever swapped out one of these door windows, it is recommended that you have a professional do the glass replacement for you, whether or not you use a new replacement or an old one out of a salvage yard.

 

 

One thing that makes a big difference is having the right tools for the job, here I have rolled out the tint on a flat piece of glass that I can use as a platform to cut my edges and get the tint laid out to work with. I will be using a water sprayer, a razor knife, a razor blade scraper, and a hard squeegee to remove the water and bubbles. Most tinting kits come with the squeegee and the knife and razor blade can be purchased at most ant hardware store (Always use caution when handling sharp objects such as the razor blade and the knife). In the water bottle is a soap and water solution being about ten drops or Dawn dish soap or any other dish soap or the included solution provided in many tinting kits. Follow mixing instructions on package for included solutions.

 

                                               

 

Roll the window down a hair and start at the top and spray the window with the soapy water mixture and begin to scrape from the top down. If the window had tint on it before you will notice the old adhesive turning into a gooey substance. Work your way down and roll the window up so you can scrape the bottom of the window to insure it is clean also.

 

                                                  

  

I like to use the blue shop towels to help clean the gunk off; they are good because they don’t leave lint that you have to worry about winding up in your tint. Make sure you clean the edges of the window and top and bottom weather strip as well. One of the most important things to have is a sanitary environment when tinting including the glass and the work area.

 

 

 

Once you have a clean window it is time to cut out the pattern. Wet the window; cut the tint just a couple inches wider than the window itself. Measure twice, cut once, if it’s too short you just wasted a piece of tint so you want to double check the size. With the window wet, lay the tint on the outside and cut the top with the edge of the glass so you have a nice smooth edge. Press the sides in as far as you can so your cut on the sides will be as close as possible to the size of the glass, too much tint will cause problems trying the get it all in the weather strip and too little will leave a gap of light so you want it as close as possible. It helps if you have a soft squeegee too when tinting, if the harder is all you have just be a little gentler. Make sure that before you cut the bottom edge that you roll the window up before you cut or else you tint will be too short (be careful of that one, it’s easy to forget about if you don’t tint all the time).

 

 

 

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