Wrapping a Classy Classic

Chemical Bank, a 90-year-old Michigan mainstay, often uses a vintage Ford Model A to promote the company, which is about as old as, if not older than, the car. The car still runs well, Zentx reports, and the bank uses it primarily in warm weather during community parades.

Prior to the wrap, the Model A had a cream-colored paint with a simple vinyl-cut logo on the door. “It was kind of dull,” says Jeremy Gwizdala, head of Zentx vehicle graphics. The bank wanted to add a little something more to the car so they asked Zentx, its longtime graphics provider, for a full wrap.

Production
An old black-and-white photo of one of Chemical Bank’s original branches garnered from the bank’s archives added a nice touch to the wrap. Zentx designer Ashley Bokhart scanned the photo with a Microtek ScanMaker i900; using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator, she slightly adjusted size and contrast levels for detail, fading the edges so the photo would blend well with the wood-grain stock art.

Zentx turned to its 51-inch Mutoh ValueJet 1204 with Mutoh Eco-Ultra inks to output the graphics onto Oracal Orajet 3951 RapidAir Professional Wrapping Film. In order to make the design look seamless, Gwizdala and crew printed approximately 12 panels, each measuring 48 inches wide. Overlaminate for vehicle graphics is a standard at the shop, Gwizdala says, so for this job, he used a Seal Image 600-S laminator and an Oracal Oraguard 290 overlaminate.

It took two Zentx installers two days at their 5500-square-foot facility to finish. Gwizdala notes that Zentx has warranted the wrap for five years but insists that it will last much longer. “It’s not in the elements day in and day out,” he says, “so until they want to change the look I expect it to get used for many years to come.”

Of Note
“The louvres on the hood portion required quite a bit of patience,” says Gwizdala. “Then again, what part of vehicle wrapping doesn’t!”

The Client
Chemical Bank; Midland, Michigan

The Players
Zentx Media Group; Freeland, Michigan (www.zentx.com)

Tools and Supplies
Mutoh ValueJet 1204, Mutoh Eco-Ultra eco-solvent inks, Seal Image 600-S laminator, Oracal Orajet 3951 RapidAir, Oracal Oraguard 290 overlaminate