Most install problems are fixable. Work calm, work slow. If something just went sideways on your install, find it below before you peel anything off. For the full install steps, use the installation and care guide.
Edges or corners are lifting
Usually the surface still had wax, oil, or cleaner on it, the adhesive got touched, or the decal was not pressed down hard enough. Press the lifting edge back down firmly with a squeegee or your fingertip. If it keeps popping up, warm it first - a hair dryer on low, or park the vehicle in the sun - then hold pressure on it for 30 to 60 seconds. Give the adhesive a full 48 hours before washing the vehicle.
The transfer tape won't let go
Lay the tape back down and burnish hard over the whole design. Then peel the tape back flat against itself, slow, at a sharp angle - never straight up. If a letter rides up with the tape, stop, press that spot back down, burnish over it again, and peel past it slowly. Fine detail and matte finishes need the slowest peel of all.
Letters stayed on the backing paper
Before peeling the backing, burnish the front of the decal well so every letter grips the transfer tape. If some letters stayed behind, lay the backing back in place, burnish over those letters, and peel the backing again.
Air bubbles or wrinkles
Small bubbles: leave them alone. A few warm days settle most of them. For a bigger bubble, prick its edge with a pin, push the air toward the hole with a fingertip or squeegee, and press it flat. A wrinkle that has been pressed in is set - the fix is prevention: use the tape hinge and squeegee from the center outward a little at a time, like the installation guide shows.
The decal won't stick
The surface is almost always the problem, not the vinyl. Heavy texture, silicone or wax coatings, fresh paint (give it about 30 days to cure), and cold surfaces under about 50 degrees F all stop the adhesive from grabbing. Move to clean, smooth glass, metal, or cured paint. Clean it with rubbing alcohol, let it dry fully, and warm a cold panel before you start.
It went on crooked
If you have not burnished it down yet, lift slowly from one corner at a low angle and reposition it - you get one careful retry. Once it is pressed and set, it will not move without tearing. Next time, measure first, set a masking-tape hinge, and print the true-size template from the product page to hold against the vehicle and check placement before anything sticks.
Creases from the mail
Lay the decal flat, design side up, under a stack of books overnight in a warm room. The vinyl relaxes back flat. Do not fold it, and do not iron it.
Taking a decal off
Warm it with a hair dryer on low, then peel slowly at a low angle, pulling the vinyl back on itself. Any residue comes off with rubbing alcohol on a soft cloth; wash the spot after. Take extra care on old or repainted paint.
See the process
Watch our 4x4 Platinum installation video - seeing the pace and the peel angle once is worth a page of instructions.
Still stuck?
Contact Bullard Vinyl Co. and tell us which step went wrong and what the surface is. A photo helps. We would rather help you save the decal than have you fight it alone.