Paint protective film cracked and ugly

OldSarge · 2025-06-29T20:28:11-0500

I need some help on my trike finish/paint. I was going to detail my TriGlide and discovered the Paint Protection Film has become cracked and ugly. The film was applied prior to me owning it. It looks like the film that Harley sells. I looked on the internet and found recommendations to use heat from a hair dryer or heat gun. The recommendations were to also use a plastic scraper after heating the film. I am worried that I will hurt the paint underneath. Has anybody else run into this problem and how did you resolve it. If I can get it off without damage to my paint I will definitely never put this stuff on it. Thanks for your help on this.

Gorilla · 2025-06-29T22:05:03-0500

First don't over heat it. Work on a not easily seen are first till out get the hang of it. Get it warm enough to peal it off. You can use a plastic scraper to get it started.
If it just tears when you pull on it you may have got it to hot. You will for sure leave glue behind.
Buy a good decal glue remover to get the glue off. That stuff is not cheap. Good luck. It's not bad once you get the hang of it.

Old Road Dog · 2025-06-30T03:12:23-0500

OldSarge said:
I need some help on my trike finish/paint. I was going to detail my TriGlide and discovered the Paint Protection Film has become cracked and ugly. The film was applied prior to me owning it. It looks like the film that Harley sells. I looked on the internet and found recommendations to use heat from a hair dryer or heat gun. The recommendations were to also use a plastic scraper after heating the film. I am worried that I will hurt the paint underneath. Has anybody else run into this problem and how did you resolve it. If I can get it off without damage to my paint I will definitely never put this stuff on it. Thanks for your help on this.

Steam is your friend. A cheap garment steamer from Wally World works well. It also can be used to reapply film. Gets bugs off your windshield too.

Papa Zook · 2025-06-30T05:41:19-0500

Old Road Dog said:
Steam is your friend. A cheap garment steamer from Wally World works well. It also can be used to reapply film. Gets bugs off your windshield too.

This is what the pro shop near me uses and reccomends. Do it yourself or have your local shop remove it.

HDUSA1 · 2025-06-30T06:20:52-0500

The Harley branded PPF doesn’t seem to be of very good quality. Once you get it off and get your first rock chip (and it will happen), you might rethink putting it back on. There are high quality films out there that won’t crack, ie 3M, Xpel, Ceramic Pro, etc.

Just a suggestion…if you have a local PPF shop, see what they would charge to take the old stuff off and put a couple new quality pieces back on.

Paint protective film cracked and ugly

OldSarge

10+ Posts

Gorilla

Senior Moderator

Old Road Dog

650+ Posts

Papa Zook

Founder

HDUSA1

Similar threads

Welcome to the Trike Talk Community

Forum statistics

Share this page