A tint job runs in a fixed order: check in and pick a shade, cut the patterns, clean the glass twice, shrink film to curved windows, install it wet on the inside, squeegee the water out, inspect, and explain the curing days.
- Check-in and shade talk. The customer picks a shade, the shop confirms what's legal on each window, and the car gets a quick walk-around for existing damage.
- Patterns are cut. By hand on the outside of the glass, or by a plotter from software — one piece per window, slightly oversized.
- The glass gets cleaned. Then cleaned again. Scrubbed, scraped, squeegeed, wiped. This step decides whether the job looks clean or speckled.
- Curved windows get shrunk. Most rear windows curve. The film is laid on the outside, heated, and smoothed until it takes the glass's shape — this is shrinking, and it's the skill beginners fear most.
- Film goes on the inside. The liner peels off, both film and glass get sprayed with slip solution, and the film is floated into place.
- Water gets pushed out. Squeegee strokes from the center outward drive the slip out from under the film. The glue grabs. Edges get tucked and sealed.
- Final check. The installer inspects every window at angles, inside and out, heats any stubborn edges, and cleans the glass.
- Cure talk and keys back. Film needs a few days to fully dry — tiny water pockets at pickup are normal and fade. The customer hears: don't roll the windows down yet, and here's how to clean them.
What surprises beginners
Three things. First, film is installed on the inside of the glass but shaped on the outside — the rear window gets its shrinking done outside, then the piece moves in. Second, most of the clock is cleaning and prep, not the glamorous part. Third, a fresh job isn't finished when the car leaves. The glue cures — finishes bonding — over days, which is why good shops explain the hazy first week instead of apologizing for it.
A simple sedan might take two hours. A careful full car with a tricky rear window takes longer. Speed comes later. Sequence comes first — and the sequence never changes: clean, cut, shape, install, inspect.
Keep Going
What VLT Means — the shade decision from step one, explained
Mistakes Every Beginner Makes — where each of these steps goes wrong — and why that's fine