Got a customer that wants me to put some new lettering on his existing awning. It already has vinyl lettering on it and the awning is a cloth/fabric type of material and I was always under the impression that regular vinyl won't adhere well to a porous surface like this. Is there a special type of vinyl for this application or a special way of applying it? I will have to remove the existing lettering and put up new lettering.
Posted by Alicia B. Jennings (Member # 1272) on :
Ya know, a long while back, I did some lettering on a cloth awning. FranCisco Vargas told me the secret,,,,,,,Ya spray 3M adhesive to the vinyl and it sticks. It's stick so well, years later when the awning was re-lettered (Not by Me) they painted over my vinyl lettering before it was re-lettered.
Posted by David Harding (Member # 108) on :
I don't know of any vinyl that sticks long term to Sunbrella type fabrics but I have painted graphics on over a thousand of them the last decade. If I can do it, the process can't be too difficult to master. If you'd like to know how I do it, I can let you know how it's done. I posted a tutorial a few years ago but don't know how well the search function works.
Posted by Steve Luck (Member # 5292) on :
there is a vinyl called low energy vinyl that we use for textured surfaces such as plastic trash cans for a water park that we do sign work for. It is white and is used mainly for digital print. You could just cut it on your vinyl cutter if you are not printing. It has a very strong adhesive and will even stick to concrete blocks. Ask your supplier about low energy vinyl and ALWAYS do a test first.
Posted by George Perkins (Member # 156) on :
Sounds like a lot of work. I just got a new canopy for my 10x10, cost of the canopy and all four sides and peaks printed multi color was $360. No shipping charges. The printing was razor sharp.
Posted by Peter (Member # 1062) on :
Thanks everyone, I did a little experiment with the spray adhesive and seems to work. Customer is in a rush to get it done so it will be with the caveat that there's no guarantee it won't peel off somewhere down the line and they understand that.
Posted by Bruce Bowers (Member # 892) on :
3M HP vinyl sticks to Sunbrella. My house awning is eleven years old and it still is stuck on...
We used to 3M heat vacuum machine but a heat gun and a rivet brush work well, too.
Posted by bruce ward (Member # 1289) on :
We have also stuck 3M 7125 on sunbrella after cooking it on with a large heated press.
I have also painted canvas with the method of spray adhesive as Alicia said.
Posted by Felix Marcano (Member # 1833) on :
I use Oracal 951. It lasted until the hurricane ripped the letters off(suprisingly, the awning survived the storm. I wouldn't offer warranty though.
