I have been using Arlon for the 8 years I've owned a shop. The main reason is because that is what I used at previous employment, but I was also getting it at a very good price.
Recently the price from my main vendor jumped up & the service had taken a bit of a dive. I've been using another source for edge foils & I am happy with their service, so I'm considering a switch to Gerber vinyls for a slightly higher price.
I like to bring in a few dozen rolls by barge to save on freight, but ordered just 1 roll each of white & clear (my most common choices for edge printing)to make sure I would be happy with the switch. I've used them before, but never evaluated them with the critical eye that comes with planning an expense of 1 or 2 thousand bucks.
I just replied to my new suppliers inquiry about how I like the materials so far & decided to post my comments here for some feedback.
quote: I have used the vinyl & of course it prints fine. I did encounter one issue that I'm not sure yet if it is specific to the gerber brand of vinyl. I just ordered another 50 yard roll of Arlon so I'll have both in the shop at once. What is happening that I have encountered before, (but not much recently) is the humidity in my office was affecting the exposed vinyl in my cutter. I cut a bunch of "cut only" jobs & the white sat in the plotter between cuts, with a few feet pulled out from the roll. It seemed that each time I went to cut again, the few feet that were exposed more to my room conditions had distorted (shrank or swelled) just enough to not lay flat. Then on my friction feed plotter, I'd start a cut & it would pull out more vinyl that had not yet been exposed as much to the weather, then travel back to the affected part & sometimes this would cause alignment problems, or even encourage a jam. I can't say for sure that this is more of an issue with the Gerber material, but although I recall this somewhere in my past, I really haven't had much trouble like this any time recently. So either that day, that seemed normal to me, was actually particularily humid, or my steady use of Arlon has been free of as much sensitivity to humidity, & Gerber is more sensitive. The only way to know for sure is to have both on hand & when I encounter this again I will switch to the arlon & compare. I couldn't foresee exactly what I would look for in getting this one roll prior to shipping in a dozen or more, but it seemed like a wise decision. This is a good example of slight differences that MAY exist & I am glad to be taking the time to make sure I am going to be happy with switching to gerber vinyls.
Has anyone else noticed different brands of vinyl reacting differently in this way?
Posted by Tim (Member # 1699) on :
Hey Doug
I'm on the coast, 2 blocks from the waterfront and I've had humidity play games with me too sometimes, but not enough to recognize which brand is more affected by it, sorry.
But, check to see if the stuff you're ordering is available on the clear plastic release liner.
Posted by Doug Allan (Member # 2247) on :
Thanks Tim, thats a good idea, I'll ask. I think the clear plastic liner is more costly, but if not I would rather have that anyway & I'm sure the paper is to blame for the reaction to humidity anyway.
Hey, why don't you post that pic of you holding the smiley pic as your new Letterville image next to all your posts. You're kinda like that comedian with the paper bag, or Tim Allen's neighbor on that tool time show Posted by Dave Grundy (Member # 103) on :
Doug, I have noticed the same problem with both Avery and 3M/Gerber. I simply make sure I re-roll the vinyl back onto the roll tightly between cuts, if there will be a lag of more than 1 oe 2 minutes. In fact, I have had the distortion occur and then after re-rolling and sitting for a few minutes the distortion disappears.
Posted by Doug Allan (Member # 2247) on :
I'm looking forward to comparing the 2 brands, because if one is really better I would choose not to have to re-roll even though it is a simple solution.
Posted by Tim (Member # 1699) on :
Hey Doug,
I'm surprised Barb hasn't done it......
Hahahahhahaaaahahaa.....
Posted by Rick Beisiegel (Member # 3723) on :
Hi Doug
We use Gerber and Avary (mostly Gerber) for almost everything. Recently Gerber dropped in price and Avery climbed. Sometimes $30+ dollars difference on a 50yd roll. I have had some issues with Avery and Edge adhesion. I had some edge print come off with the transfer tape. Of coarse, Avery does not promise edge readiness.
Humidity will play a role, but is not always predictable with it's effects. Could qualify as the eternal question.
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