uksignboards.com | Using a home printer??

Vinyl

Using a home printer??

Posted by Ewan Chrystal on 20 December 2012 at 00:11

Is it possible to print on printable vinyl using a normal home inkjet printer? I have a very small job to do and he wants a patterned background. Thought this might be the quickest way to do it.
Thanks in advance

Ewan

Paul Richards replied 12 years, 7 months ago 9 Members · 27 Replies
27 Replies

Robert Lambie

Member
20 December 2012 at 00:22

definitely no, wrong inks, will just run off the vinyl.
Ewan Chrystal

Member
20 December 2012 at 00:26

Ok, thanks for the quick reply
Robert Lambie

Member
20 December 2012 at 00:36

no probs…

another pointer is even if you could print onto it and even laminated the print to protect it, it would be bleached completely white in a couple of weeks because the ink is not UV stable.
Ewan Chrystal

Member
20 December 2012 at 00:41

Definitely a non starter then as its for a sign to go in a window
David-Foster-

Member
20 December 2012 at 06:55

Rob is right about the colour fade if it is in a window, however, you can get A4 sheets of printable white vinyl, matt or gloss. Mainly used for model making stickers/decals. I have used it for stickers etc. using a Canon home printer.
Glen Mathers

Member
20 December 2012 at 12:05

quote David-Foster-:

Rob is right about the colour fade if it is in a window, however, you can get A4 sheets of printable white vinyl, matt or gloss. Mainly used for model making stickers/decals. I have used it for stickers etc. using a Canon home printer.

How long would the print last on a vehicle? I have an old designjet 450c and was going to try out some of the inkjet printable vinyl, i’m only using it for small posters for my in-laws pub at the moment.
John McCrorie

Member
20 December 2012 at 22:11

quote David-Foster-:

Rob is right about the colour fade if it is in a window, however, you can get A4 sheets of printable white vinyl, matt or gloss. Mainly used for model making stickers/decals. I have used it for stickers etc. using a Canon home printer.

Where can you get the A4 sheets from
David-Foster-

Member
21 December 2012 at 06:47

I got mine from a modelling place but can’t find it now. This sounds the same stuff though…

http://www.photopaperdirect.com/categories/Creative-Media/Creative-Stickers/?gclid=CIrE35DzqrQCFXDLtAod_F0AeA
David-Foster-

Member
21 December 2012 at 06:51

quote Glen Mathers:

quote David-Foster-:

Rob is right about the colour fade if it is in a window, however, you can get A4 sheets of printable white vinyl, matt or gloss. Mainly used for model making stickers/decals. I have used it for stickers etc. using a Canon home printer.

How long would the print last on a vehicle? I have an old designjet 450c and was going to try out some of the inkjet printable vinyl, i’m only using it for small posters for my in-laws pub at the moment.

Have a look at the link above. The stuff has great reviews and they do a UV spray top coat as well. They have a pack of 5 A4 sheets for less than a fiver so it’s worth a try. They have a BOGOF on 20 sheets so 40 for £20.
Glen Mathers

Member
21 December 2012 at 10:35

quote David-Foster-:

quote Glen Mathers:

quote David-Foster-:

Rob is right about the colour fade if it is in a window, however, you can get A4 sheets of printable white vinyl, matt or gloss. Mainly used for model making stickers/decals. I have used it for stickers etc. using a Canon home printer.

How long would the print last on a vehicle? I have an old designjet 450c and was going to try out some of the inkjet printable vinyl, i’m only using it for small posters for my in-laws pub at the moment.

Have a look at the link above. The stuff has great reviews and they do a UV spray top coat as well. They have a pack of 5 A4 sheets for less than a fiver so it’s worth a try. They have a BOGOF on 20 sheets so 40 for £20.

Just ordered a pack of 5, i’ll let you know how i get on.
Tom Robinson

Member
21 December 2012 at 10:39

I’ve used that before for small promotional stickers before, and some other little jobs.

Its not good for outdoor use but I’ve had them on some clothes hangers with information on for a couple of months and thats still going strong and Never bothered with the sprays.

The packaging says its suitable for car stickers and the like but to be honest I wouldn’t trust it that far.
Paul Richards

Member
14 February 2013 at 00:37

Im in process of trying similar…

You will have to laminate it though, as the colors will run with any moisture

I will post some pics when done

Gonna post to see if any knows of good A4 laminates?

Please take a moment to read our Board Rules
Martin Pearson

Member
14 February 2013 at 01:09

Evan if you laminate it the moisture will still get in fairly quickly & destroy the print unless the laminate is larger than the printed paper/vinyl & the edge of the laminate sealed on the substrate. Evan doing it this way moisture will get in but it takes a lot longer.
Paul Richards

Member
14 February 2013 at 01:14

Thanks Martin
Do you recommend a technique using a home printer?
Paul
Martin Pearson

Member
14 February 2013 at 01:22

No sorry Paul I would never use a home printer for work other than for invoicing & showing customers proofs. If I am looking for exterior graphics then I use a trade printer as I don’t own a solvent machine myself.
Paul Richards

Member
14 February 2013 at 20:46

Thanks for you reply Martin 🙂
Kevin Busby

Member
15 February 2013 at 08:41

I’ve done a few stickers like this mainly for indoor signs and the ink lasted quite well, not the sort of thing to sell but for a one off it can work. Looked ok with the anti-grafiti laminate over the top or you can use an inkjet fixer spray which will help it last a little longer.

Found the stuff from this place very reasonable, quick delivery and about as good quality as anything else http://www.qpmedia.co.uk

Kev
Paul Richards

Member
20 February 2013 at 15:00

Thanks for that Kev
Sorry about late reply, got lost in the hundreds of email I now seem to be getting
Where do I get the anit graffiti laminate from?
Do I need a laminator machine for it?
Used some clear vinyl the other day for laminating but couldnt seem to get micro bubbles out of it?
Thanks again
Paul
Kevin Busby

Member
20 February 2013 at 15:16

I purchased mine from Hexis but most suppliers will do various kinds of over laminate you just need to try and get one that is compatible with ink jet printing if possible.

The bubbles are a case of trial and error, depending on the type of material you are laminating depends how easy / hard it can be but the more practice you do on scrap material the better system you will get going and the easier it will get. Obviously most laminates are meant to be applied by machine to get the good results.

I would get yourself a few meters of the thin anti graffiti laminate and cut into the right sizes then practise on some scrap material until you feel confident then you can move onto your finished work.

Cya

Kevin
Paul Richards

Member
20 February 2013 at 19:38

Thanks for that Kev
Can you point me in the direction of any A4 laminators?
Paul
Martin Pearson

Member
20 February 2013 at 19:42

Clear vinyl has no uv inhibitors in it so absolutely no uv protection for the inks, bubbles well sorry but it’s down to practice, probably caused by your squeegee technique.
A small roller type machine will probably help but they still take a bit of messing about with to get set up correctly.
Anti graffiti films tend to be a bit more expensive plus you would need to ensure they had a suitable uv property as well, most of the major suppliers sell them although not sure about suitability with the inks you are wanting to use.
Paul Richards

Member
20 February 2013 at 19:46

Thanks Martin, not too fussed about UV protection as these stickers/wraps wont be sold
Its just for me to mock up and give examples of styles/colors
It just has to look like the finish I’ll get when I outsource the final print 🙂

Thats why I’m not too fussed with longevity
But needs to be fairly cheap so I can knock up quite a few examples
Kevin Busby

Member
21 February 2013 at 15:14

You can get A4 laminators from any good stationary supplier but the laminate I was talking about comes by the roll and you have to hand apply it. The hot laminators come with their own special pouches that are applied hot not cold.

Regards

Kevin
Martin Pearson

Member
21 February 2013 at 17:12

quote Kevin Busby:

You can get A4 laminators from any good stationary supplier but the laminate I was talking about comes by the roll and you have to hand apply it. The hot laminators come with their own special pouches that are applied hot not cold.

Regards

Kevin

I didn’t realise the stationary stores did A4 laminators Kevin, I knew they sold A4 machines they call laminators that run hot & use a plastic pouch but that to me is encapsulation rather than lamination.

A search on the boards might throw something up as it was talked about a few months ago, not specifically A4 but smallish laminating machines sold quite cheaply on that auction site :lol1: :lol1:
Paul Richards

Member
21 February 2013 at 22:13

Thanks Kevin and Martin
The laminating machine I’m talking about is the one Martin is talking about
I already have the style Kevin is talking about, but as you said that’s for pouches. I use this if i need to make some temporary signs
The laminating machine I’m looking for is to do the vinyl stuff
Couldn’t find anything on here about them, maybe I’m using the wrong terminology?
Martin Pearson

Member
21 February 2013 at 23:04

Have a read through this thread Paul, might help a bit.

http://www.uksignboards.com/viewtopic.p … tor#412008
Paul Richards

Member
21 February 2013 at 23:23

Thanks Martin
Perfect 🙂