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Air release technology – what are your thoughts
Please forgive me if I’m being naive, fairly new to the sign making industry.
I try and avoid vinyl signage purely because I’m useless at getting a bubble-less finish, even if I wet apply! And I’ve seen a few companies offering bubbleless technology.
What is everyone’s thoughts on these vinyls? I was watching some wording being applied to a vehicle the other day by a professional, and he applied it with such ease I couldn’t help think that it was some special type of vinyl!
Again…Please correct me if I’m wrong….still learning!
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14 Replies
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Air release makes a massive difference when applying vinyls. For normal signs though a laminator is the easiest option for bubble free application. It may sound stupid but if applying by hand the way in which you hold your squeegee is really important. Always work from side to side with it at a 30 degree angle allowing each stroke to overlap the previous one by about half the width of the squeegee. Push your squeegee forward rather than draw it back so you can see any wrinkles forming before you stick it down if that makes any sense. Air release I’d also much more expensive so its definitely cheaper when possible to use standard vinyl. There’s an application fluid called "right on" that dissolves after a few minutes for wet application which may help you also.
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All about practice.
As David mentioned it’s all about how you hold the squeegee to allow the air to escape.
Some squeegee ares easier to use that others. For example i tend you use a felt squeegee for big print applications. Where as on a van for cut text I use a rubber squeegee with a felt edge.Air-realise. We use this for big applications we want to get done quickly and take away an element of mistake. They are more expensive. Only really available in wrap and digital print though to my knowledge. Tend to be a wee bit thicker than normal vinyl though, wrap vinyl anyway. Not ideally for cutting in a plotter.
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quote Chris Wilson:All about practice.
As David mentioned it’s all about how you hold the squeegee to allow the air to escape.
Some squeegee ares easier to use that others. For example i tend you use a felt squeegee for big print applications. Where as on a van for cut text I use a rubber squeegee with a felt edge.Air-realise. We use this for big applications we want to get done quickly and take away an element of mistake. They are more expensive. Only really available in wrap and digital print though to my knowledge. Tend to be a wee bit thicker than normal vinyl though, wrap vinyl anyway. Not ideally for cutting in a plotter.
A pain in the 4rse if cutting small text on a plotter as the letters constantly lift from the backing material!
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I used Metamark MD5 for many years.
Few months ago I tried their meta scape (air release) version. Love it!
Saves a lot of times when I cover van windows and then apply cut vinyl on top – or just digitally print on it. -
At the end of the day, if you cant fit dry with a regular full skin of adhesive, then adopt the air release material when needed. air-release has drawbacks / limitations, so you will need to look into this further and fully understand how to work with it.
It does help give a better finish with large format applications, but it also hood-winks you into thinking you are better than you are… till someone hands you a bit of 10 year cast to apply, and you end up in a mess in the corner with vinyl wrapped around your head 😆
Other than wrapping film, which is harder to come by these days with regular adhesive, we don’t stock air-release films because it makes our guys lazy. and as i say above, gives them a false sense of security. hand them some non-air release and the quality of their work slides south. -
Thanks for the tips guys! Really appreciated! Think I need to get practising! :smiles:
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Also make sure what you are applying to is clean and dust free. Dust will produce bubbles all day long especially important when working on a horizontal surface like applying vinyl to a panel on the bench
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Where are you based Carlo ?
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I’m based on the Hertfordshire/Essex border Iain!
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Carlo, I’m not that far away, I’d be happy to give you some free of charge application training if you think it might help you ?
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That is a very kind offer Iain, would be great to see how it’s supposed to be done! Obviously being self taught I do often think I’m getting into bad habits!
Where abouts are you based? -
im based in Suffolk but I travel all over. let me know when you have a free day and we will sort out meeting up.
Drop me a message – 07881627231
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Top man Iain, always offering to help others out and Carlo I would jump at the chance of someone like Iain willing to spend some time with you.
Vinyl application all comes down to practice and technique as has been said. 3m gold squeegee and some monkey strips is the preferred choice for many of us.
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I certainly will Martin! I will also be investing in some monkey strips! What a great idea!
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