alupanel/dibond etc suppliers?

[Jill Marie Welsh]

Hugh, you might want to try my method.
I use Alumalite (similar to alumapanel)
Lightly scuff with a Scotchbrite pad, blow off with an air gun, clean well with something like Windex or even rubbing alcohol.
Then coat out with 1-Shot lettering enamel (comes in a blue-green) with a short-napped or foam roller.
Make sure your last pass is just with the weight if the roller to flatten out any air bubbles.
Leave dry a few days, then you can apply vinyl.
(I’d do a test piece first so you get familiar with the technique)
You could also go to a body shop and have them spray the thing with automotive paint, but that would cost as much as or more than flood-coating it with vinyl.
Love….Jill

[Peter Normington]

Hugh,
No dis mate,
But if the job dosnt run to an extra 8.00 Sqiibs a sheet to flood, you should be putting up your prices.. quite a lot.

If you found a more suitable shade of panel from another supplier you would probably still end up paying more than to your regular one.

Jills suggestion is fine, and would make a nice job, but is costng in time.

I always try and give a customer what is best value, but if they are on a limited budget, then they cannot expect excact matches and a million choices.

Dibond etc is very limited in colour shades, and most only offer the basic colours. So you would be hard pressed to find what you need.

Peter

[Russ]

We use a sheet here called c-bond about 42 yoyo’s +vat a sheet, in real money 30ish squid, as Peter said flood it in some 641 has to be cheaper than running around.

Russ

[Hugh Potter]

i like jills idea but time is a factor now, as for flooding 2x 8×4 sheets for £8, ill start buying my vinyl from you !! i couldnt even buy 5m of 1200 wide for that ! especially 751 which has the colour match he wants !

i think i’ve charged a fair price for the sign, but as normal, the customer wants everything he wants within his budget, the other company offers flooded foamex, no frame etc for his budget, i’m offering a better product, and i can do it in his timeframe, but as i’ve explained to him, i dont want to go putting up a sign that looks bad on me, simple as that,

ultimately i said that to get anywhere near his budget, he’ll have to make do with the blue that the board comes in, and have it fixed directly to the wall, theres no room in my price for flooding etc, nor mounting it away from the wall due to labour and fixing costs,

not that it upset me or owt…. but, no-one replied to my thread asking for a little help with my pricing, i didnt want to post my price, but rather do it via email, so i could detail how i arrived at the price, so i could see if i was too expensive or too cheap, so i just gave the quote as i saw fit, it was way over his budget (which i wasnt initially told about !) so i had to then make it cheaper for him, i’m happy to go with easier routes with regards fixing etc, but i ant gona put up a sign that’ll look crap in 6 months, nor one that is costing ME money !

i want the job so am going a little outta my way to see if a different shade of blue is available, i wont spend long doing it though, time is money and all that !

anyways, just got in from fishing, so shower n bed for me ! night all!

[Harry Cleary]

Russ, were do you get this c-bond?
thanks

[Russ]

Hi, Harry

D.O’sullivans print supplies, Knockmitten lane, Western industrial est, Dublin 12. tel: 01 4565788.

But did you catch anything Hugh 😀

Regards Russ

[Peter Normington]

Hugh The £8 was per sheet,

Peter

[Hugh Potter]

really ?

the list price for 751, 1230 wide, is near £6 + vet per metre, while i normally wouldnt pay that amount, the colour he wants is a special order and only listed on the colour chart, not in the suppliers book, so although they’ll let me have just what i want, i’d have to pay list price for it, fair enough i guess…. i woudlnt want the rest of the roll (drab blue), so in reality, it’s nearer £25+vat just for materials, add the markup / labour and it aint gonna cost him £8 !! .

he just wont spend the dosh, i’ll meet his budget, but on my terms, i wont be working my nuts off to meet his budget, i will give him the very best i can for his allowance, but i wont put up what i think is a poor job, so it just has to be my way, the board colour to me is not a big issue, i havent found owt different yet anyways, i doubt i will, the old factory paint has probably faded anyways !

oh wel, thanks for the input anyways !

[Robert Lambie]

as a last straw…
if joe bloggs down the road will do/offer it on foamex for say £50 but takes a week. offer the customer the same job, same price but quicker. if he hasn’t got anymore money to spend on this sign, hes not going to get any better anywhere else.
take his money for your pocket and take the sale off your competition pronto.

call him, tell him you will do it etc but say, as way of advice, your reluctant to use this material for the following reasons, then spell it out.
offer him the dibond flood coated etc and tell him why you want to use it.
if he says its too dear then say OK, ill give you the foamex, but you have been warned.

don’t mess about with people like this… do you hand over a pound in the chip shop and ask for a chicken supper? 😕

[Hugh Potter]

cheers Rob, thats pretty much where we’re at now, i’ve offered dibond as opposed to foamex, said i want happy doing foamex unless framed and done properly, dibond can be fixed direct so went in around 20% over his budget, that allowed for a labourer for the day, so he offered to do the labour and anything else required for installation, so i matched his price, then came the query about the colour !

i feel i’ve been more than flexible enough now, he won’t go higher, and i’m not prepared to work for less than my bottom line, so it will have to be the blue dibond ! i know for a fact the competition havent gone into anywhere near as much details, and wont be offering the specific colour the customer chose, they were just gonna flood foamex with a reverse weeded flood. no mention of a ‘matched’ blue.

i’ll make a coupleof calls in the morning, but if he wants the sign this week, as i’ve said he could, then i need to move now and get the blue dibond.