laminating

[Robert Lambie]

hi there.. i would say definately.. you need a laminator if you are going to be doing vehicles.
regarding a source for versacamm, brian hays @ impact sign solutions or mike antrim @ solutions 2 maybe able to help you. personaly, if i was in your shoes ide buy the cadet. same machine differnt type of ink & is more durable unlaminated, but still would need lamination for long term prints on vehicles.
the company that supplies these machines is B&P lightbrigade & at this point in time have just confirmed discounted purchasing prices for uksg members. if you need to find out more about the machine contact adam booth 07765406938 and explain why your calling and adam will keep you right on anything you need to know. hes already been dealing with several of our members recently and everyone has been very happy. so im sure he will be more than happy to help.

[davebrittain]

Thanks i spoke to Adam about the cadett just before i got your email.
So i may well get one if the price is right for package including laminator.
All i need to do then is find out how to work it all. lol

[Rodney Gold]

You will require a cold pressure laminator , you can’t hot lam vinyl , tho there are films that apply a very thin melt onto the material where one would need hot lam , but these are specialised films (A LOT easier to use and cheaper than colsd lams)

Here’s an article I wrote recently on lamination and why.

It seems to me that one of the biggest issues with digital printing is lamination. Most folk would rather have colonic irrigation than buy and use a laminator.
Most digital printing , regardless of how its done , thermal , full solvent , UV , eco-sol whatever is just not that durable.
Eco-sol, depending on media and profiles can either be rubbed off with 10 finger strokes or can be rubbed till the vinyl is destroyed and still be readable, so either you get lucky with media and profiles , or you live with this and take action
Either you are executing a graphic that is meant for short term usage or one that has to survive. If it has to survive , there really is no other way to ensure that apart from cold pressure lams. If one uses liquid lams , the durability will be compromised (albeit its better than nothing at all). Abraision, polutants, uv, chemicals, solvents etc will ALL damage the print or shorten its life dramatically and liquids might be a sort of band aid for this , but wont be at all impervious to all of these factors.
If one has a flexible print shop , IE printing on a lot of varied substrates and doing a lot of jobbing , then you have to bite the bullet and get a laminator , at the bare minimum a cold roller type. If you can add a hot roller for contract lamination all the better.
Apart from the ultimate protection and being able to give a warrantee second to none with peace of mind , cold pressure lam solves a lot of other problems.
The problem of decal edges curling if cut on a bleed line with a heavy print is totally solved by printing, laminating and then cutting. So is the issue of vinyl “thinning” or puckering when solid dark colours are printed. The issue of transfer tapes taking the image off becomes a non issue. The thicker and stiffer graphic is a ton easier to apply , espcially large stuff which won’t flap , curl or get staticised and become difficult to handle and in fact wont require application tapes (the lam is very tough generally and one can squeegee directly on it) , the chances of bubblew with a lam are minimal. Wrapping becomes a lot easier too if you use a compatible lam.
Add to that the fact that you can often hide defects or even change the look of a graphic with a lam , gloss will “pop” a graphic and matt often hides defects or mild banding , various other finishes can make your graphic stand out.
In terms of time , lams save you a LOT , we lam a few hours after printing and have never had delamination problems.
No 24 hour cure and a further 24 hours for the liquid lams to cure , no need to have dedicated drying racks taken up for 2 days with drying graphics
We can print a graphic , lam , die cut and ship in a few hours. If you do doming , then the lams stop the inks running into the epoxy and allow you to use cheaper resins. If you have a pressure laminator you can mount stuff too and apply double sided tapes to any substrate making them “cuttable”.
Lams are NOT expensive , we pay less than gbp 2 per sq meter for premium stuff and the extra cost to the customer is MORE than worth it. I can’t for the life of me see why a laminator should not be considered ESSENTIAL with the purchase of a print and cut machine or indeed even just a printer. There is one problem tho , cheap laminators or bare bones types DO create their own problems like washboarding , boat wakes etc and can be more difficult to use than the printer itself. Cheaping out on a laminator can actually cause MORE problems so, if buying one , make sure you get something decent and that doesnt need a rocket scientist to work. We use a GMP Excellmaster which is a pretty sophistacted $15k laminator and apart from serving out own needs , we make money laminating for others.

These are points I think are important to look for with laminators

Ease of Webbing (threading all the layers) ?
Amount of lead in and out required (the bits you waste at the end)?
Emergency stops and safety locks?
Workable by one person from both ends?
How thick it can mount to?
How even is the pressure on the rollers.?
How good is the motorisation and how fast can it lam?
What guarantees are on offer? contract maintenance?

Good lamination will NOT exhibit blotchiness or even be visible as a lamination unless VERY closely inspected , it won’t delam , it wont ruck , it wont be applied skewly
To do all this you need to be familiar with the process and the films and unless your dealer can train you (at least a full day or 3) and YOU can operate the machine in various modes and circumstances (like laminating and mounting in a single pass) and achieve good results , you will have wasted money. Ask print finishers what they like (printers) and ask others that are doing digital printing if they will divulge.
If you have the money , buy bigger than you need , think of your next upgrade re printing and buy accordingly. You will surely outgrow your versacam or get into laminating for others. Very good money in contract lams , generally 300% percent profit for quick work.Some lams can do 5m per min and its easy to do 150m per hour at 6-8 quid per sq m.

A laminator is not a set and forget machine and there is a learning curve involved. Whatever you spend on a course will pay back from word go.
I am a firm believer that to buy an established brand or a well represented brand , especially one that sells its own lams and has a good stock availability is worth a premium. Don’t let any salesperson tell you you can’t use other ppls lams , you can. Above all , go see the thing in action and look at the output.
Sorry for the diatribe:) I’m a firm convert….

[Derek Heron]

ace article rodney as they say in this part of the world
it had me heed spinnin
every time i read it i picked something else out
good sound advice
cheers