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Printed vinyl on polycarbonate
Hi All,
Long time no speak, maybe retirement isn’t so bad ! Over the years I’ve reverse printed clear vinyl and mounted it on (mostly) Makralon and then backed it up with white vinyl for interpretive panels, maps etc. for outdoor use. All absolutely fine except for the last batch which after a few weeks started to lift away from the polycarb. Now I’m not sure if the reason given to me by a very well known nationwide supplier of Makralon was genuine advice or the age old trick of sending the new apprentice for a tub of “elbow grease, a tin of striped paint or a long wait” ? The explanation given was that the polycarb was “out gassing” !! True or false ? And it was suggested “This happens sometimes”. I’ve been asked to do a couple more panels but am nervous that this might happen again. Other than wiping the polycarb over with meths does anybody have any thoughts on why it happened the first time, please ?
Cheers,
Harry
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2 Replies
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Hi Harry
That information is spot on, polycarbonate never stops gassing off, and this can cause small air pockets in the vinyl or lifting. If you need to lay vinyl onto polycarbonate they recommend using cast vinyl as that is porous. Alternatively switch out the polycarbonate to PET / PETG
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Thanks for that Graham. They say you never stop learning although I wish I’d known that years ago. I generally only do job now for friends and village events and people who say “I know you’re retired but can you just ?” I’ve tracked down a supplier for the PETG and it’s on it’s way.
Thanks again.
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