-
What is your Preferred Vinyl brand?
I started using MacTac but after a few years I found it was getting harder to weed so moved on to 3M which performed well to start but again I started to have problems, I was told by supplier that because of problems it was been stopped I moved on to my latest Avery 500 weeds perfectly and performs well. What other good vinyls do you use that perform well as I am always looking for the best price as I’m sure all of us are.
-
28 Replies
-
Quick answer, for cut vinyl I swear by Oracal 751c or 551. Been using it around 17 of my 27 years.
I have tried all the top branded vinyls and some of the others too. never really been fully happy with them.
Exact same story with the application tapes, Oracal. -
Same as Rob above, though i don’t like 751 much!!
551 for 99% of my cut vinyl, occasionally I’ll take an avery 700? substitute for out of stock colour and I like that too.
Chromes are usually avery too.
I use a lot of the oracle range from time to time, including their wrap films, higher performace films I sometimes buy wrap films / wide format purely because they have the colour I need in that range!
App paper – always oracle.
-
We use mainly Avery 777, and also a variation of oracal films depending on application from 551 through to 951.
Conform 4050 on everything.
-
Used Mactac 9800 for donkeys, even before digital print was common. Got vans going around with it on for 12 years plus & it still looks good. Having said that, I’m with Robert on the Oracal 751. Cuts well, weeds well & it’s a cast so client will get decent value for his money
-
Hexis, always performed well for us
-
3M 1080i for wrapping, sometimes avery and hexis.
-
Metamark – tried other, keep going back to it.
-
Metamark MD3. Great all round. Orafol 3164 I think it is I find is also a good little vinyl.
-
Metamark M7 for our general Cut Vinyl,
MD3 for flat panel digital work,
MD5 for vehicles
Orajet 3164 for cheapy cheap, stickers/correxAlong with various others, for more specialist applications.
-
What other good vinyls do you use that perform well as I am always looking for the best price as I’m sure all of us are.
I don’t think this is the case for a lot of us Mark, switching vinyl brands to save a few pence per metre can cause extra problems such as colour matching when an existing customer wants another job doing 😆 😆 You will also find over time you get to know exactly what you can do with that vinyl & what you can’t 😆
I have used the same brand vinyl for many years, checking with different suppliers to ensure I get the best price per metre for that particular brand of vinyl.
I use 551 for most of what I do the same as others on here have said, I can fit it & walk away knowing it will do the job & I won’t get phone calls from unhappy customers. Avery 500 is a monomeric vinyl which I wouldn’t use as my main source of vinyl for the type of work I do. -
Avery 700 for everything, along with avery 800 for vehicles when cast is needed
-
Some great options there guys thanks for the input, in think I am going to upgrade to the avery 700 and pay that little extra.
-
quote :Orajet 3164 for cheapy cheap, stickers/correx
Ah cheapy stickers on 100micron – We Looove VMAX GT100 for them, goes really well through the HP Latex, cuts & weeds well too.
-
quote Mark Banks:Some great options there guys thanks for the input, in think I am going to upgrade to the avery 700 and pay that little extra.
It really depends on the sort of work you do but I use to do very little short term signage & keeping 2 different series of vinyl in stock was an expense I felt I could do without, I am sure there will be those that disagree with me but if you are a small business then the difference in vinyl cost between a monomeric & polymeric vinyl per job shouldn’t really be an issue. If it is then you are probably far to cheap 😆 😆
-
quote Martin Pearson:quote Mark Banks:Some great options there guys thanks for the input, in think I am going to upgrade to the avery 700 and pay that little extra.
It really depends on the sort of work you do but I use to do very little short term signage & keeping 2 different series of vinyl in stock was an expense I felt I could do without, I am sure there will be those that disagree with me but if you are a small business then the difference in vinyl cost between a monomeric & polymeric vinyl per job shouldn’t really be an issue. If it is then you are probably far to cheap 😆 😆
Completely agree, sooner or later a staff member will use a monomeric material on a job that warrants a quality vinyl & it comes back to haunt you. Worse still as I’ve seen previously on other signs,
The client doesn’t notice the failure or doesn’t really care & bang goes your reputation. For me, it’s the best grade image perfect poly for standard print, IJ180 for most wraps & oracal cast for the plotter. We sell our time & experience, don’t skimp on the material & risk ruining your hard work. -
Oracal here and Orajet for the printer.
-
Because of our harsh UV I use Avery 800 as minimum. Very occasionally I will use 700 or 900. In summer (temps over 30 deg) trying to use Avery 900 is like try to use chewing gum. We mainly use Avery products. 1005 for wrapping and the Supreme wrap Films. Biggest problem there is usually the vehicle not so much the vinyl. I have used other vinyls. Don’t like 3M so much, but the Diamond Grade Reflective is very popular and a must with mining vehicles. I never scrimp on vinyls, in my eyes they are the cheapest part of the job, doing it again for free is the most expensive!
-
quote David Hammond:Metamark M7 for our general Cut Vinyl,MD3 for flat panel digital work,
MD5 for vehiclesI use same materials as David
Use Metamark M7 from year 2000. -
Have you found that the M7 isn’t as glossy as it used to be.
Ordered some M7 Light Grey last week and it came and was more Satin than gloss, noticeably different to the M7 black vinyl we had in stock. :awkward:
-
quote :Have you found that the M7 isn’t as glossy as it used to be.
Ordered some M7 Light Grey last week and it came and was more Satin than gloss, noticeably different to the M7 black vinyl we had in stock.
Not noticed … yet.
But we do notice a few products are going to grey back adhesive – the intermediate grade high-tack being one. -
Yes had an issue with their MDP-H shrinking back, and falling off a wall we installed. It wasn’t the grey adhesive, so could have been an old batch. They replaced it with their MD5 High Tack, although we actually reprinted it on Arlon DF8000 as I’m 100% sure that won’t fail… still not got a credit note for the original roll either.
-
Used to spend at least £2000 a month with Metamark until I had similar issues with MD5. When I complained they refused to acknowledge & suggested maybe I was fitting it incorrectly after 25 years in the trade. Closed my account & not had a call, email or rep visit in 3 years. Guess my business wasn’t wanted after all, will never use again.
-
I think MD5 Hi-Tack going to grey adhesive soon too.
-
Ekk Kevin!!! Had similar issues with another company a few years back, so moved to Metamark!
Never had issues here with Metamark, really nice bunch of Girls & Boys we deal with, had 3 rolls damaged in transit and replaced straight away without question, was very very impressed with the service. -
They were brilliant to be fair, stated having a few issues with MD5 which I used as a standard day to day, 2 vans came back peeling off. Rep ignored my calls, office had the roll back & said it was fine after testing. Went to Spandex & found them bullet proof
-
Also on balance, my printer engineer was a personal friend of Metamark’s MD & I was told off the record that I was being sold MD5 at cost as a loss leader in order to win the business on their M7 vinyl. I always favoured Mactac 9800 at the time so maybe I wasn’t such a great prospect for them as a punter, possibly not making a great profit from me.
-
I haven’t had any issues. Check your vinyl with their vinyl swatch. If not acceptable, speak to them. They will pick it up and replace with new.
-
Not posted here for a while but thought I’d put my penny’s worth.
I used to use Avery 700 from Victory but the price kept climbing regularly so I’ve swithched to Hexis Suptac500 and if I’m buying full rolls Hexis Suptac Trade, both are upto 10 year vinyls and savings have been significant and it certainly seems to cut and weed well
Alan D
Log in to reply.
