[Peter Johnson]

Have been looking for something like this for some time now. Have just purchased some and will test them out.

[Peter Johnson]

Smart knives are pre-set cutting blades. Made from very good materials and long lasting. Sharpened at the correct angle and set at the correct depth.
So all you do is replace the original holder and blade, set the machine to the correct pressure and away you go.

They are a direct replacement for the blade holder and the blade itself. You pay a little more for the initial purchase, but then you pay a minimal fee for an exchange of the smart knives.

I purchased 2. So as soon as one needs replacing, I use the spare and send the old one off for exchange. Very quick turnaround as well. Pretty much the next day.

Have tried to upload an image (first time so not too sure it will work). The original Graphtec blade and holder at the bottom and the smart knife at the top.

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[Peter Johnson]

How would that work if you work from home? I mean, you pay a TV licence and you might be playing music you’ve already bought and paid for.

I could possibly see an argument if other people are in the house, but it would surely be a weak argument?

Just wondered is all.

[Peter Johnson]

Not too sure if you’re still interested, but I use SIHL 3687 TRISOLV POSTART from APS.

Not too expensive for a roll and the results are quite good. I think APS also do a self-adhesive version as well.

[Peter Johnson]

Thank you. I’ll give them a call.

[Peter Johnson]

Thanks for the reply Martin.

I thought I’d mentioned it was a latex printer, but obviously not.

The reason I’m asking about this is that I have been producing some wall stickers printed onto vinyl and I was concerned that the customer might scratch the surface while applying them. So I just wondered if there was any quick way of protecting the print, but without actually applying a sheet of laminate.

[Peter Johnson]

Hi Gary.

Checked out their website and it seems far more reasonably priced than some I’ve seen. Thank you for that.

Hi David.

I thought about doing something like that. But it just rankles a little with regards to product packaging and customers first impressions. I already get a lot of repeat buyers for my stuff and I think professional looking packaging does go some way towards that. Thanks for the suggestion though.

[Peter Johnson]

Hi Chris.

I spent many years at Shell UK working as a senior technical support analyst. I dealt with some of the most common software out there and then I dealt with some software that I couldn’t even pronounce, let alone use. But my job was to fix problems with them, so I had to learn.

Anyway, getting back to the point I was trying to make, if you have had previous experience of a piece of software but are now using something that looks like a totally different application, follow a few basic rules.

Start with simple objects (squares, circles, rectangles etc) and just do basic things to them. Like aligning, welding, cutting one from the other and so on. While you are searching the help on how to do this, you start to pick up other little tips and tricks.

Once you’ve grasped the basics, try to reproduce a design you were familiar with in your earlier days. Basically, as you re-learn to do the things you used to do, you’ll pick them up quicker because you know the result you want and the terminology used to describe/search for how to do it. You can then start to add on the more specific/complex things later.

Personally, I use Coreldraw because it was the first package I was introduced to getting into the sign/design business. But if I could go back again, I would definitely have learned PS instead.
As to pricing, if you are going to buy outright, they are both fairly pricey for a short term use. I would probably go for the monthly lease of PS. Even the cost of 6 months use wouldn’t come close to buying the full application.

Just my thoughts.

[Peter Johnson]

I have an account with dollarphotoclub, which is fairly good. Not as comprehensive a range of images as Shutterstock, but still okay.
I also subscribe to Adobestock photo. Fairly reasonable prices and a much more extensive library of images.

There is always Shutterstock, 123RF and quite a few others, but the price they charge for a single image can be quite breathtaking.

[Peter Johnson]

You can buy self-adhesive teflon strips of various lengths, widths and thicknesses off eBay. Just need to make sure you know the correct dimensions required.

I bought some for my original cheap chinese cutters and they were fine. But I only get the genuine thing now for my Graphtec. Like cutter blades. The eBay ones were sort of ok-ish, but the genuine article beat them hands down every time.

Remember, you probably WILL get what you pay for, so, buyer beware.

[Peter Johnson]

Totally agree with Stuart and Simon.

You should always laminate the windowperf vinyl or water and dirt can collect in the holes and blur/obscure vision, which totally defeats the object of having windowperf in the first place.

But to answer your other question;

http://www.metamark.co.uk/Pages_dv/mg670.htm
3M™ Scotchcal™ Optically Clear Overlaminate – I would assume William Smith would stock this
https://www.imagegroupuk.com/choosing-m … inate-film
I also know that APS do DigiSOL DS3052(L) which is an ultra clear printable film but has been used by some people as an overlaminate (apparently it was easier to work with than some of the thinner stuff).

Just a few suggestions.

Pete J.

[Peter Johnson]

I have Wasatch for my L26500. I got it fairly cheap(ish) as I bought it with the printer. But another aspect you really need to think about is the hardware required to run the RIP.

For example (from what I can remember when I was looking at different RIP’s) Caldera requires a minimum Pentium i3 processor, 4GB RAM and LINUX as the operating system. If you already have that then no problem. But if you don’t, it’s another cost to factor in. Whereas, on the other hand, I bought a cheap old Athlon dual core PC with 3GB RAM and Windows XP and it runs Wasatch fine. Saying that, I haven’t done any massive print runs as yet, so if you are looking at processing huge print files, then maybe a more powerful machine is the way to go.

[Peter Johnson]

Hi Chris.

Unfortunately, I don’t think you’re going to find anything really cheap. RIP software comes with a licence and it’s effectively the licence that costs the money. If people change RIP, they almost certainly sell the old one WITH the licence and they will charge for it.

[Peter Johnson]

As Phil said. Be very, very careful with copyright/trademark issues.

I got unwittingly hit with a trademark violation on eBay because some nobhead (Mark Coop) went and reqistered a trademark in Spain (after retracting his attempt in the UK) for the phrase ‘Keep Calm And Carry On’. I joined a campaign to get the trademark revoked, but it unfortunately failed.

I was selling stickers that said this and got my account ‘indefinitely suspended’. That was nearly 6 years ago and it’s still ‘indefinitely suspended’. I belive it ended quite a few small businesses their livliehood at the time.

Also, there can be some serious legal ramifications and costs. So tread carefully.

[Peter Johnson]

Agree with all of the above plus my tuppence worth.

I always tell the customer to ensure they wash the vehicle with plain soap and water.

One of the biggest mistakes people make when they ‘wash’ the vehicle prior to fitting decals/signs/stripes is the fact that they use some form of soap with wax in it. They think the car is super clean but there is a thin film of wax between the adhesive and the actual paint work. Also, if they use some form of de-greaser and don’t clean that off properly, similar problems can occur.
In certain circumstances, the de-greaser/wax/adhesive can react in a way to cause an oily film. I have literally seen stickers slide off some vehicles.

And, off course, they could just be applying it on top of rust/primer etc..

[Peter Johnson]

I’m assuming you mean a nylon type fishing wire?

I think I’ve seen the sort of thing you’re talking about, but they were used with steel wire and not fishing wire. If it is what I’m thinking of, you need to be very careful that the ‘crimping sleeve’ doesn’t cut into fishing line causing it to be much weaker, or even cutting through.

Is there not some sort of plastic sleeving that can be used and heated with a gun to bond the fishing line?

[Peter Johnson]

Thought I would just finish off this little post in case anyone else was interested.

I did as suggested and have successfully printed onto some Ritrama series L&M vinyl without any major issues. I used a standard profile for self-adhesive vinyl and everything went okay.

But just to clarify, I was only trying to print black onto the gold/silver after someone asked me if I could make some silver decals with a black outline. So, just for that purpose, this was a good, cheap and cost-effective solution.

[Peter Johnson]

Received a phone call from William Smith a few days ago.

After talking to one of the managers about this, one of the girls found out that the 8914 edge sealing was a ‘made for US only’ product. But she also discovered that the edge sealing tape was basically just 3M laminating film cut to a 12mm x 50m roll.

I already knew this but, and this is the bit I was not originally told by them when I contacted them, they CAN, as Gary suggested, actually cut and make the rolls to order. It’s a bit pricey compared to how much it costs in the US, but at least it is available.

Just thought I would add this to close the topic properly.

[Peter Johnson]

Was discussing the issue with a friend, over a pint, and he said "I have family in America. I can get them to buy some and just box and send it over".

Hmmm…..

[Peter Johnson]

The Impact library images are very good for overall scaling but, as Robert says, none of these type of software packages are 100%.

I always get the customer to send me as good an image as they can manage (never via a text message because of compression of the image), with an accurate measurement between 2 fixed points. I then scale their photo to the overall dimensions (length/height etc) of the outline and the dimension they sent me. This then allows you to very accurately scale text/images to their particular vehicle and also allows me to make changes based on any fittings/mouldings on their vehicle that may not actually be on the outline drawing.

[Peter Johnson]

quote Gary Barker:

could you not just use clear laminate ?

Hi Gary. Thanks for the reply.

Yes, I could. It would mean running the laminate roll through the cutter to produce lengths of 1m, 2m, 3m etc by 12mm.

I know I can do it this way and have pretty much resigned myself to doing this, but thought I would ask just in case somebody has already been in this situation and has found an easier workaround. Especially the guy in the post I linked in my original post. He’ll probably say that this is how he had to do it, in which case I’ll just get on with it and do it.

[Peter Johnson]

Not too sure what the rules are in regards to posting company names or links to company websites, but I found something similar to these when I googled ‘tall a boards’