3m Window perforated vinyl

[Milo]

I have a storefront that has five windows 54 1/2” wide x 88” high. The film comes 54” wide, and I,m assuming the printing area on the width will go to about 53“ or 52 3/4 at best with the HP 365. The prints are all high res photos that also overlap into the adjoining window mullions and into the next window.

How do you handle seams on the windows with the perf? My biggest concern is the gaps left to right once the finished print is trimmed.

Any input would be appreciated for me to make a wise decision on install.

Milo

 

[balstestrat]

You can go full 54" edge to edge if you install the ink collectors.
You can't get a 60" roll?

 

[Milo]

Fellers didn’t have 60” material listed for sale. Is it available?

 

[Precision]

Try Windowmark 70/30 from Fellers in a 60 inch roll. Although considerably cheaper than 3M, it holds up well and prints great.

Hope this helps.

 

[jfiscus]

FWIW, if you don't already have it in stock, you can't get a 60" roll or a 54" roll of any type of cast perf right now....

 

[karst41]

You can go full 54" edge to edge if you install the ink collectors.
You can't get a 60" roll?

A lot of jobbers do not stock 60".
I love the Material dollar to gain factor, of the 60" 3m IJ.
But the reality is, 60" can be a freekin bear to wrassle with in the shop, ie
Printer to Laminator to the Graphtec and then to a trimmer table.

Man you Soar into the shop like an Eagle to start the day, and by 7:00 pm you
are wallering in the mud with the rest of the hawgs, wonderin how in the F N Heckin,
you arived to this place, and then you look at that damb roll of 60",,,,,,,,Yo Earl,,
hand me that damb skillsaw.

These Tack Cloths I really like. prior to ripping Latex Ink if you see some particulate on your IJ 180,
just get after it with this. Zero effect on ink, media or bonding. Ever seen a $1 mil lamb being painted.
Yeah boy that Akzo Paint is not cheap.

Gots some debris and the laminator is hot and loaded,,, and the hog tail brush aint doing it.
Grab the Gold. Also dam good on the laminator rollers too.
A box of these is cheap on Amazon.

Cheers

 

[Milo]

Thanks all for the input. I’ve got the job sold, now to figure out how to get it done.

 

[Connie Fry]

I am also doing 3 large store front windows with perf. I would like to do it without laminate, but wonder if its too hard to install unlaminated. I also have a question about the seam line since I was planning on doing panels 24" wide for a 50Inch window. My printer is Roland versacamm 54".
Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

Unlaminated is easier

 

[ikarasu]

Have you guys ever removed unlaminated perf, or do your customers do it?

We have 6 huge windows to put up and it's indoors, so I figured I'd go unlaminated for once... They wanted to see a small 2 ft by 2 ft sample of it before we did them all, so I went down and put it up.

Just pulling off 2 ft x 2 ft that's been up for 10 minutes was a pain...it came off in a few strips. Now I didn't use heat, but I figure after it's up for months it'll rip even more. I know we'll be taking it down... So I decided to laminate it. $200 in laminate so I'm not tied up for 5 hours doing removal is worth it to me!

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

Unlaminated installs easier and removes just fine... unless it's real old and it cracks off.

 

[Melks]

I have a storefront that has five windows 54 1/2” wide x 88” high. The film comes 54” wide, and I,m assuming the printing area on the width will go to about 53“ or 52 3/4 at best with the HP 365. The prints are all high res photos that also overlap into the adjoining window mullions and into the next window.

How do you handle seams on the windows with the perf? My biggest concern is the gaps left to right once the finished print is trimmed.

Any input would be appreciated for me to make a wise decision on install.

Milo

You could potentially get away with full 54" wide prints which once laminated (not sure if you plan to laminate) may have to be trimmed down a small amount to clean up any edges. I always trim my window perf back 1/4" on all edges and apply edge sealing tape for long lasting results. I generally use 3M IJ67 window perf and the roll is actually about 54.25" wide from the factory. It may be a challenge, but I would definitely approach it with 1 piece. As for perforated vinyl seams when necessary - I always go with a butt seam followed by a piece of edge sealing tape overtop of the seam. I hate the look of overlap seams on perf when viewing from the inside.

If you have access to a 60" printer then this is a lot more straight forward.