just got a roland pro 4...laminating questions

[shellyky]

Hey Guys...we're a screen print and embroidery shop, expanded recently to include vinyl with a Pro 4 Roland and laminator 60" ...We've caught on really quick but having some issues with lamination.. Please forgive the "newb-like" lingo...we are new to printed vinyl and lamination, not new to having a plotter...

....some of the issues are

1) when we stop the lamination of the last sheet, then when we start the next one , where the roll had stopped, it leaves a line in the adhesive and that translates to the vinyl image with a big line down it...so we're having to roll out a foot out front of each sheet we do to bypass that ruining the decals. Is there any way around this? are we using junk lamination? we are using glossy imagestar 3 yr intermediate lamination.

2) we're experiencing a lot of SPORATIC wrinkling. our sheets we are kinda limiting to 54" wide by 4 foot or so long so nothing huge. it will start to walk and wrinkle sometimes after going in perfectly straight then instantly wrinkling after 6" or so...everyone's getting frustrated...end up using 3x the amount of lamination per roll of vinyl it seems.....that is getting pricey as we are laminating all of our decals.

3) where do i buy the 'under side' paper? i cant seem to find that anywhere.

4) what are your preferred lamination material brand/models? Should I switch? I've only bought this kind because that's what they sold me on and the price seemed right. Always willing to spend more to not end up costing the time now and we're wasting so much... Machine is a royal soverign heat assist model.


Any other general tips on lamination? Its frustrating to print the sheet flawless then ruin it in the lamination stage....Thank you in advance!

 

[nailonsignz]

Hey Guys...we're a screen print and embroidery shop, expanded recently to include vinyl with a Pro 4 Roland and laminator 60" ...We've caught on really quick but having some issues with lamination.. Please forgive the "newb-like" lingo...we are new to printed vinyl and lamination, not new to having a plotter...

....some of the issues are

1) when we stop the lamination of the last sheet, then when we start the next one , where the roll had stopped, it leaves a line in the adhesive and that translates to the vinyl image with a big line down it...so we're having to roll out a foot out front of each sheet we do to bypass that ruining the decals. Is there any way around this? are we using junk lamination? we are using glossy imagestar 3 yr intermediate lamination.

The silvering line you get is from where the laminate and backing paper separate. As you come to the end of your laminating run, slow the takeup winder down so that the backing paper drops down with the laminate, but obviously don't allow it to go into the lamiantor. You'll aloso find that this line will disappear after a few days.

2) we're experiencing a lot of SPORATIC wrinkling. our sheets we are kinda limiting to 54" wide by 4 foot or so long so nothing huge. it will start to walk and wrinkle sometimes after going in perfectly straight then instantly wrinkling after 6" or so...everyone's getting frustrated...end up using 3x the amount of lamination per roll of vinyl it seems.....that is getting pricey as we are laminating all of our decals.

Possibly too much tension on the laminate or pressure on the substrate, its a matter of playing and learning what setting work best and like everything the more you do it, the better you get.

3) where do i buy the 'under side' paper? i cant seem to find that anywhere.

underlay paper should be able to be sort from where ever you get your laminate from.

4) what are your preferred lamination material brand/models? Should I switch? I've only bought this kind because that's what they sold me on and the price seemed right. Always willing to spend more to not end up costing the time now and we're wasting so much... Machine is a royal soverign heat assist model.

I use a mixture of avery and cheaper no name laminates, depends on the job and whos paying for it.

Any other general tips on lamination? Its frustrating to print the sheet flawless then ruin it in the lamination stage....Thank you in advance!

Play and learn

Damo

 

[toomeycustoms]

Sounds like you have a Graphic Disorder :Welcome:

Laminating is definitely a learning experience and you will waste a bunch while you learn.

1. Are you using heat? If so, have your tried it without heat? Never had experience with that brand of lamination. Maybe too much roller pressure? We don't have a heat assist laminator, but when we stop it , there is a slight line, but it seems to go away. If I have to stop it, I generally try to stop it when it isn't on part of the print.

2. Maybe to much roller pressure, or maybe one of the rollers is bowed. Could also be the tension on the bars. I'm not familiar with RS lams, but I would assume there is some kind of tension adjustment. Does the wrinkling start in a certain spot all the time or is it random? Also could be the way the material is fed into the machine.

3. Uline or Advantage - http://www.advantagesgs.com/Optima-Opti-Koat-Kraft-Paper-30-55-x-450

4. We use Oracal 210 or 290.

 

[player]

I think if you slow right down to a gradual stop, the line is not there. Also you might want to pull back on the lam in case it advances slightly cause slack, causing the line.

I use a lot of Orical (Orifol) vinyls and lams.

 

[shellyky]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions...i'll relay the info to them and see where we can go from here! The guy setting it up for us said it would be a learning curve and only one person would end up mastering it LOL guess he was right!

 

[bulldozer]

the line is where the lam is separating from the liner and it just pulls a bit of the adhesive up right where it meets. no way to really avoid it from my experience.

 

[Dennis422]

Hi Shelly.
Bringing a disorder to the sign business side too?

Here is the video that helped me with a laminator

[video=youtube;fF_8OQQQV0I]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fF_8OQQQV0I[/video]

It will help you thread it right. I have an US Tech 54" laminator, it is a similar set up to Seal, but it might be a bit different than RS.
But you will get the basic.
And yes, with vinyl and lamination you will have to waste a bit of material every time.

Good luck guys

 

[shellyky]

Cool i'll take a look! We re-threaded the machine, squared everything up and put on a new roll and turned the heat off...ran a sheet or two so far, no problems...i'll watch the video when i get a sec...

*signs up on a new forum...everyone already knows who i am* LOL