Lamination Recommendation for Small-Scale Stickers

[betsy603]

Hello, I have a BN-20 (please don't laugh) and I am having difficulty navigating the world on lamination, including basic instruction. I am small-scale seeing what I can do with my machine and how I can tailor it to specific products for my business, and I also make stickers.

My budget for a laminator is around $500 - $1000 (if it's actually good) and I don't use Amazon, I am looking for a real company. 18" or 12" width.

It seems like for my applications a rolling-only laminator is appropriate? Some of the devices I have seen are just two rollers -- would it be better to just make this myself (I have a machine shop) or is there something special going on? Does it need to be adjustable?

Is the purpose of rolling lamination to apply pressure to activate the laminate's adhesive(?), adhering the laminate material on top of the vinyl, without causing bubbles? (And the next step up would be to add heat in addition to pressure?) Do certain laminate materials require heat, or is just pressure OK? I am looking at Oraguard 210 since it's available in a 12" roll, but there are no instructions.

Any help would be appreciated with regards to the requirements for basic lamination, as well as laminator and lamination supply suggestions.

Thank you!

 

[jharler]

I started out laminating with a Vevor cold roll manual laminator. It can be finicky, but once you figure out a process and get the pressure dialed in, you can get pretty consistent results (dust will be your enemy). I would not attempt to make your own unless you want to do it for the fun of it. There's no way it would be an economical choice. The laminator helps apply the laminate evenly and with pressure. Whether you need heat or not depends on the media, laminate and ink type, but for stickers and an eco-solvent printer, you generally won't need heat. For stickers, I recommend Substance. They will cut rolls down for you, but I don't know offhand if they'll do 12 inches.

 

[Signstein]

Maybe look for a used GFP 220 or other small tabletop laminator?

GFP 220C 20" Compact Cold Laminator

Enhance your finishing capabilities with the GFP 220C 20" Cold Laminator. Designed for small operations, it offers a 20" laminating width, 11.5 ft/min speed, and accommodates materials up to 1/2" thick. Includes foot pedal; optional stand available for efficient operation.

uscutter.com

Not sure about 12" laminate. You'll likely need to find a supplier that can cut down rolls as jharler mentioned.

 

[d fleming]

I have a bn20 for small stuff and a vevor 30" laminator. Can't beat it with a stick. Just a little over 100$. I have a 54" powered lam on top deck in storage that would be a waste of space for that little printer.

 

[Stacey K]

I have a Vevor 52". As stated above, once you get it dialed in, it works great! I got mine on EBay about 3 years ago. I also use it to apply 4x8 vinyl panels to sign boards and sometimes to coroplast. Handy to have!