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Laminator question

MrSalumi

MrSalumi

New Member
Hey Bigcat... Yeah it can laminate sheets... I am also looking to buy a laminator and I am in portland. I buy stuff from Pacific Coast Sign Supply all the time and they are pretty good people.. We should see if they'll give us a discount if we buy together..
 
K

kanini

New Member
Go for a powered takeup of the backing liner, a manual takeup will be a hassle... You should also consider if you need a heat assisted laminator, the end result is much better... Just my 0.02c...
 
Bigcat_hunter

Bigcat_hunter

New Member
kanini said:
Go for a powered takeup of the backing liner, a manual takeup will be a hassle... You should also consider if you need a heat assisted laminator, the end result is much better... Just my 0.02c...
Click to expand...

I was told that I should not use heat for eco solvent & vinyl.
 
Bigcat_hunter

Bigcat_hunter

New Member
MrSalumi said:
Hey Bigcat... Yeah it can laminate sheets... I am also looking to buy a laminator and I am in portland. I buy stuff from Pacific Coast Sign Supply all the time and they are pretty good people.. We should see if they'll give us a discount if we buy together..
Click to expand...

Sounds good. I am going to call them this week and discuss the laminators with them. I'll ask if they give discounts for multiple items.
 
K

kanini

New Member
Bigcat_hunter said:
I was told that I should not use heat for eco solvent & vinyl.
Click to expand...
No, not hot laminate but heat assist cold laminator, that is the "cold" laminator has the possibility to warm up the rollers to about 40-50 degrees Celsius to give a better finish. The hot laminators go up to around 150-180 degrees Celsius something, a different machine and a different laminate, which is as you say not suitable for vinyl.
 
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ScottyAdams

New Member
Thumbs up on the auto takeup of backing paper. Also see if it has a foot switch. I cant live without my foot switch when im running the machine by myself. I run a cold laminator with an eco solvent printer. havent had any problems with it so far. we have the enduralam bu-1400zj
 
T

tradeup

New Member
I have an Identical 52" they are chinese made and branded by different companys. Mine is branded master. Just got a royal Sovereign and this master is going to just sit until I sell it for my money back. Bought off of craigslist for 450.00 and like new but they suck. SAVE YOUR MONEY!!!!!

If you do pull the trigger make sure they will offer good support on learning the machine. you will waste lots of material and ruin lots of prints. The guy I bought from said he couldn't figure it out and he ruined 1000.00 worth of material and gave up. I only wasted 400.00 before I gave up and bought a used Royal Sovereign 55" off of Craigslist and it laminates perfect every time!!

Seriously try the big squeegee for your laminations until you can afford better or do like I did and check Craigslist every couple hours every day for months and expand your region search!!
 
Bigcat_hunter

Bigcat_hunter

New Member
I ended up buying the Willamette cold laminator. (MrSalumi they wouldn't give multiple sale discounts). This machine is really easy to use. So far I'm happy with it. Hell of a lot less $$ then most Iv'e seen.
 
MrSalumi

MrSalumi

New Member
Congrats, Thats great! Next time I am in bend I may get in touch with you to check out the machine in action. I went in there to get a quote one day and they told me 1600 for the lam. Then a couple weeks later I went in to buy one and they quoted me 2600. They said the first price was if I bought a printer as well. ARGH! bait and switch. I ended up ponying up and buying a new seal instead. Twice the price but I have heard they are bullet-proof.

Bigcat- Let me know if you have any trouble setting up the dual pressure dials or any tracking issues. I'd be interested to know.
 
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Salmoneye

New Member
There are no pressure dials on the ustech, it's just a roller release basically. You screw out the knobs until the roller is sitting freely on the bottom roller, the weight of the top roller does the work. I have only used a couple of laminators so I am no expert but I have been running this for a few years now and have yet to ruin a single print. I have however ruined on on a RS.
 
Bigcat_hunter

Bigcat_hunter

New Member
MrSalumi said:
Congrats, Thats great! Next time I am in bend I may get in touch with you to check out the machine in action. I went in there to get a quote one day and they told me 1600 for the lam. Then a couple weeks later I went in to buy one and they quoted me 2600. They said the first price was if I bought a printer as well. ARGH! bait and switch. I ended up ponying up and buying a new seal instead. Twice the price but I have heard they are bullet-proof.

Bigcat- Let me know if you have any trouble setting up the dual pressure dials or any tracking issues. I'd be interested to know.
Click to expand...

The pressure knobs just lower the top roll and the weight does the work as stated in the post above me. You can use them for pressure but they have to be exact or your lam will skew. It seems the hardest part is lining up the print and the lam exactly. I am always off about 1/2" or so. I need to work on that. All in all I think it will be perfect for what I need it for.
 
T

tradeup

New Member
That was my problem figuring out the right pressure. Same with the last guy that owned it I just stopped before I wasted any more and took the advice of fellow members and paid for a good model which I love.

If I wanted to play with wasting more money I probably could have figured it out and got it right. But there was no support. Couldn't find a manual etc.

If I would have bought new I probably would have gotten the support that I needed to get it right. Congrats on your new laminator! Might want to start using Kraft paper until you get it right. Hopefully you opted for the take up reel as that was another thing I hated about mine. If not something you should think of getting!
 
T

tradeup

New Member
Also Have had a couple PM's if I were selling my chinese laminator and the answer is yes! it is listed on the Springfield IL Craigslist. I also have a Ledco digital 42" Hot and cold laminator that was included with my printer however 42" was not large enough for me and it was 220v and it is a tank!! I have stairs to take it down.

If you are close to Springfield come check them out. Rollers on both are perfect and the 52" has a foot switch. Can show the master in action but like stated above no 220v but I guarantee it works perfect. 550 for the master 900 for the ledco cash and carry. Can even drop either one off at my local ABF for shipping.

Sorry for soliciting and if it is against policy I am sorry.. Just had a few PM's so figured I would post they are for sale.
 
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