Need help with printed/bent acrylic

[10sacer]

High end display customer has a designer with a wild hair up his a$$ and wants to print to 3/8" acrylic and bend one end into a "J" to hook the panel onto a floating rod dropped from a ceiling.

What is best method to print so that print will conform and ink will not distort?

Would use my flatbed, but the ink would fail at the crest of the bend where tension is greatest. Only flatbed I have seen that might do it is a Durst with their flexible inks.

Thought about printing to clear vinyl and applying afterward, but here comes phase 2 of this - final production will be 200 of these panels. So for right now I need to figure out how to do a prototype. We have companies in town that can bend.

See diagram for bend.

Thanks

 

[visual800]

I really dont see 3/8 acrylic bending.

 

[HulkSmash]

I really dont see 3/8 acrylic bending.

you heat it..

 

[eforer]

You can thermoform 3/8" but I don't think the radius depicted in the diagram is realistic. Why not just solvent weld caddy clips to the panel to hang it from the ceiling?

 

[ForgeInc]

I bet we could do this for ya. Spendy though. Pm if you want some pricing...

 

[GAC05]

Print on optically clear (w white if needed) and install after plexi is formed?
You could float the graphic wet into that j-bend unless you are doing a few thousand of them.

Edit>
Guess I should have read the whole post - 200 would not be too bad.


wayne k
guam usa

 

[Pat Whatley]

you heat it..

You've got some Jedi skills there. I don't think I've ever seen 3/8" acrylic heated and bent over a 1" rod before. You the man!

 

[vid]

Is your designer going to get fussy if it doesn't hang plumb?

 

[Typestries]

I'd call acrylic designs in springfield, VT. Ask for Craig. They are members here, too. Printing and forming acrylic is their specialty for POP applications.