Chrome vinyl

[krazyk5]

We used some 3m chrome vinyl for a customer last week and it worked great! The stuff is crazy expensive and nobody stocks it. It's made to order from 3m directly. We did notice it was very easy to scratch but no problems with cutting and weeding.

 

[Just Another Sign Guy]

if i had to use it back in the day..and it was a project that had some complexity or was small or was going to be used on a vehicle i would have some printed with the gerber edge and then cut it..it was a much better solution in many instances...as counter intuitive as it seems

 

[CentralSigns]

I get chrome from TCT it seems to be far better than the Avery chrome I used to use. The plotter down force needs to be a lot more for chrome though.. If I use 160 grams for vinyl I'll need 230 grams for chrome. Good idea to premask first to not get scratches. I haven't had problems with short lifespan, but in Canada the sun is weaker. The TCT product is rated at 5 year outdoor for the polyester chrome. I was even able to get some stretch when applying to slight curves, something the Avery product will not do.

 

[jeph4e]

Shhh! Not released yet but...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87jEpLqEUGg

 

[sardocs]

I do boat lettering and graphics for a local aluminum yacht factory that, unfortunately, often lets their clients decide letterstyles and colours. How can someone, who can afford one of these boats, choose chrome Mistral in all caps? WTF? When I have to use chrome I like to put clear laminate on it before I cut it. Then,I layer it on top of an outline so it can be removed easier later. On some boats it looks ok, but if you use too much it makes a million dollar boat look cheap.

 

[trauts]

i disagree...customers have a opinion, but their not always right!

if it don't shine...it ain't mine!

 

[GypsyGraphics]

I was recently working on a fun project, having a good ol time.... till i decided it would be cool to do blades of grass in chrome vinyl. i normally don't mind weeding, even find it therapeutic but those little suckers drove me nuts. The very same blades that wouldn't stick to release liner when i wanted them to, would come off the mask either.

Chrome grass is cool, but i won't be doing anything tiny in chrome again.

 

[blueben]

I charge a lot per sqft for chrome. I try not to do to much with it either. Most people who want it only want something small so what I had figured out is that If I cut out what I need off the roll and let it sit for a while so it flattens out, it usually works better. I even go over it with a felt squeegee before cutting. Seems to work for me.

 

[jeph4e]

ours is a 5 mil conformable. Nice and stretchy. Lay flat liner. Five year outdoor I think - will check. I had no problems weeding it (5 mil with 20 mil lam)

We've got High-Bond on it now so it will stick well to plastic & powder coated paint...

I charge a lot per sqft for chrome. I try not to do to much with it either. Most people who want it only want something small so what I had figured out is that If I cut out what I need off the roll and let it sit for a while so it flattens out, it usually works better. I even go over it with a felt squeegee before cutting. Seems to work for me.

 

[jeph4e]

sry it is a 7 year outdoor not 5

ours is a 5 mil conformable. Nice and stretchy. Lay flat liner. Five year outdoor I think - will check. I had no problems weeding it (5 mil with 20 mil lam)

We've got High-Bond on it now so it will stick well to plastic & powder coated paint...

 

[jeph4e]

And it is a 4 mil not 5 mil...

sry it is a 7 year outdoor not 5

 

[Jane Diaz]

We HATE chrome but on the few occasions that we have HAD to use it for a customer that insisted, we told them ALL of the problems with it. Then they know and can't come back and say "well I didn't know it was going to scratch up like that!" yadayada
We usually try to layer it onto of another color, especially if WE might get the vehicle back for removal at some point. It is a BEAR to take off and that helps with that.

 

[GypsyGraphics]

It is a BEAR to take off and that helps with that.

seriously under bid a job because i didn't consider how much effort it was going to take to get the old chrome off! live & learn

 

[blueben]

We usually try to layer it onto of another color, especially if WE might get the vehicle back for removal at some point. It is a BEAR to take off and that helps with that.

I learned the hard way with it. Now if I use it on a vehicle or something where it may need to be removed. I put clear under it. So much easier to remove.