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City wants STRAPS sewn through banner

Pat Whatley

New Member
"The sign must be made of polyacrylonitrile" and I am like ok so you want Acrylic. Got it.
And there's the problem. Polyacrylonitrile is used to make fabrics. Acrylic is polymethyl methacrylate. Maybe you're talking about a co-polymer like polyacrylonitrile-butadine-styrene (abs plastic). Acrylic and ABS are two entirely different materials with noticeably different properties.

The reason they have to be so ridiculously precise in their specs is to make sure they are getting exactly what they're looking for and not someones substitutions. I routinely bid state contract jobs that take a $400 sign and make it $800 because they specify materials that aren't commonly available anymore.
 
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tulsagraphics

New Member
Here's a quick example of a small banner job from last week: 18oz blockout w/ 1" preshrunk nylon webbing & mil spec D Rings. It took me about 15 minutes to finish (as opposed to 5 minutes for a regular banner). Reinforced banners take a bit more effort to finish and 18oz banner costs more, sure, but it's not that big of a deal (or at least it shouldn't be).

Tip: Polyweb sucks. Go w/ preshrunk nylon instead. Much easier to work with and it won't shrivel the edges of your banner after being exposed to the elements. Also use preshrunk thread, and high quality D/O rings). It's only expensive if you're not buying in bulk. Check around online for material/hardware suppliers if you're making them yourself, or look for a textile processing facility if you need to farm it out. I make my own banners in-house, so I can't speak to any of the suppliers mentioned in this thread, but they're out there.
 

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coyote

New Member
Thanks all: I was just looking for a supplier. Now I have several I can call if this comes up again. I gave the gig to a local shop.
 

tulsagraphics

New Member
Thanks all: I was just looking for a supplier. Now I have several I can call if this comes up again. I gave the gig to a local shop.
Sorry I can't give you my supplier for the nylon webbing and stuff. I just buy the leftover "scraps" (i.e., 300ft, 800ft, etc.) from a mil-spec textile manufacturer that would otherwise require a 50,000 yard minimum order. I get a great deal on it, but there's barely enough scrap for 1 sign shop. In any case -- wherever you get your webbing -- choose nylon over polyweb.
 

ams

New Member
And there's the problem. Polyacrylonitrile is used to make fabrics. Acrylic is polymethyl methacrylate. Maybe you're talking about a co-polymer like polyacrylonitrile-butadine-styrene (abs plastic). Acrylic and ABS are two entirely different materials with noticeably different properties.

The reason they have to be so ridiculously precise in their specs is to make sure they are getting exactly what they're looking for and not someones substitutions. I routinely bid state contract jobs that take a $400 sign and make it $800 because they specify materials that aren't commonly available anymore.

I don't know the tech terms of this stuff, so I was just throwing out a random example.
 
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