Direct print on Kraft Gatorboard

[Billct2]

Can 1" thick kraft face gator board be flat bed printed?
THanks

 

[signheremd]

Can 1" thick kraft face gator board be flat bed printed?
THanks

If you are talking about the melamine faced boards, you might want to add a white "primer" layer so colors don't darken. White gator board prints just fine. We print on gatorboard all the time.

 

[signheremd]

FWIW, our flatbed UV will raise its head up a maximum of 4 inches... so 1 inch is no problem

 

[Gino]

Most flatbeds will go between 2" and 5". It will print fine, but gator tends to not be as fine of a print as you'd think. It doesn't wick but it doesn't seem to put color down really well, even on white. Perhaps if you find some with a more non-porous facing. The signs still look great, just not 'quite' dazzling. Maybe brilliance is the word.

 

[Billct2]

Thanks. Hadn't thought of the ink coverage consideration. The client was asking to have a material like corrugated cardboard printed but I didn't think that would work,
so I thtought kraft face gator might be closest. .

 

[Gino]

As long as it's flat, it'll print to it. Try a sample and see if they like it.

 

[signbrad]

Also, Gatorfoam accepts paint well. We coat it with Matthews Acrylic Polyurethane. 6425 Hi-Hide White might be a good choice. I would not expect curing to be an issue if you use the accelerator additive. The gloss is 60% (like ADA), but it can have Matte Clear added for a flatter finish if needed.

Brad in Kansas City

 

[Zach Starr]

Can 1" thick kraft face gator board be flat bed printed?
THanks

Yes, it should be fine on most flatbed, but I would have a good look at the color output and print quality as that varies depending on the material brand. Try a sample and see how the results turn out.

 

[Billct2]

Thanks for all the replies. I decided I didn't want to get into a big experiment so quoted it using using white gatorfoam and noted if they really wanted to pursue the kraft face option it would cost more.
Let's see if they are serious.