Gator Foam.. whats like it?

[ericmitchell29]

Hi there, those that have used Gator Foam from Grimco...
Being that they dont' sell it anymore,
Can you tell me what is closest to it that they offer?
Just looking to replace it with what they now currently sell.
thanks
Eric

 

[Pat Whatley]

Have you called Grimco and asked them if they're carrying a replacement? Not trying to be a smart ass or anything, it's just that Gatorfoam (or UltraBoard or any other brand name) is a pretty unique product in terms of workability.

 

[ericmitchell29]

yeah I did, they mentioned ultra board as well as insite reveal panel foam core... but the prices are so different that I was wondering which worked better and if anyone could make a recommendation.
sorry for the run on sentence
Eric

 

[Pat Whatley]

The Reveal is like a traditional foam core. It's got the clay coated paper faces on it. The Ultra Board is like Gator Foam, it's got the plastic faces. Gator Foam and Ultra Board are apparently so similar I never noticed they'd changed brands. (EDITED TO ADD: READ THE REST OF THIS THREAD. APPARENTLY IT'S NOT THE SAME, AFTER ALL)

 

[ericmitchell29]

Awesome that answers my question, thanks Pat.
Eric

 

[Letterbox Mike]

Technically Gatorfoam has a wood veneer face, UltraBoard has a plastic (polystyrene if I'm not mistaken) face. The two are almost identical in what they are good for and their workability, but be aware, they are two different materials.

 

[animenick65]

Gator and Ultra are extremely similar. You should be able to transition without any issues.

 

[marcsitkin]

Test it first. We have used gatorboard for 25 years, had some ultraboard delivered ("it's the same") and the mounting failed to adhere.

 

[Pat Whatley]

Technically Gatorfoam has a wood veneer face, UltraBoard has a plastic (polystyrene if I'm not mistaken) face. The two are almost identical in what they are good for and their workability, but be aware, they are two different materials.

That's dang interesting (and correct). I've only been using Gatorfoam since Weasel Booger posted pics of a project he did with it and all they've ever sent me was stuff with a plastic face. I never knew they were apparently sending me the wrong stuff the whole time.

 

[weaselboogie]

I worked with gatorfoam for two years before I read that its a wood composite. The entire time I thought it was a plastic type of face too... I've never seen a veneer like that and it's got to be at least a 98% white.

 

[boxerbay]

Call United Industries - 479-273-2924

http://ultraboard.com/

Explain to them you are a sign shop and you need POS samples of their materials in order to sell more of their products and educate your clients as to their many option of UNITED products. They will send you a FOAM CORE PANEL kit. It has samples of all their media in 8.5x11

They have:

Ultra Board - similiar to what people call gator board - plastic face
Ultra Mount - paper faced poly coated - semi rigid
Ultra Core - paper faced clay coated - softer - more spongy
Ultra Plus - very rigid and has a thick pvc face - heavy duty
Ultra Aluminum - foam board with aluminum face
Ultra White DP - similiar to ultra mount - but this is for DP direct print - coated for flatbed use.

We use ultramount and ultraboard. ultracore is a bit spongy and tends to bend on larger 24x36 pieces. if the job is a small 8.5x11 pieces then you could get away with ultracore and save some money if it is a large qty job with small pieces.

hope that's helpful clearing up the differences. I just had to go over it with all the sales staff here. I still get order requests from them with "mount to gatorboard" when they really mean ultraboard.

for sure get a kit, put it on the front counter and clients can choose the board they like.