Gold Leaf

[bradsc1954]

I am looking for opinions on gold leaf vinyl. I am working with a new client and they would like their logo in gold leaf. What brand are people using? Anything special I need to keep in mind when I do the job.

Thanks for your help.

Brad

 

[Kottwitz-Graphics]

I am looking for opinions on gold leaf vinyl. I am working with a new client and they would like their logo in gold leaf. What brand are people using? Anything special I need to keep in mind when I do the job.

Thanks for your help.

Brad

There's (3) options when it comes to gold. R tape has an outdoor durable gold, which is more like a mylar film. It will last a couple of years, and is the least expensive, and looks it. Make sure that you get the outdoor durable, or it will fail quickly.

Sign Gold, which will last a lot longer, some say with edge sealing, some say without. It looks much nicer, but is much more expensive.

Then there's real gold. The nicest of all, but is extremely expensive, and takes a good bit of experience and skills to apply.

 

[Gino]

Have you clarified using actual 23kt gold leaf vs. Imitation vinyl brands ??

When a customer asks for gold leaf, they're generally thinking of hand laid gold leaf on a surface and not some cheap make-believe gold leaf crap.

 

[Billct2]

Actually I find that when clients ask about "real" gold leaf for a vehicle or flat sign most are now referring to SignGold.
The other brand that looks good is called Realgold

 

[Marlene]

where are you putting the gold leaf? on a sign? truck? window? are you talking about actual gold leaf or just the vinyl stuff? if the vinyl stuff, Sign Gold work OK. some of it worth the money, some of it just looks like plain old gold vinyl to me. real gold leaf is beautiful and works for years. done right it should still look good long after the sign itself has rotten and has fallen apart

 

[bob]

There's (3) options when it comes to gold. ....

Four options. The three that you list and #4: print it. The right pale yellow base, the right grunge texture, and the right bump map printed on metallic silver and laminated produce something that can look more like gold leaf than gold leaf. That's because the vast majority of people have no idea what real gold leaf looks like.

Or, if pizzazz and not fidelity is what you want, print on something like light silver Avery Ultra metallic or some sort of metal flake vinyl. One thing to note; Since printing on silver drastically changes your white point, go for the palest metallic silver available. For example, 3M180C Metallic Light silver works nicely but Oracal 951 Silver is too dark.

I do a lot of this and no one has ever been dissatisfied with the product. Even people who just knew the weren't going to like it liked it.

 

[bradsc1954]

It is for the door of a GMC Sierra. I have clarified with the client that we are talking about using a product similar to Sign Gold. I have never done 24k and don't want to learn trial by fire.

 

[Billct2]

We have been applying clear cast vinyl over signgold on vehicles, with about 1/8" overlap

 

[bradsc1954]

Bill,
does it diminish the gold effect at all?

 

[Billct2]

No more than any other clear coat. I really don't see much of a difference.
We usually edge print these so it's not the type of material that has the clear already applied.

 

[Karen Souza]

Vinyl product called REALGOLD, similar to SignGold. You buy direct online.
Bill is right though, on a vehicle you MUST protect the edges! ALL my
REALGOLD has a painted sealed edge, just because that's my process, but
an overlapped clear vinyl overlaminate is great too!

 

[bradsc1954]

Thanks for the tips.

Karen are you Bob's wife?