Can anyone recommend the best digital print media and overlaminate to use with the Big Squeegee? I'm noticing air bubbles under the laminate with the combo I'm currently using....I don't even want to admit what I'm using, just know I'm hanging my head in shame because I didn't realize what I had ordered.
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Laminate Help Needed
- Thread starter dkk
- Start date
DerbyCitySignGuy
New Member
After the disasters we encountered with our old EnduraLam, the Big Squeegee has been a breeze. So many $$$$ wasted, I don't know if I can ever trust another machine. If that thing wasn't still covered by insurance it would have been in a scrap pile years ago.
Modern Ink Signs
Premium Subscriber
Not familiar with hand lamination. As Derby said....brave soul.
I could not imagine laming by hand. Ooof!
I could not imagine laming by hand. Ooof!
DerbyCitySignGuy
New Member
equippaint
Active Member
Make life simple and go get a cheap hand crank deal for small stuff, even a monkey can use it. You're pretty special if you can laminate better with a big squeegee than an actual laminator.
DerbyCitySignGuy
New Member
In all fairness, being able to laminate well by hand is a skill that's definitely difficult to master. Being able to hand laminate reliably is, in my opinion, more valuable than being able to operate a laminator, but there's no reason not to be able to do both well. Especially since operating a laminator is WAY easier than hand laminating.
sinclairgraphics1
Sinclair Graphics & Installations
I used to hand laminate with the big squeegee when I first started out. I had good luck with Oraguard 210 and 215 going over 3651RA and 3551RA. Any calendared films worked pretty decent. Cast was always difficult and anything over 72', forget it. I got good at this method but after lots of practice. I bought a laminator about a year after using the BS. I still have mine B. Squeegee and use it or anything smaller than a couple feet just cause I save material not having to string up the machine. You'll always have "slivering" with hand lamination but that goes away after 1-2 days. Good luck, you'll get it, it's not impossible, just difficult.
DerbyCitySignGuy
New Member
I've always wanted one of those, but it's hard to justify the expense unless you're laminating and mounting small runs all day long. Can put a whole roll on a laminator and just put boards through to mount them. Flatbed applicators just look neat if nothing else.
I thought the same thing for quite a few years. The speed of laminating with a different lam than whats loaded on the roll to roll is amazing. The mounting speed is great. Most important, there is a very small learning curve. I can send anyone to laminate and mount small prints if needed.
equippaint
Active Member
It's not a skill that is needed so what is the point in trying to get better at it. That's like telling a car painter to perfect their rolling and tipping skills and dont worry about spraying.
DerbyCitySignGuy
New Member
Wow. So your take is that we have laminators, so why bother knowing how to do anything by hand? Not even sure how to respond to that.
Hopefully you're never in a situation where you need to get something out the door and your laminator goes down. You could think about how you should have learned how to hand laminate while you're sitting there with your thumb up your butt waiting for a tech.
DerbyCitySignGuy
New Member
That was the main appeal for me: not having to unload and reload a laminator.
We just don't do enough lamination any more to justify the purchase.
equippaint
Active Member
Don't worry, I never will be in that situation. I'm always busy enough and resourceful enough to not need to sit around with my thumb in my butt. Should I learn how to airbrush and hand letter in case my printer goes down too?
DerbyCitySignGuy
New Member
Quite the contrarian, huh? Hand painting signs isn't even remotely similar to digitally printing signs. Hand laminating and machine laminating are the exact same processes, just done differently.
You clearly didn't read my post or you're being intentionally obtuse and confrontational (or maybe just didn't understand my point).
You're welcome to your opinion, but if you think hand finishing skills aren't worth knowing, you and I have drastically different opinions. There will eventually be a situation in which you need something laminated and for whatever reason you don't have access to a laminator. It's like saying a carpenter doesn't need to know how to use a hammer because nail guns exist. It's a ridiculous statement.