Liquid clear caot for Thermal Prints

[Billct2]

We love our Gerber Edge and have used Frog Juice since it first became available to finish them
It not only gives some UV protection it also "popped" the colors nicely and gave a nice gloss.
But now they have been sold and I am not happy with the new version, something changed. It's much harder
harder to work with when brushing, and the old stuff was tricky enough.
So I'm going to start looking at alternatives. Anyone using other liquid, brushable clear coats for their Edge/Thermal prints? I know there are Clearshield and 1Shot clears but I would like to hear from someone who
is actually using them or something else on thermal prints.
Thanks

 

[Billct2]

No Edge users out there using liquid clears?

 

[rjssigns]

I buy Edge prints and they use the anti-scratch ribbon. Seems to work okay.

 

[Billct2]

I have the UV cart, scratch guard cart...but they don't give the same finish as the liquid. Plus I don't want to use up my printhead applying clear

 

[Gino]

I don't have an Edge, but we had a Roland pc 60 and 600. Basically the same idea. Just small; ribbones compared to your foils, but we used Frog Juice religiously and always liked the way it worked and made things pop. Changed over to Clearshield years ago, as I felt the Frog Juice went downhill about 15 years ago. We use the brush on for banners and other larger things, but mainly use the spray, both gloss and semi. We buy it by the case. Only use it, when we're not using a rigid lam for small things. Largest I go is about 4' x 4'.

 

[Billct2]

I will try a quart of the Clearshield.

 

[Gino]

The best thing we used to get was something called DANA clear coat. It came from California, but in the late 90's it got almost impossible to get. It's still available, but costs for shipping are more than the cans themselves. We used to get 12 gallons at a time. It didn't burn, yellow or crack. It had UV inhibitors in it and was just all around great stuff.

 

[Billct2]

I remember the Danas name, they made screen ink?

 

[Gino]

Maybe, but we got it for hand-painting billboards, back when you'd hang or stand on a stage. We continued to get it through a billboard company as then there was no shipping fees. They bought skids every week.

 

[signpro]

We've used clearshield and had good luck with! we have an Edge1 as well, we don't coat much of that... but boards printed with UV Inks, we found the clearsheild works great, can assume it works well on other substrates. we actually cleared over HALF of a small sign, and hung it on the south side of our own shop to test the UV protection cababilites, so far about 2 years in, and you can see the difference for sure!! this was on a sign printed directly to polymetal with a mimaki UV flatbed.

don't see much of the 'vinyl' come back, so hard to check how the UV inhibitors is holding up on those jobs.

i still have 3 new cans of frog juice under the table... just don't use much i guess. i think they are the old style. i'll sell them to ya! ha

 

[geb]

we have used the Ronan aquathane UV(Gloss, Satin, Flat) clear coat over edge prints with good results, foam brushing but mainly rolling, then floating the bubbles. Have used the frog juice as well and as you know have to work fast. You still have to move along on the bigger stuff w/ aquathane. They(Ronan) also make a UV vinyl cote clear coat made for vinyl which is good also, but doesn't leave the hardness of the aqathane in my opinion.

George

 

[Billct2]

Thanks George