Need Advice For "white" Reflective

[Bcrawf]

Who makes the "whitest" reflective vinyl? I have some small decals to print (Gerber Edge) and I want to avoid the "gray" look. Thanks

 

[Bigdawg]

3M has a product called AdvancedEG-White (not sure of the exact number). It is VERY white but for some reason 3M decided to slap their logo all over it. We sent the roll back that we had - who wants a 3M logo in the middle of their sign??? There was some discussion with our vendor (who returned all their product too) that 3M was going to eliminate the logo and re-introduce. If the removed the logo this is the whitest reflective I have ever seen.

 

[oldgoatroper]

... for some reason 3M decided to slap their logo all over it.

Whaa? like a watermark? Why the heck would they do that? Surely, they, of all people, would know better....

 

[Gino]

While this doesn't help the OP with anything, I had a roll one time and so did a friend of mine, in where the logo was printed so well on the liner paper, it kinda just migrated onto the reflective sheeting. They took it back entirely without any questions. It also seems to happen to higher end items as it is not produced as far in advance as their normal stock items. Guess it's just being rushed, just like they tell you NOT to do.

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

We are making signs on this material now. 3M 7930. Great white point, takes a lot of ink, They didn't abandon the watermarks they just made them less noticable. I will say we can't see the watermark behind a print. Only in white areas. This material was made for traffic signs mounted to a pole. You will never notice the watermark from distance. This material is prismatic. It's not as flat as the regular Glass Bead EG reflectives.

 

[Bigdawg]

Glad they at least toned it down, but I still can't/won't use it yet. I don't install the majority of traffic/directional signs we would use it for - we deliver it to the customer who WILL notice the watermark up close and personal. We aren't talking a vanity logo t-shirt... this is a material used in production. I don't need it to carry their advertising.

 

[ikarasu]

The watermarks on 7930 are a pain. I really dont see why they do it. My company tried to do real estate signs with 7930 instead of 3290 (They were told 3290 is eventually being phased out). And the customers sent it right back. Even if you can't see it unless your a FT away, it looks kind of unprofessional.

I will say it reflects so much more than 3290 though... I can print on 3290 with our UV Flatbed all day with no issues, I printed 2 signs on 7930, and within an hour the heads were clogged and I had to do 4-5 flushes to fix it.

 

[jfiscus]

For the Edge you're gonna have to use the 280+ white to get a good print. It is the best "Edge Ready" white punched reflective you can get.