Reflective ink ?

[dirtydog50000]

I have a client who needs a decal on white reflective vinyl with red reflective pms 187 . I can't print pantone with my printer and the companies I sub out to don't have reflective inks. Does anyone have any experience with this issue.

Paul

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

They don't have reflective inks. Items like this for the most part you will need to use spot color EC vinyl film or use a screen print shop. Nippon makes screen inks that match the MUTCD Pantone colors. Screen Print them. You should be able to get your printer to match pantones to a acceptable level though. The red shouldn't be that hard to meet. Then the inks of your printer are transparent and would still be slightly reflective.

 

[J Hill Designs]

+1 the inks aren't reflective, they are transparent, allowing the reflectivity of the white decal to still be effective through the ink.

 

[Gino]

It might look good during the daytime hours, but at night, there won't be much of a contrast, unless you use one kind of reflective for background and a different intensity for the copy. Even then, it's not gonna work really well.

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

It might look good during the daytime hours, but at night, there won't be much of a contrast, unless you use one kind of reflective for background and a different intensity for the copy. Even then, it's not gonna work really well.

This is why we print these types of decals. The customer usually likes the fact that the latex inks are semi-transparent which makes text that's not quite as reflective as the rest. Compliant signage though say in a HIP sheeting must use EC films or screen inks which still render the same reflectivity as the rest of the sign.

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

It might look good during the daytime hours, but at night, there won't be much of a contrast, unless you use one kind of reflective for background and a different intensity for the copy. Even then, it's not gonna work really well.

This concept I believe is the opposite for you and I. We tend to look better an night then during the day. hahah.

 

[Gino]

Do you have a sample of some various colors printed directly on reflective from full daylight to headlights at night on the same image ??

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

No pictures but I see the signs during the day and I see them at night.

 

[chartle]

Try these.

They are sitting on my table waiting to go on Taxi Cabs.

First is in normal fairly bright fluorescent light.

Other two are with all lights off, its a windowless room, with my flash.

One at an angle and one more straight on. Taking a good pic of reflective is difficult.

The black is a 35/35/35/100 CMYK. If I used less "blackness" the black would be more reflective.

Its printed on 3M IJ5100 "white" on a Mimaki printer. YMMV

Note I'm not really trained in printing and color. I know how to cut anything, can print what our designer sends me and kind of understand Pantone Color so If I described something wrong please be gentle.

 

[Andy D]

We print to reflective using solvent ink pretty regularly, typically neighborhood watch type signs, and they light up nicely.
Highway signs have a special vinyl overcoat, or are screen printed.

 

[player]

I print reflective and laminate. Works good. There are things you can't do with reflective regardless how it's made. Like a coloured letter oon a white background. Can't read it at night. Needs an opaque non reflective outline.

 

[Rick]

What kind of sign is it?

Is this a traffic sign?

Being slapped on a vehicle?

Is there some code attached to this sign type?

What type of reflective? (engineer grade or retroreflective)

How close do you really have to get?

---- Or find a vendor with a Matan DTS printer

 

[SellersSign&Design]

This post touches on something I have wondered about ever since I first got my Gerber Edge... why do they not make reflective foils? I understand how reflective vinyl works, and I'm guessing they can't make a foil that way due to the thickness it would have to be? I realize you can print transparent foils over reflective, but I can think of quite a few uses for reflective foils.

 

[artofacks1]

I rpint on reflective material with my edge fx and they are reflective. Just use transparent foils.

 

[SightLine]

We do literally many many dozens of police, ambulance, fire apparatus, and other specialty things every year with printed reflective. The printed parts when reflecting have plenty of contrast with the unprinted parts and all of it lights up fine at night. We print all of it on our solvent Mimaki. Couple of examples with no flash and flash or variable lighting.

 

[richsweeney]

Many of the reds build pretty close to the pantone colors.

 

[TXFB.INS]

We do literally many many dozens of police, ambulance, fire apparatus, and other specialty things every year with printed reflective. The printed parts when reflecting have plenty of contrast with the unprinted parts and all of it lights up fine at night. We print all of it on our solvent Mimaki. Couple of examples with no flash and flash or variable lighting.

we see the same contrast values using Eco-Sol Inks. have always had plenty of ease of reading for night viewing

 

[ams]

To answer your question, there aren't reflective inks however when you print on a reflective vinyl, it makes the ink reflective. Check into the Oracal 5650RA.
Not only is it amazing but it has rapid air!

http://www.orafol.com/gp/europe/en/...ils/items/oralite-5650ra-fleet-engineer-grade