RTape AT60 not sticking to Oracal 651

[Geminis076]

Hello, I'm having a big issue with my application tape (Clear Choice RTape AT60) not sticking well to my decals, vinyl Oracal 651.

Here's what's going on, the tape adheres fine to the paper liner, no issues there. When it comes to the actual decal it will not stick properly to the entire design, will lift off some sections but about 80% of it remains on the liner. Even if I go over the area again with my plastic squeegee that still doesn't seem to help, if I press down hard with the back of my fingernail that helps for bit but the section ends up staying on the liner again after several more peel tests. I've tried squeegeeing the front and the backside. I recently made a personal decal that had areas will two layers, tape is not lifting the two layered sections AT ALL and barely picks up the one layer sections within this same design.

I make decals from home and sell them online, I've been doing this for about 4 years now and have always used Oracal 651 with the AT60 tape. This is the first time I've noticed this issue, I primarily make decals for customers but have made plenty for personal use and never have I noticed an issue. I'm more than half way through my roll of tape and over the last few days noticed that it was not sticking properly, I really hope my customers haven't had any issues though I haven't heard from anyone.

My machine is a Graphtec CE5000-60, I've experimented with reducing the blade pressure but that didn't help, tried to go as low as possible without affecting weeding too much but the tape is still not picking up well.

Any suggestions or advice? I haven't changed anything, some of the vinyl rolls are recent shipments, others I've had for months, some for about a year. The AT60 tape I've had for about 4 months, could it be defective?

I'm beginning to run low and will need to order a new roll of tape, I was considering the high tack version but I think I read that it has like a waffle grid texture to the surface which I don't think would look very nice to resell. I think it's the AT75. I've only used Clear Choice RTape AT60 which I've loved until now but I'm a little unsure about trying a different "unknown to me" brand.

Thanks for any info!


P.S., I order my material from USCutter.com

 

[mopar691]

I hate clear tape in all aspects of its being for this very reason. So I am no help as I never use it.

 

[Geminis076]

I hate clear tape in all aspects of its being for this very reason. So I am no help as I never use it.

Hi, so you've had this issue too? What do you use or what are some brands that you like?

 

[tsgstl]

Try another brand and get the highest tac
I can't stand clear transfer tape. I understand it has uses but they are only worth the trouble it causes.
I have used some better than others but I never remember and just keep changing brands. If you are applying it you can usually get around it by peeling the release liner off by a sharper angle. Like your almost folding it completely over as you remove it.
Set that roll aside and try a different brand. Or maybe you can get lucky and someone will tell you the best brand in this thread. I'm positive I have seen this answered before so try the search feature.

 

[OlsonSigns601]

Same here, we attempted to switch to clear transfertape a few months ago.

Didn't go over good.

We went back to Conform Series Transfer tape.

Our problem was the bubbles it was leaving that would just not come out and the issues we had with it leaving bubbles in the application both dry and wet.

Not worth the headache.

Like tsgstl, maybe someone can suggest a brand of clear transfer tape that actually works well for a day to day basis.

 

[Geminis076]

Thanks for input so far! I found two other forums where others have been having recent AT60 issues too, so I contacted USCutter to voice my complaint and to try and find out more info about this and here's what they replied:

Thank you for your detailed description of the problem and commitment to our products - we certainly value good customers. This goes both ways with our vendors and this AT60 has caused a few feathers to be ruffled, believe you me. From what I understand, Oracal decided to change the adhesiveness of their transfer tape materials and didn't tell us! All of a sudden in August, right around the time you ordered, we had a explosion of orders with the same complaint as yours. It took a few days to get a handle on the situation and we found out later what had happened. We have since added another line of application tape to our website and there are now more options for application tape.

To the customers that were used to AT60 I have been suggesting the GreenStar clear choice high tack application tape - it has been doing well for everyone thus far. If you want to return the roll, shoot me a quick call or let me know via email and we can get all the paperwork started.

Sorry again, thank you for your patience in this matter.

I don't know if I'll go with their suggestion, I've only used AT60 (RTape Clear Choice AT60) and I'm very hesitant about trying a new brand. I will first need to do a lot of research but I need a replacement right away as I have pending orders to work on.

 

[Geminis076]

Same here, we attempted to switch to clear transfertape a few months ago.

Didn't go over good.

We went back to Conform Series Transfer tape.

Our problem was the bubbles it was leaving that would just not come out and the issues we had with it leaving bubbles in the application both dry and wet.

Not worth the headache.

Like tsgstl, maybe someone can suggest a brand of clear transfer tape that actually works well for a day to day basis.

Hi, thanks a lot for your post. Just out of curiosity when you tried to switch what did you try out and what was your biggest complaint or complaints about it? And what specific Conform Series tape are you using at the moment?

I would prefer clear, my decals are small (largest is about 13 inches wide) and I think clear looks nicer to the customer. I only use Oracal 651 and I think I'd like to stick with medium tack if it will be the most user friendly for customers with little decal experience and varying substrates and surfaces, the customer does the application.