So, who knows anything about corona.................................. ??

[Gino]

As many already know, we have a Dilli UV 1606 flatbed printer and it really serves us well.

However, one department which seems to come back to haunt us is with our Cor-X signs. Regardless if it's 18" x 24" or 48" x 96".... it's a hit or miss crapshoot. Sometimes the signs last for a year or two without any hassle and sometimes they come back after 8 or 10 months and the customer will say...... Wha.......?? We'll do them over for nothing. Costs are so minimal, it's no big deal. So, moving ahead, we decided to take Cor-X signs for realtors off the market as outdoor signs and give them a 6 month durability rating.

Now, move ahead to two weeks ago and we did a job on Cor-X which we happened to get from a different supplier. We could literally smell the corona on it. They printed differently and seem to have a real chance of surviving a long time. So, now we're finishing up another job, again from this new supplier and again, you could smell the corona treatment. They are printing with the notion, they will last a long time.

I'm sure the corona treatment is the answer here. I know the treatment doesn't last long, so perhaps we're getting old stock from our regular supplier, while getting relatively very new stock from this new guy. Don't know and they can't tell us.

So, the $64,000 question is this. We've been researching corona heat treatment systems with no success. We've found them for treating bottle caps to airplane parts to you name it. I never realized how so many of these machines existed.

So, does anyone know of a section, site or area to discuss corona treatment systems...... for purchase ??

Gino

 

[SignManiac]

No good without lime.

 

[ChicagoGraphics]

I wouldn't think there be any smell to corona treatment seeing the cor-x is just ran thru a oven like drier. Corona treatment isin't a liquid of any kind, just a flame. I alway's been told the shelf life is about a year after it's been treated, but as printed signs go I screen print a lot of them and they alway's last for years.

 

[rjssigns]

Didn't someone recently post regarding this? They switched to a different brand of coro and things are peachy now. Can't remember who it was though.

 

[2B]

No good without lime.

and cold

 

[Typestries]

We print a lot of coro. Over a pallet a week. Only use coroplast brand, and we are using inks formulated to stick to fluted poly. Of course it does not stick well to other things so we run those on our other jeti running standard UV ink. In the flatbed world, coro is considered a difficult surface to adhere well to. You may have to experiment with your ink a bit.

BUT, you also posted about an acrylic failure. You may have another issue-bad ink or a curing issue-lamp related.

You could also have old material. As coro ages the plasticizer migrates, which negates the corona treatment benefits. We have seen this on 10mm coro which we do not use as much of. We check and log lot numbers and manufacture dates on our pallets.

 

[SIGNTIME]

No good without lime.

with or without for me the original reason for the lime was to keep bugs away from it

 

[Gino]

We print a lot of coro. Over a pallet a week. Only use coroplast brand, and we are using inks formulated to stick to fluted poly. Of course it does not stick well to other things so we run those on our other jeti running standard UV ink. In the flatbed world, coro is considered a difficult surface to adhere well to. You may have to experiment with your ink a bit.

BUT, you also posted about an acrylic failure. You may have another issue-bad ink or a curing issue-lamp related.

You could also have old material. As coro ages the plasticizer migrates, which negates the corona treatment benefits. We have seen this on 10mm coro which we do not use as much of. We check and log lot numbers and manufacture dates on our pallets.

That's a lot more than us. Maybe an average of 75 to 100 sheets of Cor-X a week, here. However, our lamps get changed out about every 500 hours. There's a counter in our machine and let's us know just how much is on the lamps. We always change both at the same time. So, the bulb issue from the standpoint of time.... I don't think is an element of the equation. The recent acrylic failure is I think a fluke thing. Other than one other acrylic in 5 years, that's not bad..... 2 in 5 years. The Cor-X, It think might be old stock as you mentioned.

I believe the material we've been getting from our regular supplier is just that..... OLD. The stuff recently must have a faster turn-over, thus giving better adhesion.

 

[Typestries]

Given that, you probably are getting old material as your hunch suggests. Who are you buying from?
We have been getting the freshest coro from Grimco in Quakertown.

I know I'm paying a bit more than the other wholesalers here on S101 but it makes me comfortable to know I'm getting decent stuff and in turn that's what our customers are receiving.

 

[Clear Choice Laminating]

Hello Gino. I see you are asking about corona treating. I will put my two cents in and give it a whirl. The company I work for specialize in laminating film we are not suppliers but a commercial laminating company that provides this service. we literally run tons and tons of laminating film through our machines yearly. From time to time we order Corona treated film. In our industry we call it Glueable stampable film. We order this product mainly to compensate the spot UV coating that is being applied directly to the surface of the laminate. With that said the manufacture has told me that the corona treatment should last 2 years. I have personally ran year old corona treated film and it worked fine. If you are unsure about your product you can always check the treatment by using a dyne pen. Here is a link where you can purchase a set. http://www.accudynetest.com/adtpen.html

PS You can buy a corona treating machine and I have looked them up but I can not recall where exactly I will get back to you.