• I want to thank all the members that have upgraded your accounts. I truly appreciate your support of the site monetarily. Supporting the site keeps this site up and running as a lot of work daily goes on behind the scenes. Click to Support Signs101 ...

What Vinyl Is The Best?

D

Darion Judd

New Member
Ok, so I'm doing some work for a couple local dealers. All I have to do is cut the cals and hand them over. They are doing all the installs which is fine by me. Currently I'm using a 751 vinyl and one of the dealers said it's not quite as thick as they wanted and it doesn't go on quite as easy as the materials they've used previously. He said they were using a 3M material. I guess my question is, what's a good vinyl to be using for stripes. I kinda want to get away from oracal as I've been seeing that they're products really aren't all that great.
 
bob

bob

It's better to have two hands than one glove.
Oracal not that great? Really? And what the hell are 'cals'? Some sort of clever slang for 'decals'? If so what do you do with the time you save eliminating one syllable or two keystrokes?

You might want to give serious thought to educating yourself and your clients. Generally and counter-intuitively the thinner the vinyl the higher the quality. Generally. There are exceptions with some specialty media. You might want to find out if your clients have an actual functional reason for wanting thicker material or do they just think that it's somehow better. Usually it's not better.

If your people are having trouble applying 751, or any other 2mil cast media, they need to work on their technique not get different vinyl. If you know what you're about you can slap most any vinyl on most any surface.The only difference in the way Oracal 7561 and an equivalent 3M product applies is mostly in the mind of the being doing the application. It's doubtful that anyone could cite any objective differences in application. The operative word here is 'objective' as opposed to personal prejudice or mythology.
 
H

henryz

New Member
Why were you using Oracal in the first place $$$ 3m is a much better product in my eyes but you do pay a premium the material thickness is 2 mil but does seem like Oracal is thinner never actually measured it. They are long term car graphics so better quality would be the best fit. I would consider the 180-C.
 
D

Darion Judd

New Member
henryz said:
Why were you using Oracal in the first place $$$ 3m is a much better product in my eyes but you do pay a premium the material thickness is 2 mil but does seem like Oracal is thinner never actually measured it. They are long term car graphics so better quality would be the best fit. I would consider the 180-C.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the input, and Oracal is all my local supplier really carries so that's all I've ever really used. I'll have to try out the 3M. Also, is that material going to have an air release technology or no? Sorry for the noobish questions. I'm pretty much brand new to this


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
O

oksigns

New Member
I agree with Bob about the installers. Generally(depending on requirements), the less experienced self installers enjoy the "thicker stuff" because it is easier to work with and more forgiving.

I'd offer them a low end and a high end product. ultimately, you are at their beck and call cause they are doing the installing and their expectation is a specific type of media versus what is traditionally used for the job.
 
Billct2

Billct2

Active Member
If you want air release you have to buy air release. Go to their website and read the specs on the different materials.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: Bly
B

buzzgraphics

New Member
Im guessing your customer was using the 3m 1080 color change wrap film if it was thicker. Not really intended for striping, it will do it just fine, at a bit of higher cost. The 970 series films from oracal would work just as well though. and I'd not recommend the 180c film from 3m, while it does have air egress, the pattern is very visible.
 
D

Darion Judd

New Member
buzzgraphics said:
Im guessing your customer was using the 3m 1080 color change wrap film if it was thicker. Not really intended for striping, it will do it just fine, at a bit of higher cost. The 970 series films from oracal would work just as well though. and I'd not recommend the 180c film from 3m, while it does have air egress, the pattern is very visible.
Click to expand...

Would you recommend or have you had any experience with the 3M 7125 electroCut?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
G

Gary Wiant

New Member
I think the cal in Orical is more like "Calendar" IMO. 7125 is not an easy vinyl to install, if you want easy to install choose 3m IJ180C WE ONLY use 3m for everything & we never have issues.
 
JBarraxSW

JBarraxSW

New Member
Gary Wiant said:
I think the cal in Orical is more like "Calendar" IMO. 7125 is not an easy vinyl to install, if you want easy to install choose 3m IJ180C WE ONLY use 3m for everything & we never have issues.
Click to expand...
The Cal in the ORACAL name did originally stand for calendared vinyl, but they now manufacture a complete range of products including some top quality cast films. I agree with Bob. The problem here is most likely the expectations of inexperienced installers. They need to be educated that thicker is not better.
If they want something with air egress and a clear-coat, the ORACAL 970RA would be the ideal solution. That also has a total thickness of 4 mil due to the clearcoat so it would be easier to handle.
 
G

Gary Wiant

New Member
I've used Orical in the past but in my opinion the best Orical is about equal to midrange 3M. But that's just my opinion & over 25 years of experience. Thicker isn't better, but you need to remember your going from a non-experienced customer & if they are comparing 3m laminated to im non-laminated the 3m laminated is going to "feel" thicker so that may be the issue.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk
 
boxerbay

boxerbay

New Member
Your best approach is to get samples of oracal 751 and 651 and 3M 1080 and 3M 7125 and sit down with the buyer which might not be the installer. Sometimes the installer will tell the buyer that your 751 is not as good as the 651 because it is thinner and harder to lay down. installers want to install and finish fast. they dont care about quality of the media nor have to deal with any failures. in fact a failure is great for an installer because he gets another install. You have to sit with the dealer and show him the pros and cons of each material and the price point of each. this way the buyer can decide what works best for him and his clients and not what the installer thinks.
 
Modern Ink Signs

Modern Ink Signs

Premium Subscriber
Wow! Maybe just the start of my day that has put me in the mood to post this, so I'm sorry in advance if it offends someone.....


Educate your self on the products that you sell!!!

Good grief people!
 
D

Darion Judd

New Member
Modern Ink Signs said:
Wow! Maybe just the start of my day that has put me in the mood to post this, so I'm sorry in advance if it offends someone.....


Educate your self on the products that you sell!!!

Good grief people!
Click to expand...

I've never had a real issue with the oracal but I want something that's gunna be easy enough for my customers to apply. No need for a "mood".


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Modern Ink Signs

Modern Ink Signs

Premium Subscriber
I would say hay they don't know how to install and are just trying to save a buck. Not your problem if they don't have the knowledge to do this.

They really should have no problems installing 751.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top