why is laminating such a PAIN :frustrated:

[Baz]

Hmmm .. That guy must have used double the amount of laminate that was needed to do the job he did. He must be a supplyer of lam film :ROFLMAO:

I'd go nuts if i had to go through all those steps each time i need to laminate something.

I have permanently removed the security guard and finger guard. I never remove the table top in front of the rollers. Whenever i need to laminate something i just pull enough lam through and let it sit on the roller and a little bit on the table top. Then push a 6" coro leaderboard and stop it with about 1-2 inches of coro exposed. I put my printed roll on the tabletop. Let about 1 inch of the print onto the coro and make sure the roll is straight (by looking how each end is alligned with the edge of the tabletop) Then attach the print onto the coro with three pieces of masking tape.

Now i can push the run button and with one hand on the pressure lever you turn it to the lam position when you feel the coro has gone through (like in the video). I regularly lam things about 16 feet long and only go off about 1/8 to 1/4". Its not that hard.

I do like his tip about putting a scrap piece of paper near the end of the print though.

 

[cgsigns_jamie]

That's why I always used the craft paper, I could load the laminator and leave it loaded until it was time for a new roll. After watching that video I can now "see the light".

 

[Vital Designs]

Thats a great illustration. I have been using a sled made out of a piece of 3mm sintra but I like your process better. Will try it tomorrow..Thx

I have a 55" RS- no heat. Have never used kraft paper either- same size
vinyl/lam- I try to run 3-4- 8 foot sections at a time and almost never have
to cut sections apart to straighten.

Here is how i have always webbed rolls- see pict. This is the procedure to
web a new roll- once it is started, you just cut the backing paper and pull
the scrap piece out with the roll and you use that to reinsert the roll the
next time. It works a treat. I did not spend too much time putting this
visual together- hope you can figure it out. Gene

 

[astro8]

Here's the trick... ( i have the exact same setup but no heat) Take the rolled prints from the take up system straight to the laminator. Leave the print on the roll and feed it through. I have laminated well over 100 linear feet without a problem.

Works for me that way as well with no backing paper. I've laminated 50m (50 yards) that way. Like the other guys have stated...in all in the starting procedure. It HAS to go in straight.

 

[ProWraps™]

we lam over 1000 linear feet/month. no craft paper. its easy. then again, we do it so much its second nature.

 

[anotherdog]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hb1uUXHy6lA

Wow this guy makes a simple process into a big production!

 

[Jace161]

I have a 55" RS- no heat. Have never used kraft paper either- same size
vinyl/lam- I try to run 3-4- 8 foot sections at a time and almost never have
to cut sections apart to straighten.

Here is how i have always webbed rolls- see pict. This is the procedure to
web a new roll- once it is started, you just cut the backing paper and pull
the scrap piece out with the roll and you use that to reinsert the roll the
next time. It works a treat. I did not spend too much time putting this
visual together- hope you can figure it out. Gene

Yep that is how I do it too. I'm still very new to this stuff, wrinkled plenty of prints at first but then I got the hang of it. The thicker the laminate the less chance of wrinkles.

 

[ColesCreations]

Buying paper??!!??

How about all those rolls of used backing paper?

If our prinst are smaller than the laminate, we just load a roll of backing paper and let that feed in, and lay the prints on top. No sweat.

If long prints start going crooked, just adjust them sideways. For a while it will look bad, with slack on one side, but it will change direction. 1/2-1" laminate over the side is no problem, will still pull off ok. (We have a Sallmetall Vista with feed and takeup rollers.)

 

[Just Me]

you ever get a chance to ride down to Chattanooga any? You really should ride down to my shop one and check out my laminator set up, very inexpensive and works everytime, never have any issues with it!

 

[phototec]

I have a 55" RS- no heat. Have never used kraft paper either- same size
vinyl/lam- I try to run 3-4- 8 foot sections at a time and almost never have
to cut sections apart to straighten.

Here is how i have always webbed rolls- see pict. This is the procedure to
web a new roll- once it is started, you just cut the backing paper and pull
the scrap piece out with the roll and you use that to reinsert the roll the
next time. It works a treat. I did not spend too much time putting this
visual together- hope you can figure it out. Gene

WOW, the photo how-to was great Gene, although I appreciate reading all the posts on Signs101, many times it's hard understand or make out the procedure someone is explaining from just words, like the old saying, "A picture is worth a 1000 words", you get an A+ from me, I wish more folks would take the time to post photos, which is clearly a better way to show a procedure or process.

After seeing the photos, I understand how to feed the laminate into the laminator.

I'm new just getting started, however if I ever have some helpful information to pass along to others, I will make the time to take photos and post them!

 

[phototec]

Post some photos?

you ever get a chance to ride down to Chattanooga any? You really should ride down to my shop one and check out my laminator set up, very inexpensive and works everytime, never have any issues with it!

How about posting some photos of your setup for those of us who can't make the trip?

Thanks