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Decals
vs. paper labels:
Decals are weather proof. They even go on scuba tanks and hold up underwater!
Expect 5+ years outside use and still look new. Screenprinting on vinyl
or transparent mylar using UV (sunlight) resistant inks makes them so
durable. If you don't need a weatherproof decal you can go to a local
printer for offset printing on paper label stock. Much less expensive,
but not for outdoor use.
Custom decals
vs bumperstickers:
We use a 4 mil vinyl or clear mylar for the custom decals.
We use a 2 mil vinyl for the bumper stickers with a less aggressive adhesive.
Bumper stickers can be peeled off easily for about 3 weeks. If we didn't mention
the material and adhesive differences, most would not notice. They are very
similar in feel and final application.
Transparent
(clear) mylar vs. (opaque/solid) white or yellow vinyl:
Most everyone who orders transparent mylar, orders solid white or yellow
vinyl the second time around. The solid background 'controls' the look of
the decal and looks better on more applications. eg: Black on clear mylar
just doesn't show well on any dark background. Also the colors look brighter
on the white vinyl. Transparent mylar still shows and 'edge' even though it
is clear. This 'edge' is less apparent in a solid white or yellow vinyl decal.
For inside window use we have to start with transparent (clear) mylar so we
can apply the adhesive to the face of the decal. Inside window decals are
often used for 'parking permit' type decals.
White or
yellow vinyl:
These are the only 2 solid (opaque) vinyl materials we screenprint. If
your design uses yellow, then using yellow vinyl can save you the cost of
a second color. It is not a real bright yellow, so we can send you a sample
to look at before starting production.
Hang tags:
Hang tags are used by clothing manufacturers. They are just a custom
decal with a special cutting die used ( a 'cookie cut' or 'kiss cut' type
die) and a hole punched on the corner for attachment to the apparel. They
can also be imprinted on the back release paper with more information
(adds one color to cost of the decal). With hang tags the customer gets
a free decal along with the apparel purchase. The kiss cut die costs $110
(one time charge) and the hole punching costs $65.00 (each order).
More
than you ever need to know about decals:
If you have artwork it can be mailed, e mailed or faxed. We work in Corel/windows but can take MAC based .ai files or .eps or .plt files in either
format. A .bmp, gif, or .jpg image is not much use to us other than to
look at your design, but send it anyway if that's all you have!
All
decal work is 'spot colors', same as T shirt printing or the Sunday paper
comics. If you want multiple colors on a vinyl decal we print each color
separately, so a screen printed decal could have any number of separate
colors.
We separate colors by 'trapping' or very closely overlaying one color
on the next. We are very good at this. We generally screenprint using
a 55 line screen...rather coarse, like newspaper, as we have to let those
thick UV inks flow for a good final result. Your local offset printer
(paper, not vinyl) can get any color scene just using 4 colors (4 color
process/ CMYK). Screen printing does not use this process because our
inks are opaque.
Decal
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