Know your Vinyl

JUNE 11, 2020| SpeedPro Greenville

Take a look at the room you’re in. Are there any prints on the wall? Graphics on the desk? Wraps around your car outside? Each of those prints were printed on a specific material chosen to allow the artwork to fulfill its purpose. Printing on the right material and laminating with the right finish greatly impacts your final project.

At SpeedPro Greenville, we print a variety of options: car wraps, signs, banners and more. The majority of our products are printed using vinyl, which is a strong material and our vinyl’s pressure sensitive adhesive keeps the installation in place.

Vinyl Printing

There are a few things to consider when purchasing a vinyl print – the properties of the vinyl itself and the finish of the print’s laminate. Your printing choices depend heavily on how you plan to display your artwork. For instance, some vinyl work better on signs outdoors while others are better on the wall inside. If you choose the wrong vinyl, you may end up spending more money in the repair or repurchase than you’d want.

Vinyl Properties:

Your two choices of vinyl with SpeedPro Greenville are cast and calendered vinyl. The main difference between the two is the flexibility of the material. Cast vinyl will easily conform to a curved surface, such as a car, while calendered vinyl works better on flat surfaces. Below is a brief comparison of the two.

Cast:

• Conforms to rounded and edgy surfaces
• Longer outdoor life (usually)
• More expensive
• Used for vehicle wraps

Calendered:

• Sticks best to flat surfaces
• Less expensive
• Used for wall hangings, graphics, murals, etc.

If you wrap a vehicle with a calendered vinyl, the vinyl will soon start to peel off the vehicle’s surface. Typically, vehicles are wrapped with cast vinyl. However, if all you want is a door decal or you want a flat panel for a box truck, calendered can work for a lower price. But make sure the surface is flat, otherwise it won’t stick well. On the other hand, if you use a cast vinyl for a flat wall mural, the vinyl will stay on the wall but you’ll have spent extra dollars that didn’t need to be spent.

To make it simple, cast vinyl will hold any shape you want while calendered vinyl will always want to go back to its original cut shape.

Laminate Finishes:

In addition to determining whether to use cast or calendered vinyl, you must choose what type of laminate finish you’d like on your artwork. The two types of laminate are glossy and matte, and the biggest difference between the two is the reflective abilities of the finish: glossy reflects light while matte does not. A matte laminate tends to hold better against scratches and fingerprints, while glossy works well outdoors as it catches light and pops out as drivers pass.

To make it simple, glossy laminates are shiny and matte finishes are dull.

One key thing to take note of is laminates also come as cast or calendered. In order to have a lasting print of your artwork, make sure to pair a cast laminate with a cast vinyl or a calendered laminate and calendered vinyl. If you pair a cast laminate with a calendered vinyl, the laminate will peel off as the vinyl peels off. If you pair a calendered laminate with a cast vinyl, the laminate will peel off the vinyl.

Time to Print

Now that you have a working knowledge of the types of vinyl and laminates, you’re ready for the next step! Call us now at 864.383.0238 to set up a one-on-one consultation or request a consultation or quote through our website.

Feel free to take a look at some of our past jobs – car wraps, signs, banners, etc – or check out our products and services.We look forward to hearing from you!