This article explains a simple technique of achieving a proper cut path on printed vinyl without an optical-eye registration cutter such as a Mimaki CG-130. This method works well on broad shapes and even lettering depending on how you setup your vinyl, but of course will not replace a proper file sent from the rip stage, matching files, with a optical cutter.

We’ll begin this tutorial with our design - a life preserver logo we’re looking to have contour cut along the inside and outside. In this example we’ll setup the graphic 3 copies across and the print to look like this including the black rectangle.

Above is the image we will send to print and it will be paired with our image we’re looking to contour cut. So once the image is correctly printed, cured, laminated - we can prepare to send our cut file, but before we do this, let’s have a look at the file we created with the raster image. The magenta is our cut line, as you can see we are effectively sending a cut and self-made weed border.

Load your printed material into your regular cutter with the top corner of rectangle set to 0,0 and enter it as the origin. Using the top horizontal printed line from the print as a guideline to match with your cutter so the it’s straight.

With the material straight and the origin set we’re ready to try the alignment. Back off the cut weight so it doesn’t cut or replace knife with a pen. Then select only the rectangle (shown here in blue) and send it through. If the cutting head tracks well or close enough, go ahead and send the everything.

In the event the plotting alignment is not tracking straight, continue removing and trying to align straight across the cutting axis and making test runs before committing to the final cut. In an example such as this, with fairly loose registration, it should take more than a few moments to align and have production actually happening. The time used in this “Poor Man’s” contour cut equals to approximately the same amount time it would take to have it optically registered.

Popular signmaking software such as Signlab and Flexisign have come a long way in an attempt to bridge the gap between vinyl cutting, vinyl printing, and general design. These programs attempt to do vector, raster, and image processing all under one umbrella – and more often than not they are still best just for cutting.

The problem lies in the fact that most designers use Adobe CS3 or CS2. This is what is taught in the design schools and considered the standard through most professional graphic industries, not Signlab or Flexi. If you have designers inhouse they at best working in a clumsy fashion trying to eek out a design in the signmaking software or what would be a redundant scenario, your company would have both the signmaking and Adobe design software.

Some may say that they have both sets of software because they receive files from marketing firms and external designers – and that they need to convert them over to their system. Anyone who has tried to convert moderately complex design files to either Signlab or Flexi will tell you it is near impossible. Any number of effects, gradients, transparencies, masks, etc. will not appear correctly and it becomes a preflight nightmare.

There is a simple solution. Design your graphics using standard software and buy rip software that can rip standard design files. This is the job of the modern sign shop to grab a file and get it ready to print. I don’t mean to go in and tweak your client’s graphic to make it work. Time is money and a lot of time can be wasted doing alterations.

Wasatch SoftRIP and Onyx ProductionHouse are the leaders in software RIPs. They both cost less than the do-everything-in-a-box signmaking software and will take your CS3 files without a glitch. I know what you’re thinking ‘but I need to contour cut decals also’… They do that too. Tiles… they do that as well. What they don’t do is design vector art or edit raster-based graphics – that’s what your design software is for and your cutlines can be added in Illustrator.

Many shops have both signmaking and design software and must not only deal with upgrading these periodically, but also deal with compatibility issues trying to use them in tandem. You no longer need the signmaking software, by investing in good RIP you’ll save money and a whole lot of time not messing around graphic files.

Assessing the surface

You cannot design a wrap if you do not know what type of vehicle it is going to be installed in. The shape and size of the unit is very important. For instance, if you are dressing a truck, you will need a larger sheet of self-adhesive vinyl. But if you are dressing a motorcycle, then you get to save money by printing on small sheets.

Deciding on the design

Let’s say you would like to showcase your flower shop on the wrap. Will you have enough working space to fully print a colorful bouquet, or will too many flowers turn your the wrap into an eyesore on the road? If you have a small space, perhaps just your company’s logo will do, or a digital print of one or two of your most sophisticated products.

What is it for?

If you are planning to market your business using a vehicle wrap, then you might consider keeping it as simple as possible. You want an ad that will command the attention of the people around it. However, if you put in too many things on a mobile advertisement, you might distract drivers and cause accidents on the road. Limit your copy and graphics to visually digestible levels. To effectively market your product, what you need is catch-all, not a list of your services in full regalia.

In sum, while what you put on a vehicle wrap is your call, you have to be responsible enough to realize that it will be rolling around town and catching attention. It’s good to be the talk of the town, but when it starts getting destructive to others, then that’s a different story.

Syed Raheem is the publisher of next generation media news letter. You can subscribe by visiting his web site at: truck wrap and receive updates related information about vehicle wrapping.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Syed_Raheem
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Expert tips to installing vehicle wraps:

Vehicle wrap tip #1:

Tape the design to the exterior first before removing the backing of the film. This will ensure that everything is in position with the template. According to an expert, taping the design will allow you to check what the printer came up with. See to it that everything is where it should be.

Vehicle wrap tip #2:

Avoid making additional cuts or pointless marks in your vinyl graphics. To achieve this, remove mirrors and wiper blades and other similar elements.

Vehicle wrap tip #3:

Wet applications make vehicle wrapping more difficult. Experts do not recommend this, as it will result in the breakage of the adhesive. You may not see the effects right away, but it could be damaged before it reaches the life-span recommended. Plus, removal of the vinyl is more convenient if you do a dry installation.

Experts’ tools for installing vehicle wraps:
What you need to make the process of installing your wrap smoother and more convenient.

Vehicle wrap tool #1:

Squeegees are necessary for vehicle wrapping. Experts even use two different ones: a felt squeegee for areas that are difficult to wrap, since this will make it possible for you not to scratch the vinyl; the standard squeegee (the hard one) for the rest of the area. A good squeegee is made of a flexible material. The purpose for this is to avoid the squeegee from getting scratched. Scratches on your squeegee will result in what would look like scratch marks on your window graphic.

Vehicle wrap tool #2:

Experts also suggest the use of an air release tool or pin. Some people make do with razor blades to burst bubbles. But this will just end up with your film getting a tear that would cause your vinyl to fall apart.

Using an air release tool allows you to preserve the strength of your film, as it will pop the bubble within its own boundary.

Vehicle wrap tool #3:

Finally, keep a heat gun handy. This will help stretch the film. The recommended kind is called overlaminates.

Syed Raheem is the publisher of next generation media news letter. You can subscribe by visiting his web site at: truck wrap and receive updates related information about vehicle wrapping. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Syed_Raheem

Commercial trailer and truck vehicle wraps or what is commonly known as fleet graphics are a great way to not only get volume orders for square footage but can be turned around quickly with large margins. With this vehicle wrap tutorial you should be able to speed through the application of a large commercial transport and with a few laborers behind you to complete the finishing of rivets - you should be able to have them out in no time at all.

1. Lay up ALL of your panels with masking tape with the proper overlap to ensure that your final image will fit well and no critical areas such as copy or logos will be cut away. Spend extra time setting up all panels in their positions so you’ll not have to revisit their alignment later on.

2. Begin with the final panel on each respective side of the trailer so that the sequence of panels overlapping will match the natural driving direction of the vehicle.

3. Tape the next panel out of your way while working on the first one. You can do this by loosely folding the next panel over and taping so as it’s out of your way while working. Starting at approximately 12″ down, place horizontal masking tape along the first panel.

4. Release the top of the panel, removing backing paper from the upper section, and finally cutting away.

5. While holding the center of this section tight, squeegee from the center out in a horizontal direction to create a smooth and even bead to start with.

6. After your first horizontal stroke is complete, continue upwards in any sensible fashion to complete the area. What you should have applied is the upper 12″ and the rest hanging beneath it with backing paper on.

7. At this point, roll back your backing paper about 36″ - 48″ down. Place your hand in the center of the vinyl just below the area you peeled back, pushing down on 2 layers of backing paper and one layer of vinyl.

8. With your opposite hand starting from the center, squeegee using the felt edge from the top straight down.

9. Reposition your bottom hand to be parallel to the next stroke and again squeegee from the top straight down.

10. Continue to move outward in both directions, making sure your bottom hand is always positioned directly below the squeegee stroke until you reach a row of rivets.

11. Once at the rivets (if there is any), you’ll need to switch to your hard edge of your squeegee and your stroke will be different than the top down stroke you had for most of the panel. With the hand that isn’t holding your squeegee, hold your vinyl on the side.

12. In a swift and short 45 degree jabbing motion, hit the rivets in a slight diagonal while holding the vinyl tight on the side. Continue to do this all the way down the row of rivets.

13. Complete the rest of the vehicle wrap panel as you have in other flat areas until the your 36″ - 48″ area is finished, roll back more backing paper, and repeat the previous steps.

The process may sound quite elaborate, but it really is quick and simple. A 9 ft vehicle wrap panel should take you no longer than 5-10 mins. each to finish and the rest of your time can be spent on heating and finishing work.

In whatever the case, it becomes crucial that your colors, media, laminate, dithering type, and even rip software are either the same as previously used or come very close to the original vehicle wrap printing. It’s important to make buying choices carefully when starting out in the vehicle wrap business to avoid constantly changing the quality of your wrap printing.

Make an effort to use a limited range of digital printing media and laminate, so in the future if you have to print something from an archived file – there’s no difficulty identifying what was used in your shop a year ago, three years ago, or longer.

I’ve seen many vehicle wrap shops operate with little organization and when it comes time and they have to repair, replace, or add a vehicle wrap panel, it becomes an all day exercise trying to match something via trial and error.

This becomes even more important when your vehicle wrap shop sends full graphic kits out for installation out of state. The completed vehicle wrap may never be actually seen and a few digital photographs aren’t going to cut it when you’re trying reproduce a vehicle wrap.

In order to avoid going down this road, it’s vital to catalog and save your information. A simple method I’ve found that works is to run a test print at approximately 1/10th scale of your vehicle wrap for each panel. Printing a sample of the wrap at this size gives you a moderate reference in which you can archive. Collect the various scale samples, laminate them, and file them in what ever way works for you.

After a short period you’ll have a small library of previously printed vehicle wraps to reference from, but more importantly you’ll have a visual record of the specs you used for that particular vehicle wrap. You’ll know what kind of media, dithering type, profile, colors, etc. and this will make for an easy effort when you’ll have add to or replace a previous vehicle wrap.

Installing large vinyl graphics can be hard on the body and this is especially true when it comes to the hands. Whether you’re using a torch, tiger torch, or heat gun when you’re installing your vehicle wraps, it’s easy to burn your fingers trying to tuck in areas where the paddle doesn’t fit.

A solution I found which very few sign shops incorporate, but the pros know about - uses a cotton glove to ‘soften’ the hand of the installer. The type of gloves I’m describing are the cheap cotton gloves widely available at discount stores. If you’re right-handed you would wear the glove on your left hand with either a heat element or squeegee in your right hand.

When you come to an area where the vinyl needs to be tucked in, you can gently heat the area and push down with your cotton glove hand. This works best on areas such as those found on cargo vans where you’ll find shallow 90 degree indents in the vehicle body.

One of the key benefits to using a cotton glove, is the glove provides a friction-free and soft applicator for your printed vinyl graphics. Using your hands is similar to using the hard edge side of a squeegee and it will grip the vinyl as you pass over it. This can possibly scratch the surface.

The cotton glove method isn’t exactly a high tech or expensive tool, but works very well in practice and can easily save your fingers from small burns over the course of wrapping a vehicle. Try it out on your next installation and see how well it works at your shop.

1. Print on Reflective Media – Imagine wrapping a fleet of security company vehicles entirely in printed reflective vinyl? They show up on a site completely lit up as cars pass them at night. Or maybe for a nightclub promotion who circles a downtown neighborhood getting attention. Reflective media can be a great choice to increase your bottom line and widely available with Comply technology for easy application.

2. Print on Glow in the Dark – What’s better than reflective? If you can make a vehicle literally glow by printing on glow in the dark media. Glow in the dark media is very expensive and can extremely difficult to install – but it would be a first to my knowledge. The sort of wrap you can easily get publicity for. For the right client with the right budget, you can definitely create a buzz with this technique.

3. Design with Optical Illusions – Designing clever visuals will always keep people looking at your creations. There are countless visual tricks you can play on your viewer by print, fake textures, extending driver’s limbs, another truck on the body of the vehicle, fake windows, holes, tears, scenes inside the windows, etc. Your imagination is only the limit when designing graphics this way, but rest assured, if done correctly – it can create a memorable promotion for both you and your customer.

4. Overlay with Prismatic Film – Dust off your vinyl cutter… Vinyl cutting isn’t gone yet. Try to incorporate polyester prismatic graphic films for your next project from such brands as Coburn. Print out your graphics and overlay into the logos a ‘real’ brushed aluminum or diamondplate fill instead of just printing ones in flat CMYK.

Using the film is surprisingly expensive and can cost as much as four times that of regular vehicle wrapping film. This begs the questions “do I need to use this?” There are a few considerations when using perforated window film in your vehicle wraps.

1. Film Laminated Perforated Window Film – In order to use a cold film laminate for your window film, you’ll need optically clear laminate. This means you’ll need another roll of laminate to have in stock which not only will cost a premium, but you’ll rarely use. The major problem with this technique is because you have the perforated layer laminated with a clear top layer, when your squeegee over the film in certain areas you’ll have air bubbles trapped where the perforation holes are. Over time as these small air bubbles in the perforation are exposed to the sun, they will dry out, crack, and the panel will eventually need to be replaced.

2. Liquid or Non-Laminated Perforated Window Film – By simply not laminating or liquid laminating your perforated window film you can avoid the small the air bubbles that come with using a cold film technique. Optically clear vinyl laminate isn’t exactly as clear as glass anyway. A new problem appears if you follow this technique, of course if you don’t protect your print in any manner, in about 2 years your colors will fade and the print would be damaged by any number of things such as car wax. The major problem is the perforated holes will trap water droplets when it rains and become a hazard to driver, often providing no visibility.

3. No Perforated Window Film but Opting for Solid Vinyl – Using solid vinyl may best be suited for cargo vans where their drivers rely on their mirrors more than on typical passenger vehicles. Simply using the vehicle wrapping vinyl would be the easiest method of application and you’d also have the peace of mind that all the vinyl graphics are the same and will age at the same rate. Using this technique or designing with no windows installed on, can be a safer avenue to go down, but more savvy customers may demand a perforated window film product.

There’s no perfect way to complete your vehicle wraps using perforated window film, but use what’s right for you. I avoid using it where possible to avoid work coming back as a product failure and to limit any hazardous driving conditions.

In cut vinyl graphics, it isn’t important if you use one brand of media one day to the next - your cutter doesn’t cut any different. But be aware in solvent printable films, it’s often a good idea to continue to use the same brand time and time again to ensure accurate color production. Once you go through the headaches of profiling your media or simply finding a profile that works best with your printer, you should probably stick to it. If you change brands one day because there was a sale at your local sign supplier - you might be surprised that you’re spending the next day or two getting it configured properly before you can sell one square foot.

Oracal Orajet 3951RA is an economical professional vehicle wrapping film with a technology they call Rapid Air (like Comply). It has a grey back for block out capabilities and is offered in 2mil cast vinyl. Rated at 10 years. I’ve use it and I like it but I can’t seem to get a good profile for it. I hear it’s quite popular with Roland users.

Avery Graphics MPI 1005 EZ is a 2.1mil cast film using Avery’s Easy Apply technology and is priced comparatively to IJ180. They advertise clean removal over the warranteed life of the media which is 7 years laminated. I’ve used this media here and there - it prints well and very glossy. If you can get a better price on 1005 EZ vinyl than on Controltac for this, it’s a great option.

3M Controltac IJ180-10 is the mainstream leader in vehicle wrapping film. Media profiles are easily available and is backed by 3M’s warranty when using compatible print supplies. IJ180 comes in classic checkered Comply pattern and V2, which is the new smooth finish media for those that didn’t like the old pattern.

Mactac JT 5529 M BF is an economy calendered wrapping film with a rating of 10 years. I personally wouldn’t use it for permanent applications, but rather short term promotional car wraps. I have used it and it prints very well, however the adhesive is not as aggressive as I would like.