If you are having trouble deciding between foamcore and gatorboard, here are two key questions to ask yourself.
1) How long am I going to use this?
If the answer is a few days, go with foamcore, it will work fine and is less expensive than gatorboard. Your typical meeting sign that stands on an easel for a few days can be done very successfully with paper on foamcore board.
Somthing that needs to last should be mounted to gatorboard. Foamcore will bend with changes in humidity, and gatorboard will remain flat for years.
2) How is it going to be used?
If you are going to take it from place to place, gatorboard will look better much longer. It's tougher stuff for going in an out of your car, etc. For things that are really going to be slapped around, consider using our edge trim to protect the edges.
Anything that is a permanent display, like pictures of buildings you have built or historical pictures of your town, should be on gatorboard. For graphics to look good for many years, you should consider UV inks, which will not fade over the years.
Foamcore and gatorboard look a lot alike. The difference is that while foamcore is paper on either side of a slice of styrofoam, gatorboard is a heavy (think oak tag) moisture impregnated paper on either side of the same styrofoam. Since the paper doesn't accept moisture, it is much more stable dimensionally. It's also just plain tougher. Gatorboard comes in black and white, foamcore only in white.
Showing posts with label mounted prints. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mounted prints. Show all posts
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Thursday, November 13, 2008
How We Operate
MegaPrint Inc. has been around for almost 15 years. We have printed tens of thousands of research posters, trade show booths, banners, life size cutouts, and much more.
There is a great deal that goes on behind the scenes of an online, wide format print shop. It all starts at the order desk, where your orders are received and assigned to a graphic designer for review. We have eight graphic designers in-house that look at every single file we print, to check for layout errors and color issues. If we see a problem, we'll call you to work things out. Our promise is that you'lll get something that is right.
Your print then goes to our finishing department, where they handle cutting out those life size cutouts, mounting, and laminating. Last but not least our vinyl department does solvent printing of banners and wallpaper. Solvent printing is waterproof and stable for 3-5 years in sunlight.
Each of us play a part in getting your print out the door fast and looking great! From the sales desk, to the shipping department where Cindy and Joyce make sure your prints are getting shipped to their proper destination, we treat each order as if it were the only one in-house. Just take a look at what others have to say about the work we do.
There is a great deal that goes on behind the scenes of an online, wide format print shop. It all starts at the order desk, where your orders are received and assigned to a graphic designer for review. We have eight graphic designers in-house that look at every single file we print, to check for layout errors and color issues. If we see a problem, we'll call you to work things out. Our promise is that you'lll get something that is right.
Your print then goes to our finishing department, where they handle cutting out those life size cutouts, mounting, and laminating. Last but not least our vinyl department does solvent printing of banners and wallpaper. Solvent printing is waterproof and stable for 3-5 years in sunlight.
Each of us play a part in getting your print out the door fast and looking great! From the sales desk, to the shipping department where Cindy and Joyce make sure your prints are getting shipped to their proper destination, we treat each order as if it were the only one in-house. Just take a look at what others have to say about the work we do.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Alternatives to Framing
When companies want a display that will line their halls for more than a year, we usually print with UV ink, mount on gatorboard, and we often add our edge trim.
Edge trim protects the edges of a gatorboard mounted print and gives the look of a thin frame. It can be substantially less expensive than framing, which for large prints can start at $150. We can also add the wire at the back for hanging. In the end you have a print with a frame and a hanger wire for less than the traditional frame would cost you.
At the right is a menu we printed on gatorboard with matte laminate and edge trim. This particular job also featured channels so that the customer could slide in new items and prices when they changed.
Edge trim protects the edges of a gatorboard mounted print and gives the look of a thin frame. It can be substantially less expensive than framing, which for large prints can start at $150. We can also add the wire at the back for hanging. In the end you have a print with a frame and a hanger wire for less than the traditional frame would cost you.
At the right is a menu we printed on gatorboard with matte laminate and edge trim. This particular job also featured channels so that the customer could slide in new items and prices when they changed.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Big Outdoor Vinyl Banners
This is an example of the dramatic results that can be achieved with full color printing of outdoor banners. This one is currently outside of the New Hampshire Historical Society in Concord, which is doing an exhibit of the photographs of AMC photographer Ralph Larrabee.We also printed several large format displays of the photographs for the exhibition. Historical photos are wonderful! We can print them in either black and white or sepia tone, and we can convert a black and white to sepia if you want that look. We produce large format photos on paper, and typically dry mount to board for framing. The photos for the exhibition were matte laminated and mounted on black gatorboard. They are stunning!
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