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I'm trying to find a solution that will remove the glue after vinyl has been stripped from a banner or other substrate. So far I seem to be striking out. I have tried alcohol, paint thinner, and orange solvent (concentrated and diluted). The area is still very sticky after I have applied these. Any suggestions?

I'm trying to find a solution that will remove the glue after vinyl has been stripped from a banner or other substrate. So far I seem to be striking out. I have tried alcohol, paint thinner, and orange solvent (concentrated and diluted). The area is still very sticky after I have applied these. Any suggestions?

I just found out about Jerry's passing. I had been away from the posts while busily immersed in other projects. What a loss. He was a great guy and a great resource. Everyone at SB has been so kind and gracious with their help and input. Jerry will be missed immensely.

Thanks for the replies. I converted to curves, but it still double cuts any lines. BTW, you can weed hairlines very easily, so long as they aren't cut into multiple sections. That's where I was having problems. SB was tending to double line at the same time it was cutting the lines into multiple sections. That became very tedious.

Bruce, I'm having problems with graphics created in Corel. I often have to create "line art" in Corel for objects which don't convert to vector format, or which are very complicated and need to be simplified. I trace around these objects and then import the lines into SB. But when I save them and import into SB the lines are usually doubled, whether I created them in hairline, 1 pt., 2 pt., etc. All the lines are doubled and the cutter cuts double lines. Sometimes the lines are also cut at random lengths; in other words, the lines are doubled and also cut into many pieces, which makes weeding almost impossible. I'm inclined to think the software is interpreting the lines are multiple nodes lines, but that isn't the case. What's the secret to getting single lines from Corel? Larry

If I understand you correctly, the image is a scanned image. That's a problem from the get-go. A scanned image will be a raster image, which can't be cut on a vinyl cutter. In addition the process of scanning usually causes minute pixels to be picked up on the scan, and these show up on the image in many unwanted areas. I recently did a scanned image in Corel, where I used the three-point curve tool to go around text that was custom drawn by the customer. The outlining of the text took me about 6-8 hours alone, not to mention cutting and weeding. The result was a vector image, but it was very laborious. Scanned images don't lend themselves to being "outlined" the way you wanted. The pixels are too dispersed and random to allow this to happen. I wish it were otherwise. I could have saved a lot of time. Changing the raster image to a vectorized image only makes the problem more pronounced.

Bear, I also live in FL and I have used FDC 5 yr. calendered for outdoor applications. It has great durability. I have used it on banners and custom signs.

You can do sublimation a couple of different ways. One is with dye sub inks - almost always done with Epson printers, because Epson printheads don't heat the ink. HP, Canon, others heat the ink, making them unfeasible for dye sub. I had a 1280, but found the printhead clogging to be a major issue. The newer Epsons (4000, 4800, etc.) don't seem to be quite so prone to clogs. One of the problems with sub ink is lack of suppliers. Sawgrass inks sought a patent for the sub process and basically control the sub ink market. Only other current supplier is TOG in Texas, which has a lawsuit pending against Sawgrass. Sub inks are somewhat expensive. Another way is with dye sub toners. I have a Konica Minolta with dye toners. Very expensive ($1,000 for toners), but actually less per print than sub ink. You never have to worry about clogging. You can print a week from today, and there will be no issue with image transfer. With the sub ink, the printer almost always has to be used daily to keep the heads from clogging. Standard ink jet transfers don't work well with mugs. I do both OEM laser toner transfer and dye sub toner transfer with mugs. Both methods work well. The OEM toner has a definite "hand", or feel to the mug; the dye sub has none. Both methods can use either a mug press or the mug wraps. I have an Okidata dedicated to OEM toners, and use it for T-shirts, mugs, etc. With the dye sub toners I do mugs, license plates, dog tags, garments, etc. Let me know if I can help you with any dye sub applications. Larry

Get an older version of ACDSee free: http://www.oldversion.com/program.php?n=acdsee The new version costs about $50, but the older versions, which work great, can be downloaded. This is one of the best multi-format viewers for images.

I also do sublimation, but got very frustrated with clogged printheads and ink lines. I went to dye sub toner - much more expensive initially, but soooo nice to be able to shut it down and know that it will perform next time without cleaning, purging, etc., etc. The Epsons simply don't do a good job with sub inks, at least not the early models like the 1280. I hear people with the newer 4800, etc. say it works well for them. The vinyl is a nice addition when you have simple designs and limited color images. Not necessary to dye sub at $5 per polyester shirt; you can use cheaper shirts and the end product is much less expensive than dye sub.

Jerry, I did as you recommended and it worked great. I'm up and running again. Thanks again for all the helpful advice on this forum. You Aussies are awesome.

The DTG machines for imprinting directly on garments is very, very expensive. It may be relatively cheap per sheet, but the upfront cost is huge compared to screen print or vinyl. The DTG's run anywhere from about 12-15K to 100K and more for the top-of-the-line. They are also susceptible to printing problems, because many use an Epson engine which is notorious for printhead clogging. Some of the units have a proprietary printing head, but these are not error free by any means. With respect to vinyl vs. screen print, when you factor in the time to prepare and clean screens, the cost between the two narrows (assuming your feel your time is worth something). On a large run this isn't an issue, but for short runs cleaning screens for small orders becomes an issue. This is especially true if you treat your waste products as they should be treated - hazardous waste. If you use solvent inks and you soak up the residue in paper/rags, this is considered hazardous material. The cost to get rid of it is large compared to vinyl waste.

Ken, Can you tell us what part was the culprit so we can look for this solution if the problem happens to us?

Creak, I like that table. Mind if I ask what you paid?

Jerry, One of the reasons this forum is so valuable and appreciated is your contributions. To have a software developer, supporting US Cutter, take an active interest in the needs of the end-users is gratifying and above the call of duty. I know what you mean about being flamed on other forums. I hope it never happens here. Keep up the good work! To you and all your compatriots down under, happy new year. Larry