MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted April 20, 2015 Well I bought some of that Dyepress poly stuff from the big auction site. I decided it was time to try the PolyNatural which is for wood and stone / material of that nature, and the white undercoating Polywhite. So I went to Wal-mart. and Michaels and got some wood blanks to try this stuff out on. I ended up having to sand the wood blanks since they weren't smooth enough to my liking. I then added The Poly Natural to one blank, and then the Poly White to another. After they dried for 2 hrs I sanded them down again due to the poly had the rain lift a little. I added another coating of each and let them dry over night. I then had to add a coating of Poly Natural over the Poly White (it tells you to in the directions). I let that dry for 2 hours, and proceeded to follow the directions for curing the poly. After that I added the images, And below is the end results any and all comments are welcomed. All images were for test samples. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted April 20, 2015 It's hard to tell from the small image sizes, but what I can see looks pretty good. Approximately how much time did you have to put into each blank to get them ready to press? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted April 20, 2015 Not long I did 4 of them and it wasn't long sanding maybe 5 minutes total, applying the coats and waiting for them to dry 2hrs total they probably were done sooner I had a fan going and worked on other things. I know where your going is it worth buying, sanding, prepping, and sublimating. I will say yes. I can offer other wooden products than what Coastal, Conde, and other companies offer. As for the size I forget I work on 32" monitor and the pictures are small on others screen. I had poor lighting for the bass one. 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted April 20, 2015 They look good, I just don't have the room for one more thing... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted April 21, 2015 I'm personally not going to stock all of the shapes maybe 4 of each but they have had these styles for years so not to worried. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirtrocker 60 Posted April 21, 2015 So you picked up standard wood blanks and painted them with the Dyepress poly stuff and that worked good?So now, since my mind is racing on this (you knew that it would).... Do you think that would work on say, a cigar humidor top/lid?I would assume you would want to sand the varnish off it, then apply the Dyepress, then do the sub image? If that is so, the possibilities are endless and the amount a person could charge would be impressive.I can buy small humidors (25-50 count) for $20 each, is why I ask. I had originally thought of doing custom airbrushing on some, but if this would work, would be far less labor intensive. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted April 21, 2015 I'm going to answer in the order you asked. I went to the local craft store and picked up normal wood blanks and treated them with this Dye Press poly. I knew your mind was going to race but didn't post because of that. I believe it would work on the humidor as long as its wood.. I would sand the varnish off due to it would dye the clear coating brown and not be worth it. The apply the dye press and then sublimate. Yes possibilities are endless. As a kind jester for all the help, you could send me a few and I could test them ? lol I say lets try it and find out. Always up for some experimenting. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirtrocker 60 Posted April 21, 2015 As a kind jester for all the help, you could send me a few and I could test them ? lolI say lets try it and find out. Always up for some experimenting. I'll PM you my email and you can email me your shipping info. The ones I normally buy are out of stock, but Amazon has a traveler humidor that would work perfect for testing. I'll have it shipped to you, since you already have the Dyepress and are set up for the sub stuff and my equipment won't be here for at least another week. The humidor is 2 days shipping, so if I get it ordered tomorrow night, it should get there by the weekend. If it turns out good, I can probably even get it sold for you. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted April 21, 2015 I think you may have the best item to sublimate. I think you will be fine in the sublimation business just don't tell your wife I said that lol. Sounds good I will email you after I get the PM. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted April 21, 2015 You do know that you can just buy a humidor made specifically for sublimation, right? http://www.laserreproductions.com/Sublimation-Humidors.html They also sell additional glass tiles (currently out of stock) that let you change out the design... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted April 21, 2015 Jones that's no fun, plus its glass tiles plus they are 33.95 a piece, plus the tile. I like to see if this sand and print will work. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirtrocker 60 Posted April 21, 2015 I had seen those, but a person should understand that humidors are like a gun safe to cigar smokers. It has to meet certain requirements and glass top humidors (even inserts) are frowned upon because of humidity leakage. The inserts, becase the mindset is that extra wood planking means loss of space. LOL! And if I am going to produce an image on one it will likely be one of their "favorite" styles of humidors, which will most likely mean using the dyepress stuff. I know cigar guys, cause I am one. And in asking a couple what they would want on the top of their humis, the first question was where you getting the humi? Then the response ranged from "my 2 best buddies, my dog, "their avatar" to their military insignia, rank or first responder emblem. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted April 21, 2015 I had an idea I was going to submit to LRI, but maybe you can test it for me... Sublimation key blanks... I imagine the "key" portion is going to take a lot of abuse, but what about the top portion of the key - the part with the keyring hole? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
darcshadow 1,626 Posted April 21, 2015 I would think the other keys on the key chain banging against it would scratch it up and make it look pretty bad pretty quickly. But...I have no doubt people would buy them anyway. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted April 21, 2015 Can always try them right? Maybe clear coat the image and see what happens. Always up for an experiment any good places to get blanks reasonable? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OWJones 1,981 Posted April 22, 2015 Can always try them right? Maybe clear coat the image and see what happens. Always up for an experiment any good places to get blanks reasonable? That's what I was thinking - some sort of spray on coating after it's sublimated... After all, if they can make keys with designs that stay on, there has to be some way of making it stay, right? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirtrocker 60 Posted April 22, 2015 I have a Harley sublimated key, I've had it for a few years. It is pretty worn on the edges and a large portion of the design has worn away.It's really held up pretty well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted April 22, 2015 Well then lets get some blanks and try this yeah I got stuff to coat metal also. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Macon Innovations 228 Posted June 1, 2015 You guys ever experiment more? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadHatterGraphix 1,258 Posted June 3, 2015 Been too busy for experimenting I would love to do more but its now go to the NBM show, get back and start working on some ss grinch stripes for the green nova of my friends, and some other decals he wants, and some t-shirts etc. Maybe in the spare time I will try the keys. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites