This question may be straying a bit but has the same goal.  Does anyone
know of a source of laser printable
metal foil label stock.

I have used printed metal foil labels on panels before &
would like to make my own.

Thanks for your help

-Dan - W6DFW

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At 02:03 PM 8/26/99 +1200, you wrote:
>Hi all,
>
>Over the years I've tried heaps of methods for making neat looking
>panels so I'd thought I would dump my experimenters brain here in
>the hope that people might gain something useful from it. Should
>be relevant for hobbyists, prototypers and small run manufacturers.
>
>Firstly I used colour inkjet printouts on paper. Spray it with an art
>protector lacquer that gives UV protection. The paper soaks this up
>and becomes a little more opaque, but much more hard wearing
>and a semi-waterproof. A sheet of double sided adhesive tape on
>the back (or spray adhesive) and stick it on the panel. Paint the
>panel white first if necessary to improve the appearance. Where
>possible a sheet of 1mm polycarbonate over the front, held in place
>by switches, pots, terminal posts etc makes it look professional
>and wear well.
>
>Variation: For all my prototype stuff now I make my panels as
>above but I go down the road to the local colour copy centre and
>get my print-out plastic laminated to make it look/last a little better.
>These laminating services often give gloss one side and matt on
>the other, so matt is what you want for a non-glare finish. Cut out
>any windows for LEDs and displays before laminating.
>
>Next method: Laser print or ink jet print on transparency. (Must be
>the right type of material for your printer). Flip your image upside
>down before printing, so it gets viewed through the transparency.
>Now scratches won't wreck it! Spray over the printed side with
>gloss white enamel, and back with a layer of double sided adhesive
>tape. I initially used white undercoat as it covers better, doesn't
>peel off easily, and didn't affect the toner (some enamel paints did),
>but it is less white, somewhat hydroscopic (moisture soaks in from
>the edges and wrecks inkjet printouts) and tends to discolour a
>little with UV and age. For black and white laser prints you can use
>any colour paint, even fluorescent and metalics! These labels, the
>laser printer ones anyway, are really quick and easy to make,
>robust, and stay looking good for ages. You can get clear windows
>for LEDs and displays by masking before painting.
>
>Other: Professional screen printing companies use scratch
>resistant polyester with that nice textured finish. They can now
>supply you with a specially coated thin version of this polyester to
>put through your ink jet printer. You stick on a white backing sheet
>supplied, over the printing, and add double sided tape. This is a
>really promising system but the downsides are: ink jet only, water
>ingress from edges spoils them, hassle cutting out white backing
>sheet for windows.
>
>Production: Ultimately (traditionally?), professional quality overlays
>use screen printing on the back of polyester substrates and involve
>expensive setup costs. Polycarbonate is cheaper but lower quality.
>
>Tips for windows: For display windows you can cut out your overlay
>right out and use a piece of clear polcarbonate or filter material
>behind it. Let it overlap behind your overlay so that it sticks to the
>adhesive to help hold it in place and for sealing. For LED windows
>you can get away with not cutting out the adhesive, this adds a
>little diffusing to the light which may be desired.
>
>Tips for switches: All the above methods work well for tactile
>switches mounted behind the overlay. The switches feel better if
>they are not adhered to by the adhesive backing. A good idea is to
>put a piece of thin plastic on top of the adhesive, between the
>overlay and the switch. This makes it better wearing too.
>
>Another option: A sign company here has a machine called Gerber
>Edge. Its looks to be a kind of a thermal foil transfer printer, 300dpi.
>It prints onto the reverse side of a range of available substrates
>including one called lex-edge, which is similar to polyester
>overlays. I needed 3 professional quality overlays sized 135 x
>80mm, 4 colours, in a hurry. They did the job for NZ$70 (US$30).
>Quality as good as screen printing except for alignment of colours
>not as precise. Minimal setup costs, artwork supplied by me on
>disk straight into their software, looks cheaper than screen printing
>for quantities up to about 100.
>
>General: You can learn heaps by experimenting. There are many
>different materials/processes you could use so don't be afraid to try
>some crazy combinations, and don't listen too seriously to people
>who say you can't do it that way.
>
>Oops, didn't mean it to be such a huge essay,
>comments/questions/opinions welcome.
>
>Brent Brown
>Electronic Design Solutions
>16 English Street
>Hamilton, New Zealand
>Ph/fax: +64 7 849 0069
>Mobile: 025 334 069
>eMail:  brent.brown@clear.net.nz
>
>

-Dan
amersci@flash.net