You should take a look at the ALPS dye-sub printer, heaps of colors,
metallic foils, prints on paper and clear transparencies, 2400DPI and under
USD 500. Wished i could get one but they dun make them in 240VAC and ALPS
has told me flat out they won't sell. Sigh....


Terry


At 07:36 PM 8/25/99 -0700, you wrote:
>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
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>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
>