Did anyone ever try Gravaply?

[James Meagher]

Hi,

I am looking for the best material to laser engrave and cut for electrical tags, any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

James Meagher

[Brent Vander Weil]

I think Romark is probably the top name... along with IPI... I get my ROwmark from JDS Industries. They have quite a few warehouses around the country and shipping has been A#1...

[Mike Null]

James

I use IPI for my work because it engraves and cuts well. It doesn't always lay flat.

I have a friend who uses more plastic than me and he swears Gravoply is the best on the market. He says it's always flat and he claims it's a little more expensive than the competition.

[Ed Newbold]

I use IPI for my work because it engraves and cuts well. It doesn't always lay flat. Pardon my lack of knowledge about this, but what is "IPI?"

Also, is this the stuff you're referencing: Gravoply 1® Engraving Stock

It looks like it's designed for rotary engraving. Does it laser OK?

Thanks very much.

[Kenneth Hertzog]

having gone from rotary engraving to laser engraving also I put a piece in the laser to try it and it worked very well.
ken

[Mike Null]

Ed

IPI is the brand name of a plastics line you can get from Johnson Plastics. They have a warehouse up on the north side.

I have never used Gravoply but I would guess they have a laser version. My friend uses his laser on it.

[Scott Shepherd]

Gravograph makes some excellent materials. In my opinion, they make some of the best out there. In my limited experience, I'd rate Gravograph at the top and Rowmark a close 2nd and IPI being somewhere at the very bottom of the list. I constantly use IPI plastics and I constantly say "this is the last time". I use it because I can get it local, so when someone orders something I don't have material for, I can quickly get the material. However, the bowing of the material makes for challenges. You'll end up using double sided tape to tape it to the table just so it's flat enough to cut. There's no reason, in this day in time, that anyone should think that's acceptable. On the protective film, it's name says "Laserables". Well, here's a hint IPI, it's not "Laserable" if I can't lay it into the laser and use it. It should be called "Semi-Laserable" or "You-Can-Make-It-Laserable" if you ask me.

Gravograph is a big company and I've had issues with their "customer service" on several occasions. I tried placing an internet order recently and got to the last step and it told me the credit card didn't go through. So I picked up the phone, called the order in (used same credit card), and two days later had two orders show up, both billed. One from the internet, one from the phone. Had to go through the hassle of sending one back.

I also ordered a decent size order from them, and when it arrived, 1/2 of it was wrong. They send 1/32 material instead of 1/16. This was ordered on a Monday, got here on Wednesday, needed for a job due on Friday. I called up, told them the problem, they said they would send the right material out on Monday. I said "Monday? I need it to go out today, next day air, it's for a job due on Friday". They told me they were doing inventory and they were not taking orders. I said "This is not an order, it's resolving a mistake you made". The guy refused to budge on it. I informed him that if they were doing an inventory, they might want to have the correct amounts, and since the packing slip noted the correct material and the actual order was the wrong material, their inventory would surely be off. He kept repeating "We're not taking any orders until Monday" and I kept repeating "This is not an order, it's correcting a mistake your company made in pulling the material".

He finally told me he'd see what he could do and call me back. He never called back. So Thursday, I called and went up the food chain until I got a manager. He told me that they couldn't do it, and after much bitching from me, he said he'd see what he could do. He called back and told me it was going out next day air on Thursday (I thought it was IMPOSSIBLE???) It did and arrived on Friday and all was good. But a real hassle to correct a mistake THEY made.

I always pay them with a credit card, and 50% of the time, they end up sending a bill and saying it's an unpaid balance. Very confusing.

I've had none of those problems with JDS.

Take that all for what it's worth. It's all my experiences with them. In fact, I'm inspired from writing this to pick up the phone and stock up on Rowmark :) Maybe today is the day I stop using IPI!

[Mike Null]

Now you know why I don't use that company. Tried to get service for a machine a few years ago. Gave up and sold the machine. They'll not get another dime of mine.

[Tony Lenkic]

Gravoly 1 is not laser engravable material. To get through the cap you will need to engrave 0.012" minimum. Gravoply 2 is micro surface rotary type plastic that can be laser engraved to some degree. Gravograph has laserable material called Gravolase.

Most of members here use Rowmark or IPI material for lasering?
Has any of you used TPF (Transfer Print Foil) plastic. They claim that their material is for rotary and laser applications.

Here is their web site........ www.advtechnology.com (http://www.advtechnology.com)

Tony

[John Sobeski]

Hi,

I am looking for the best material to laser engrave and cut for electrical tags, any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

James Meagher

I do a lot of electrical nameplates for operator control desks, cabinet labels, etc. My business is sort of captive since I make them for my own Engineering Company (but at a lot less cost then I was buying them for previously).

I only use the 1/16" Gravoply Ultra. It beats the heck out of what we were buying (rotary engraved). Everyone agrees the laser made labels are much better looking. These labels go into steel mill environments so have to be pretty rugged to withstand the atmosphere.

Since I got my laser this year, I have done several thousand.

Gravoply Ultra is the best for my needs.