Scott Shepherd
03-06-2008, 10:38 AM
I stopped buying IPI plastics some time ago, switching to Rowmark. The problems with bowing was out of control. Material would typically have 3/8" bow in it.
So I needed something from a local supplier and I needed a couple of pieces of reverse engravable black for a job I needed to get out. First thing I noticed was the material was dead flat. Not sure what they did or what they changed, but the material is as flat as any Rowmark I've ever seen. Good news there.
I noticed the settings I had spent months tweaking in to get a clear burn on Rowmark didn't work. The material is much more "grainy" than the Rowmark. I ended up having to up the power 25% to keep from having to run it twice. The end result wasn't as nice as the Rowmark, but it wasn't bad.
So I'm reasonably happy with it. I finish the piece up, grab my plastic polish and a clean rag, spray it on, and wipe. What's that? Oh, you have got to me kidding me. I can see the IPI LASERABLE logo on my work! Yes, apparently the light has set the image into the plastic, the working side. As the light hits it, you can clearly see the entire logo in the finished product.
When I switched to Rowmark, I didn't understand why Rowmark put all their logos on the film that was on the backside. I guess I now know why. Looks like their product is flatter, which is great news, but they really need to figure out not to put graphics on the working side of the film of materials that they image can get set in by being exposed to light.
So I needed something from a local supplier and I needed a couple of pieces of reverse engravable black for a job I needed to get out. First thing I noticed was the material was dead flat. Not sure what they did or what they changed, but the material is as flat as any Rowmark I've ever seen. Good news there.
I noticed the settings I had spent months tweaking in to get a clear burn on Rowmark didn't work. The material is much more "grainy" than the Rowmark. I ended up having to up the power 25% to keep from having to run it twice. The end result wasn't as nice as the Rowmark, but it wasn't bad.
So I'm reasonably happy with it. I finish the piece up, grab my plastic polish and a clean rag, spray it on, and wipe. What's that? Oh, you have got to me kidding me. I can see the IPI LASERABLE logo on my work! Yes, apparently the light has set the image into the plastic, the working side. As the light hits it, you can clearly see the entire logo in the finished product.
When I switched to Rowmark, I didn't understand why Rowmark put all their logos on the film that was on the backside. I guess I now know why. Looks like their product is flatter, which is great news, but they really need to figure out not to put graphics on the working side of the film of materials that they image can get set in by being exposed to light.