Pages: [1]   Go Down

Author Topic: Printing on Aluminum  (Read 972 times)

Alan Goldhammer

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4344
    • A Goldhammer Photography
Printing on Aluminum
« on: July 17, 2018, 11:32:24 am »

We were in Santa Fe this past weekend for a visit with our daughter and a night at the opera (spectacular if you are a fan as the opera house is open air and the vista wonderful).  We went for a day trip to Taos and discovered a gallery/print shop in town called Taos Print.  They had some large panos that were printed on aluminum that looked spectacular with really great colors.  Printing was done on an Epson 11880 of which they had two of these monsters.  This was the first time I've seen a print on aluminum and I had assumed colors would not be so vivid.    I was also surprised to see that they had a fair number of prints on matte paper (Moab Entrada).  Their printing prices seem reasonable. 

We also stopped into the gallery of Ward Russell in Santa Fe who also does his own printing.  He uses both Moab Entrada and Red River Palo Duro Soft Gloss (he was using a Moab silk paper that has been discontinued and I forgot the name). 
Logged

dgberg

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2753
    • http://bergsprintstudio.com http://bergscustomfurniture.com
Re: Printing on Aluminum
« Reply #1 on: July 17, 2018, 12:34:14 pm »

Are these dye sub metal?
Takes a really big heat press to do those large panos if dye sub.

Think I answered my own question.
On their facebook page it says nothing about dye sub metal.
What it does say is "New" Allure metal prints which would mean standard pigment inks printed with the 11880 and no heat press required.
Takes a lot less equipment but the Allure I have seen cannot hold a candle to dye sub Chromaluxe metal prints.
« Last Edit: July 17, 2018, 12:49:10 pm by Dan Berg »
Logged

I.T. Supplies

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 529
Re: Printing on Aluminum
« Reply #2 on: July 17, 2018, 01:28:57 pm »

I would be very careful with Allure Metal sheets.  Those can possibly damage your printer if you don't do the settings properly and they can be finicky at times when loading.
We've tested those before and were good the first round of tests.  The second time (before we almost agreed to the manufacturer to sell them) it became a hassle feeding them in both the P800 and P5000 (worked great the first time), and each time they attempted to feed, we received skew issues or problems of it not being fed correctly.  After a handful of attempts again, we agreed not to sell them in case customers got them from us and had issues (or worse- damage their print head or printer).  Since those plates are not authorized by Epson, it's a chance to take if you want to attempt it.

Quality is good and nice for direct printing, but can "surely" be a hassle down the road.  At the moment, I would attempt Dye-sub; even though there are a few more factors, but this way it's under warranty and certified by the manufacturers of the products (especially printer).
Logged

Wayne Fox

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4237
    • waynefox.com
Re: Printing on Aluminum
« Reply #3 on: July 17, 2018, 01:44:33 pm »

The challenge with allure is you have to laminate the sheet after printing, and to get a good gloss requires a 5 or 10 mil laminate, which can look ok but any little piece of dust will result in a noticeable defect, and the laminate is quite delicate and easily scratches.
Logged

Alan Goldhammer

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4344
    • A Goldhammer Photography
Re: Printing on Aluminum
« Reply #4 on: July 17, 2018, 03:03:00 pm »

I don't know anything other than they were printed on the Epson printers in the store.  They did look fantastic.
Logged
Pages: [1]   Go Up