Drytac InstaCure Digital Gloss

[Mike Sellers]

would this product be a good coating for canvas prints?
Mike

[bill t.]

That stuff requires intense UV light to cure properly.  Out of my league.  Likewise many of the clearest over laminates for canvas and other media require a heated roller system, or at least a heat-assisted roller.

If you're interested in high gloss, 4 thinnish, sprayed coats of Minwax Polycrylic Gloss diluted 3 parts water to 7 parts paint can send almost any canvas surface to the second highest ring in Glossy Heaven.  Just don't try to stretch it, and pray it doesn't yellow or crack.  That same procedure with Glamour II or Timeless will get you to the third highest ring.  The top ring is much more expense to reach, and may not be accessible to canvas.

[dgberg]

I know you are asking about a liquid coating but if you have a laminator with hot roll you might want to try Seal's Print Guard Luster to overlaminate canvas. As Bill has said this requires a hot roll laminator.
The Luster material has quite a nice sheen to it more towards the gloss side.
90 % of my canvas still gets sprayed with Timeless. If you try this product out please let us know how it works for you.

[Phil Indeblanc]

I was under the impression you want low sheen and almost a slight hit of luster/gloss for cnavas? I guess some instances call for it or?
I have always gone for the low gloss just a "glaze" look.

[ngdrytac]

Drytac has two product types that work great with Canvas. One is a liquid coating called Color Capture and the other is a film over laminate called ArtShield. Both come in versions with different sheen such as gloss, luster, or matte. These products protect the ink and canvas from UV light and scratching and are very flexible for stretching. Digital Gloss is a UV curable coating for offset printing for things such as post cards and is not suitable for any canvas.

[bill t.]

I was under the impression you want low sheen and almost a slight hit of luster/gloss for cnavas? I guess some instances call for it or?
I have always gone for the low gloss just a "glaze" look.

The problem with satin-like or glaze finishes is that it can haze miserably in many of the most sought-offer installation locations.

For instance, behind the reception desk where the facing wall is a sea of windows.  Nothing but haze.  And many living rooms and offices have spaces above their sofas with similar window-facing geometries.

For many difficult locations the choices are uncoated matte behind Optium or Museum Glass, or mega glossy surfaces, or exceedingly expensive anti-reflection face mount.  Just because some treatment finish looks great in one's house or shop doesn't mean its particular surface won't make it look like defrosted cow dung in certain more challenging locations with unfortunately placed light sources.

Could go on, and on, and on...  I've been stung badly by print finishes more than once.  Sooner or later, every wide format print schlepper will meet his reflective Waterloo just when he was expecting his artistic apotheosis.

PS: you can easily predict hazing failures by imagining you print is a mirror.  In any situation where you could see the reflection of light sources in your mirror, you can expect some degree of surface hazing on the surface of your print.  If you can see windows and other large, bright light sources in your mirror, you are SOL.  Assuming you can't reposition the piece or the lights, my thinking right now is that a glossy surface that limits light source reflections to the smallest possible size is preferable to almost any kind of coated matte or semi-matte surface that resolves light sources to larger hazy areas.  The only thing that is almost immune to badly placed light sources is uncoated matte paper presented either bare or behind the best grades of anti-reflection glazing.  BTW all current methods of applying matte coatings create haze prone surfaces under difficult lighting geometries.