Product I found-good paint mask

[Larry Bratton]

I have recently been laser engraving a large job of 600 ID door plates for a couple of apartment complexes that I am doing signs for. These plates are made of 1/4" melamine (cut out with cnc router), engraved in the laser and paint filled. I started out masking them with application tape, engraving them, paint filling and then removing the mask. The problem was that the paint would wick into the paper tape and then the edges of the letters would not be sharp.

I found a product sold by my plastics supplier, Piedmont Plastics Corp, called Pflex. It is a polyester film with an adhesive back. It costs $2.00 or so for a 36" x 24" custom cut sheet. I have a jig made for the laser table that holds 24 of the plates. I cover the whole thing with the polyester film, engrave the plates,( which disentegrates the film), spray paint and remover the mask to the crisp edge letters. We used it this week to make some aluminum signs for use at the swimming pool. Covered them, kiss cut the polyester mask, weeded it out then spray painted it. Worked like a charm.

[Scott Shepherd]

Thanks for the info Larry, sounds like a good find. You've been experiencing one of the paint related issues that drives me insane. People always say "You just mask it with XYZ, paint it, peel the mask off and it's done", and I always peel the mask off to find the paint wicked up under the mask. I've tried everything possible to get the edge down firm so it wouldn't wick. No luck. Go talk to people and they say the same ole thing- just mask it with XYZ, paint it, and peel the mask off, done.

Either they are blind, I'm stupid, or some combination of the two.

I bought a roll of paint stencil for my plotter. Haven't tried it yet, but it looks a lot better than anything I have used in the past.

Speaking of plotters, are you doing anything with your plotter these days?

[Larry Bratton]

Scott:
Yep, same problem. This stuff works good. However, a word of caution, get it off as soon as practical. I painted some signs with it on, outdoors, left them over night and it turned cold. Next morning, when I pulled it off, some of the paint had "married" the polyester, had to retouch it. I suspect the paint is about as thick as the poly.
My plotter is sitting over here gathering dust. I laser most everything. Since I found this mask, I am painting more and more. I figured out how to make handicap parking space signs with the laser instead of the plotter. Use engineering grade reflective that is also polyester. I cut my substrate out on the cnc machine (aluminum etc), apply the reflective, then vector cut (kiss) and weed away the excess. They sell for about $20 from various places, screenprinted and their not reflective. I usually end up making them from drops and I sell them with my sign package for apartments. Usually they will be 20 or so per project.

[Angus Hines]

A trick used in home stenciling projects is to 'mask' off the area you want to paint then before you paint shoot it with a thin clear coat (laquer what have you) let dry then add color.
Wicking problem solved.

Thanks for the info Larry, sounds like a good find. You've been experiencing one of the paint related issues that drives me insane. People always say "You just mask it with XYZ, paint it, peel the mask off and it's done", and I always peel the mask off to find the paint wicked up under the mask. I've tried everything possible to get the edge down firm so it wouldn't wick. No luck. Go talk to people and they say the same ole thing- just mask it with XYZ, paint it, and peel the mask off, done.

Either they are blind, I'm stupid, or some combination of the two.

I bought a roll of paint stencil for my plotter. Haven't tried it yet, but it looks a lot better than anything I have used in the past.

Speaking of plotters, are you doing anything with your plotter these days?