Printing on Metallic Paper

[Billy Leliveld]

I've found some realy good looking metalic paper, but my Canon Pixma iX4000 ( Inkjet) can't print on this ,
Does somebody know a trick? Like spraying it with matt-finish, or can printing on a laserprinter do the job?
Cheers, Billy

[SAustin16]

Hello Billy,

Just FYI, I tried printing Surfduke's Apollo CM on "chrome" paper via inkjet, and it took days to dry to the point where it wouldn't easily smudge. I tried spraying it with a clear gloss polyurethane, but the poly ate away all of the colored ink and some of the black ink, leaving only a light black line drawing. Perhaps a waterbased clear (if it exists) would work better.

Best of luck with your project.

[Gil]

Hi Billy, The following is from an old thread...,

+Gil



Quote:
Originally Posted by Gil
Jim,

I tried mixing the acrylic varnish with the PVA and the results were disapointing. The ink failed to adhere to the surface which is a clear indicator that something is very wrong with the receptor chemistry.

Jim, I had second thoughts about this and went back to my notes and realized that I had mistaken another mixture for a PVA-Acrylic combination. A mixture of half PVA and half acrylic gloss medium varnish was mixed well and then used to coat the problem surface using a roller.

Guess what? Your idea works extremely well! In fact better than using the PV Alcohol to reduce the viscosity of the rolling mixture. The print not only adheres to the surface but exhibits zero pinholes in filled areas! Thick black lines still exhibit a ragged bleeding into filled areas which I believe to be an overdrive issue related to the print driver. The surface texture is semi-gloss and has a texture mottle which is an artifact of the coating method (see first photo below). It's weatherability is still in question but will probably be much better than with the PVA alone.


Thanks Jim, Gil

[Bengt Fredén]

Hi all,

This seems to be an endless subject to debate and an interesting one at that.
rob46 has shown that the Red River Metallic paper works on some ink printers ( I think his is a HP machine?), but not on printers that has pigmented ink cartridges, such as Epson R800 or R1800 (my printers!).

I tried this method, which gave excellent results:
I bought CANFORD Silver papers (big sheets) from an arts & crafts store and had the local print shop laser-print large (A3+ size) tif. model sheets onto them (from a CD), which I had 'prepared' in Photoshop (in this case the 'Spirit of St. Louis'), so they were slightly lighter than the original sheets, where the color is dark gray.
The result was; sharp lines on a surface that is of the 'satin' metallic type (not shiny, that is) and a print that stays put (doesn´t smear).

I think I´ll build that beautiful model one of these fine days . . .

Bengt

[Gil]

Bengt,

Make sure to spray the surface with an acrylic sealer before you start the model. It will help in preventing the laser print from flaking off during the build...,

+Gil

[Bengt Fredén]

Thanks for the tip, Gil,

Do you mean that it flakes off when you score, fold or roll the sheets? I have to try that with a surplus piece.
Do you have any recommendations as to what brand of acrylic sealer works best without leaving too much of a trace on the silver surface? i wouldn´t want it to become to matted.

Thanks again - your tip might save me a buck or two on this model.

Best,
Bengt

[Gil]

Originally Posted by Bengt Fredén

Thanks for the tip, Gil,

Do you mean that it flakes off when you score, fold or roll the sheets? I have to try that with a surplus piece.
Do you have any recommendations as to what brand of acrylic sealer works best without leaving too much of a trace on the silver surface? i wouldn´t want it to become to matted.

Thanks again - your tip might save me a buck or two on this model.

Best,
Bengt

Hi Bengt,

Acrylic clear or matte sprays work fairly well but has the side effect of shrinking over time causing the paper to curl toward the side it's sprayed on. Spraying both sides evenly will alleviate this effect. I haven't tried using nitrate dope yet but it should work well on just one side and will not cause the curling effect.

+Gil

[Gil]

Originally Posted by Bengt Fredén

Thanks for the tip, Gil,

Do you mean that it flakes off when you score, fold or roll the sheets? I have to try that with a surplus piece.
Do you have any recommendations as to what brand of acrylic sealer works best without leaving too much of a trace on the silver surface? i wouldn´t want it to become to matted.

Thanks again - your tip might save me a buck or two on this model.

Best,
Bengt

Hi Bengt,

Acrylic clear or matte sprays work fairly well but has the side effect of shrinking over time causing the paper to curl toward the side it's sprayed on. Spraying both sides evenly will alleviate this effect. I haven't tried using nitrate dope yet but it should work well on just one side and will not cause the curling effect.

+Gil

[Billy Leliveld]

Thanks guys, for those tips, but this Dutch guy doesn't know what PVA is...
Is it like clear-drying coating/glue like Capparol?
Cheers, Billy

[Gil]

Hi Billy,

PVA is the acronym for Polyvinyl Acetate or "White Glue". A good spot on Wikipedia is here: Polyvinyl acetate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

+Gil

[Billy Leliveld]

Thanks Gill,
I know what to get now, certainly will give it a try..
Cheers, Billy