Tutorial Transcript

Welcome back to the Exhibit Printing studio. Today we are going to be applying some cut vinyl onto this electric courier bike for a local company called Recharge Couriers. The first steps will be to wipe it down thoroughly with alcohol or methylated spirits. We are then going to be using wet application process in order to apply our vinyl graphics.

If you were to ever buy cut vinyl, it would most likely be supplied with the application tape already applied. So, turn the graphic over, apply some even pressure, and then carefully peel back the release liner checking that none of the graphic gets left on the release liner. You don’t want to tear the vinyl. As you can see this bit stayed on the liner so we will just back up a little bit, apply some pressure and continue.

I have looked at my artwork guidelines and I am happy with where I am going to be placing it. So now I am going to spray a light mist of water with a tiny bit of washing up liquid. I also spray the surface that I am going to be fitting the graphic too. The advantage of wet application being, that if I am not happy with my placement of the graphic, I can simply remove it and reposition. Great that is where I want it, so now starting in the middle and working outwards we will apply a light pressure to start with. Now you can apply a slightly harder pressure to make sure that all the water has been pushed out from underneath the vinyl. On this graphic you can see a series of squares. These aren’t part of the final graphic however they have been applied to the two different colours that make up the logo as registration marks. In a moment, by placing the same registration marks in a secondary colour, over the exact same points, the graphic will line itself up without me having to apply any effort. To fit the next part of the graphic we need to firstly remove the application tape. Do this slowly and at a low angle, just checking that the graphic doesn’t lift. I have left this about 10 minutes since I fitted it. Also, as it is slightly colder in here, I have used a little bit of alcohol in my water and soap mix which usually speeds it up.
It is then the same process as before. This time I am matching up the registration markers. Also, by looking through the application tape I can see whether the graphic is lining up neatly. I am happy with that.

With this piece of text, rather than placing it freehand (like we did before), I want to be a little more accurate. I have used some masking tape to tape this in place. I have used a ruler to measure off this line which is the one we are using on this bike. So now that it is placed, I am just going to mark a cross from the graphic to the masking tape. I am then using a scalpel, gently to make sure you don’t damage the paint work, to cut through the masking tape. Now when we peel the backing release liner off and spray it with water we will simply position it against the marked registrations.

If when you come to remove the application tape you find that you are struggling and that it is lifting the graphic off, you can just spray it with the water. It then becomes far easier to peel off. Alternatively, you could just wait longer until the graphic is dry and then you shouldn’t have any problems.

So we are onto the final part of the graphic now, which is the second word below here. I have used this line just as a registration mark however once the second word is fitted I will remove it. We have just got some trimming to do and then we are done. I have also just realised that I referred to this company as Recharged Couriers when they are clearly Recharge Cargo. If that is not a endorsement for sign writing or business vehicles I don’t know what is. I hope you have found this useful. If you have any questions please contact us at Exhibit Printing. Thank you.

The colour swatch below is representative of the colours available. You are welcome to visit the office to see a range of samples.

Vinyl cutting is a popular option for signage and decorative graphics and is used on surfaces such as walls and glass. By using a vector file, we are able to cut a variety of artwork, ranging from simple cut lettering to intricate graphics. We will need the artwork supplied as a vector file (such as an illustrator file). If you are unable to provide this, Exhibit Printing can offer a design service. Once you know the size and colour(s) you would like to use, please feel free to contact us to get a quote for your project.