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Introducing the world's first rotating transfer tape dispenser. A revolutionary new way to apply transfer tape to your graphics easily and hassle-free. US patent # 7,044,419 • Made in the USA.
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Please send us your tips and tricks and we will list them here for other customers to read. Submissions that we feel are useful will be posted here for everyone to learn from. We especially like to hear what other uses that people have come up with for their Rotators. |
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Tip #1 - Other Uses for the Rotator Product Line The Rotator (and the stationary models) can also be used to store and dispense laminate for large digital graphics. They can also store and dispense: wrapping paper, cad-cut thermal films, bubble wraps, deli paper, roll bags, packing tape, tissue paper, roll labels, stickers or anything that you could imagine to fit onto the rods.
Tip #2 - Control Your Shop with Remotes For just about $10, you can get a remote control to plug into your outlets that will enable you to save time from running back and forth turning things on and off. We have installed these to control our vacuum system, air vents and even radios. They are very helpful when you need an extra hand but have arms full of sign materials.
Tip #3 - Protect Your Work Table One problem that sign shops face is trying to look nice while still retaining productivity. One thing that can be done to help protect your work table is to cover it with 1/4" PVC. Like cutting mats, the PVC is very forgiving and can take a lot of abuse before it needs replacing. And the good news is, there is still another side that you can use when the face looks used up. A good way to fasten the PVC is to use foam tape squares every few feet.
Tip #4 - Make a Heat Bender for Acrylic & PVC You can build a strip heater that can be used to fold and create angles in acrylic and pvc. There are models out there that are pre-built, but cost a lot more. With about $60 and 45 minutes of work, you can make your own and be on your way to fabricating displays, custom shapes and literature holders. Here is a link to one source for the heating element: http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=169
Tip #5 - Entertain Your Customers While They Wait A nice alternative to the ol' waiting room chair with an outdated magazine is to provide your customers with a little fun. At our shop, we have constructed a miniature putting area and a magnetic dartboard. The customers love it. An interesting side effect was how it kept customer's children busy too instead of getting into things and knocking down displays in the showroom.
Tip #6 - No-Slip Rulers It always happens on the last few inches of your important cuts....the ruler slips and ruins your graphic or sign. One thing that will help is to put a length of sandblast stencil material on the back of your ruler. It is just rubbery enough to grip things without wanting to slip away.
Tip #7 - Flat Decal Carrier Every sign maker knows that a smooth flat graphic is the easiest to apply. Well you can make a nice graphic carrying case out of folded coroplast for next to nothing and protect your decals from getting wrinkled, folded or torn. You can even cut a little handle in the top for easy carrying and add a strip of velcro to prevent it from flying open in the wind.
Tip #8 - Cut Down on Trash and Go Green You can use the backing paper from adhesive vinyl to wrap your customer's signs in or even use it for packing material. It can also be uses to go between each sign in larger orders to prevent scraping and rubbing against one another. This will cut down on waste and save you money from buying crate paper and packing wraps.
Tip #9 - Label Your Products Get your name out there and be proud of your work. Put labels on your products whenever possible using adhesive labels, rubber stamps or even engraved plates. It will help your customers to get a hold of you when it is time for them to get new signs or repair old ones. Here is a link for a good supplier of thermal printed labels: http://www.labeldata.com
Tip #10 - Banner Size Chart Cut out the guess work when describing banner sizes to your customers by creating one banner that illustrates many sizes at once. You can even outline popular sizes (because we all know they will ask) that people order.
Tip #11 - Lettering Size Chart The same applies for letter sizing. Make a chart that your customers can actually look at to help them they decide what they need. It will save you the time of hunting down examples all around your showroom.
Tip #12 - OLO Brand Rolling Scissors These are perfect for cutting vinyl off the roll. They cut smooth every time and last for years and years. OLO scissors are also good for trimming most digital media, laminates, paper and more. And the best part is, they are very inexpensive. We use them constantly and have never had to sharpen ours in ten years.
Tip #13 - Custom Sign Shape Chart Every sign is different and not everyone wants a plain square sign. Help your customers along and let them pick a shape from a custom sign shape chart. If you do not have the means to make the shape you are looking for, there are many places that are willing to help. Here is a link to our shop that does custom CNC routing: http://www.waterfordsigns.com
Tip #14 - Easy Apply Methods Our shop has come up with a simple, and extremely inexpensive, solution for many of our everyday problems. These are just sturdy tubes covered with felt and they are AMAZING! Here are a few uses that we have found for them: 1. Apply large graphics to banners in seconds. That's right, we simply tape the banner to the table and add a strip of tape to the side edge of the graphic to be applied and wipe it on. I still recommend going back over the vinyl with a squeegee, but the process takes seconds. We recently applied graphics to a 48 square foot banner and removed the transfer tape in under 2 minutes. No joke. And the best part is, we have gotten fewer bubbles since implicating this handy tool. 2. Along with the Rotator transfer tape dispenser, this can be used to apply the mask to your graphics. We can mask a 30" x 96" graphic in 5 seconds. I would again recommend going back over the graphic with a hard squeegee just to ensure the vinyl will transfer properly, but you will also get fewer wrinkles and bubbles with this method as well. 3. Laminate your large digital prints with one of these. Just tape your digital print to the table and roll off the needed amount of laminate. Tape them both to the table and peel the backing of the laminate off as you press the exposed section down with the felt tube. 4. Apply vinyl decals and digital prints to signs. When applying to coroplast, go with the flutes to cut down bubbles. This method also wirks on PCV, Scooter board and a few other materials but is not recommended on metals or dibond. We have made several lengths of the felt tubes, and have found many uses for them in our shop. If you are having any problems figuring out these steps listed above, or have some tips of your own, contact us at waterfordsigns@insight.rr.com.
Tip #15 - Banner Storage Stability Save the tubes that your vinyl, digital media and banners come on. You can use them to roll finished banners on to. This adds stability and makes it easier to store them for you and your customers.
Tip #16 - Make Your Own Changeable Signs You can make any sign into a changeable sign with some two-sided banner hem tape, a ruler and some letters. Just measure the spacing that you need to fit letter rows onto a sign and stick the latter track to your substrate with the two-sided tape. Press hard to make sure it sticks well and slide your letters in for some custom signs.
Tip #17 - Font Chart How many times has your customer said, "Well, I want it to look readable, but not blocky. A little friendly, but not cartoon-like."? Save yourself hours a week by printing out a font chart of the fonts that you feel are easiest to work with while still giving them a good variety to choose from.
Tip #18 - Decal Level Lines It is nice to think of your customer when selling decals and graphics. After you mask your decal, draw a level line for them to measure to if they are applying their own graphics. It also helps you out to use this simple step as well. You can even go so far as to apply a small label that lets them know that the line is there to level to.
Tip #19 - Masking Tape Holder How many core plugs do you have laying around? Well take some of them and screw them to the edge of your table, on a shelf, to the wall or anywhere that you can spare three inches of space. Place them all around and never again say, "Where the heck did that tape get to?".
Tip #20 - Free Squeegees ...for your customer anyway. When you hand them their decals, why not give them a squeegee and send them on their way? We give them out with every decal sold and our customers always love something for free. It is little things like this that will bring them back to your shop next time. You can even get them screen printed with your company info on them. Tip #21 - Decal Application Tip Sheet The same principle applies here too. Print off a simple instruction sheet that will help your customers get their decals applied nice, smooth and properly. Here is a link to a tip sheet that you can print and hand out: http://multimedia.3m.com/mws/mediawebserver?66666UuZjcFSLXTt5xfVLVs6EVuQEcuZgVs6EVs6E666666--
Tip #22 - Magnetic Shelf Make a little shelf that you can take to you and move from area to area during vehicle installs. This one we made using our heat bender (Tip #4), a square of balsa wood to put knives in and a square of magnetic material. It is like having your work table and a toolbox with you every step of the way.
Tip #23 - Cup Knife &Penholder The next time you finish that delicious cup of cottage cheese, save the cup and mount it to the side of your Rotator (or table) with some foam tape. You can always have pens, pencils, grease markers and break-off knives at the ready when you need them.
Tip #24 - Knife Block So you have lost all of the caps to your X-acto knives. This little block makes up for that by providing storage for your knives and push pins. You can find these blocks of balsa wood at your local craft and hobby stores. Simply stick them to the side of your Rotator and always have one ready.
Tip #25 - The Ever-Useful Milkcrate These are also excellent when used to hold all of your rolled vinyl scraps. It will cut down on all of the clutter and allow you to retain some of those useful scraps that you may normally toss in the trash otherwise.
Tip #26 - Banner Cutting Assembly This was made for our shop by mounting two "L" brackets to the end of our work table. We then marked measurements down the sides of our table at every foot for making banners. When we pull them from the roll and square them up. Then run a knife through the groove and have perfectly square cut banners every single time.
Tip #27 - Yard Stake Speed Marks You can mark your work table with the proper spacing for wire stake insertion so that you do not have to wrestle the stakes into corpolast without measuring or trial and error each time.
Tip #28 - Full-Color Yard Signs for Cheap There are hundreds of wholesale outfits that will give you a good deal to resell their products for them One of the best ones that we have found is Signs365.com. They offer full color, direct to sign printing at very low prices. They also make full color banners and other products for cheaper that you can do it yourself in many cases. Here is a link to their site: http://www.Signs365.com
Tip #29 - Add Business Cards & More to Your Line With the growing market, why not expand your product line too? You can offer your customers business cards, postcards, brochures, menus and many other forms of printed media. We have tried many, many different sources to print these things for our company and found Print Place to be the best quality for your money. They send coupons to you often as well. Here is a link to their site: http://www.4over.com
Tip #30 - Store and Dispense Other Stuff on the Rotator The longer you use The Rotator, the more uses you find for it. Here is a photo that shows you tons of other things that you can store and dispense from this versatile invention. |
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All Rights Reserved - Waterford Sign Products Waterford Sign Products • 288-C South Sandusky Street • Delaware, Ohio 43015 • 1-877-891-5097 Email: WaterfordSigns@insight.rr.com
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