Does anyone in Central Ohio have a laser printer?

[mbroberg]

Continuing on with the Membership Card project. I have requested and received samples of two types of weatherproof labels from Online Labels. I have some Polyester and some Silver Polyester labels, 3"x2" which should fit on the back of a credit cards sized cards. It seems that all of the labels that would be durable enough to use as part of our membership cards need to be printed on a laser printer. I don't have one, neither do my neighbors. I'm looking for someone who does and would be willing to print on some of these and return them to me. Ideally, someone in Central Ohio (within driving distance) will be able to do this. If not, I'll ship to whomever, wherever.


Once I have some printed labels I'll adhere them to the back of old gift cards and send them out to a small group of members for some evaluation and testing. Rub them with your fingers, soak them in water, buff them with tripoli or do whatever else you can think of to simulate reasonable wear and tear. If they work out I have already discussed the purchase of an inexpensive laser printer with Jeff to handle printing in the future.


Hopefully, if they work out, I'll identify a source for some PVC type, IAP Branded Membership Cards. We may have Membership Cards available in early 2019.

 

[jeff]

I have a black & white laser printer. Happy to do it.

 

[mbroberg]

Thanks Jeff. I'll send them today.

 

[Terredax]

I don't know the cost involved with the label and card, not to mention the time to apply the labels after printing them.

I offer an alternative... engrave-able plastic (either rotary or laser), such as Rowmark. It is a laminated product, that has a colored core, with a colored cap. Once it's engraved, it's finished. It's also rated interior/exterior and is UV stable.

There are many color options available, from several sources.

Here is a link to one option... https://www.hansensupply.com/metalgraph-plus-mp912-765

This material is .03125 thick, a standard credit card is .03 thick. There is also .025 thick.

 

[mbroberg]

If I understand properly, It is purchased in 24" X 48" Sheets. The smallest they will cut them to prior to shipping is in quarters. We would have to cut them down to card size (for simplicity, I'll use 2"x3"). 192 cards per 24" x 48" sheet, $0.36 per card, plus shipping. Not bad!


My iniitial cost estimate for enough cards and labels to make 1000 cards is $200.00 ($.20) per card). An inexpensive laser printer off of Amazon runs around $100.


How easy is this stuff to cut? I notice that on the bottom of the page they advertise a combo plastic/metal cutter for just over $500.00. We would not want to spend that much money.


We would also need to find someone who already owns either a Rotary or Laser engraver, who would be willing to devote the time it takes to do this. That limits the pool of possible volunteers. We would not want to spend the money on an engraver just for this and we do not want to subcontract the job out. Just out of curiosity, is there anyone out there who has the equipment and is willing to do it? That same person would be the one to send the cards out to the individual members. Postage, of course, would be on the IAP.


We are guessing that in the beginning there will be considerable demand for the cards but as time goes on the demand will dwindle. Also, after an individual has done the printing or engraving for awhile he may want to pass the task on to someone else. It is pretty easy to ship a small printer.


It is a good idea and looks like a good product. Thank you for the alternative. I'm just not sure that in the long run, it will be any more convenient or less expensive to cut and engrave the plastic than just printing a label and adhereing it to a card.

 

[Terredax]

That cutter is not necessary. There are card punches available for around $50, that punch the card to size, with rounded corners.
Once they are punched, any cnc (rotary or laser) can engrave the information.
I've cut a few small pieces of the Rowmark, among a couple of others. It engraves easily, but with rotary, the hold down is more of a concern than with laser. I used two methods, vacuum and adhesive. I prefer the adhesive. If there isn't a border, a simple clamp system would be ideal. Slide the card in, press a toggle down to hold it, and engrave.

The time consumer will be entering the individual information for each member... name, number, etc. That is with either engraving or printing.

Once a template and jig are set-up, the engraving should go pretty quickly.

Has there been a final design decided on?

 

[mbroberg]

No decision on a final design yet. Are you saying that if we were to go that route you would be willing to do the punching, engraving, etc?

 

[Terredax]

As much of an honor as it would be to do them, I don't know if I would have the time to dedicate to doing them. Especially if the release is planned for mid-January.

If I had a sample piece or two of the material, and a final design, I could run a test to find out the actual time involved per card. The design will play a big part in the machining time, as well as the hold down method.



EDIT:

I rendered a card real quick, and based on a simple design, in theory, it's between 10 and 15 minutes per card. That includes die cutting, clamping in machine, engraving, and removal from machine. This is in theory, if all goes perfect. Of coarse it might require some adjustments before doing a run, and there is always the chance of something going wrong at any time. Here is the simple design and anything can be added but, that adds a little time.

 

[mbroberg]

OK. If anyone with engraving abilities is interested in doing this let me know. It is certainly worth serious consideration, but without someone to do it we may as well move forward with the cards and labels.

 

[JPW062]

Especially if the release is planned for mid-January.

I am not sure I want another card in my wallet, but if I was to carry one i would want it to be something that would hold up longer than a laminated piece of paper. Would it really be much of an issue if the cards were delayed a short while? Assuming that would change interest in helping with the project. Will one's name be custom engraved? Either way, I doubt people would be offended if they arrived over a few months as Terradax has time to work on it.

Of course, 10-15 minutes a card adds up quickly. I would understand any hesitation to make that sort of commitment.