I used to be a dealer for Xyron Adhesive Applicators/Laminators before they started cutting all dealers and selling direct. My quote after my name below is my more philisophical bent on that tactic). However the equipment is excellent, made in the USA, almost entirely maintenace free and has many more neat uses than just laminating. The cold laminator from 3M is manufactured by Xyron and is actually the same unit with slight modifications. 3M's unit does not have all the same materials available as the Xyron branded machine.
There are a number of different models available and you can check it out at
www.xyron.com.
I have a 2500 demo unit in stock that I may be willing to sell if you are interested. It has a 25" mouth and, as you'll see on the web page, you can go any length. I have several customers who do banners with their units.
One usage for framers is that they have a repositionable acid free adhesive. It is just slightly stronger than post-it type adhesives. This product is great for store signage, doesn't damage walls or windows and you can put the adhesive on the front at the same time as you laminate the back for removable window signage. The lamination on the back prevents condensation from warping the sign.
If you laminate large newspaper clippings it is important that you mount the clipping/page on a light weight board first. Any thin paper, such as newspaper or an architectural vellum should be mounted or wrinkling is a high possibility. The thin paper is not dimensionally stable and also absorbs moisture at different rates thus expanding and contracting without uniformity. This is a problem with cold laminators, but I do not know if the problem exists with hot.
No warm up time, no outlet to plug into, portable, no OSHA concerns...multiple material usage (permanet adhesive, repositionable adhesive, single and double laminates, magnetic laminates for car signage, etc. make this unit a very good unit).
Available from something like 3" wide to 43" wide.
I loved the Xyron units and had a 70% close rate when I'd go out and sell it and the real money came in from the continued consumable sales. But the rascals took away the dealerships...I should check my dealer contract...
Another feature of cold laminators that many hot laminators do not have is the ability to cut the end product into smaller pieces without delamination occuring on the edges. I think the hot laminators have been improved such that it isn't a problem anymore, but it used to be that if you wanted to printsay, gallery cards, you'd have to trim them first and laminate each one seperately. With the Xyron you could print them ten up on a page, laminate the whole page, and trim them afterward.
If you have any other questions after viewing the web page please email me and I'd be happy to answer.
Dave Makielski
"You can't change the direction of the wind, but you can adjust your sails (or sales?)"
