I have had some feedback on some decal suppliers that supply great looking decals but use very thin vinyl or the art work starts wearing off around the flipper buttons in a few weeks (home use only of course)
I won't mention names but some of these decal suppliers are really putting their hard work to waist by using cheap printing methods or cheap materials.
I see newly decaled machines on a weekly basis and get to here all the cons and pros that customers and professional restores have to say about decal suppliers and I seem to here the same cons over and over again about the same suppliers.
But then if your prep work is not perfect, no matter how good the decals are you will be waisting your time and money.
The decals are obviously not laminated. Print material is thin anyway and the ink just sits on the top. Once printed, the decals will need to be degassed ( allowed to fully set) which takes 12 - 24hrs.. then.. they can be laminated. Without laminate, the print will wear off very quickly, it will also fade in any sunlight and like stated previously, the decals will feel very thin.
In all honesty, the cost to laminate in material cost is bloody negligable ..
Its the same old same old within pinball.. people buying machinery or hiring it to produce products when they either haven't done their homework or just don't care.. weve seen it with backglasses, decals, bumper caps etc.
Beaky, I think you should name the producers.. it prevents pinball owners from buying inferior goods. My guess is that price isn't the issue here.. bet the non laminated ones aren't really any cheaper than the professional ones. If an owner goes to all the trouble of restoring a cab.. getting a lovely finish only to find they've bought shonky decals and it needs to be done again in 6 months then I think they should be able to make an informed decision to prevent it happening at all.
decal manufacturers should either care and make the product properly or do some research before taking people $$$'s.. the fault doesn't lie with the end user
