Pedal to the Metal
To avoid this, Phoenix Color uses ultraviolet inks, which dry immediately. "We generally print on [metallic paper] with UV ink. Due to the fact that it is a foil service, it takes a while for conventional ink to dry," says Carbone. "We don't have to rack it or anything like that. It comes out of the press bone dry."
Another consideration that goes into choosing what inks should be used is how well one can read the final product.
"When you are printing over film, your image becomes a little darker, because of the lack of opacity," says Meghan Shupe, a graphic designer with Phoenix Color. "I would put down an opaque white first to really make the logo stand out."
White or opaque colors would also need to be specified on areas of the print job where metallic paper is not specified, says Raymond Marziano, vice president of operations for Brady Palmer (www.bradypalmer.com).
During its drying process, Brady Palmer uses a proprietary drying formula in the ink. "Occasionally we would have to rack it [for example] in an extremely heavy coverage where more than two inks print over each other," explains Marziano.
Paper weight
Though foil stamping does give the print job a metallic look, metallized paper is more convincing. In addition, it requires no dyes, is substantially cheaper than foil stamping and is done in one process as opposed to two. Metallized paper does have one drawback in that it has a tendency to curl more. As a result, printers suggest the best results are achieved when an 80-lb. stock is used.
"We like to use a 100-lb. paper or even higher," says Carbone. "When an 80-lb. stock is used, it tends to wrinkle a bit more." For that reason metallized paper requires a little more attention on the presses, Carbone adds, as it can buckle, but it is often preferred because it eliminates picking.
