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Banner Finishing Solutions for Professional Results
Posted on by Liliana Wright Posted in Marketing & Sales, Technology & Products
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Banner Finishing Solutions for Professional Results

One of the most popular and successful types of signage is banners, offering versatility and maximum exposure. The array of finishing solutions available makes banners a great signage option, from grommets to pole pockets, each with its own advantages for diverse signage needs. But which option is ideal depends on location, environment, and mobility.

Grommets

Metal grommets are very popular and are typically added as anchor points to the four corners of a banner. With larger banners, more grommets can be added every few feet along the edges of the banner. Grommets provide flexibility as you can secure them with various hanging methods, like string, hooks, zip-ties, or anything else that’s handy the banner can hold on to securely.

A banner with grommets can be strong enough to hang directly on a wall, from a fence, or a balcony. Pulling the banner so it’s taut will prevent sagging, ensuring your graphic is smooth with a finished look that gets noticed.

You can easily add grommets with the LexJet Grommet Machine, made of durable cast iron that was built to last. The self-piercing feature cuts the hole and sets the grommets simultaneously and includes a #2 die.

Pole Pockets

Pole pockets are created by folding over a small portion of the top and/or bottom of a banner and sewing that section using industrial strength thread, creating pockets for poles to be inserted into the banner material to be displayed. Pole banners are a rigid alternative that prevents graphics distortion and sagging by allowing the banner’s weight to be distributed evenly.

This finishing option makes the mobility of banners a possibility by allowing them to be carried during processions, parades, or any other event where mobility is needed. It’s an ideal solution for storefront banners that protrude from a wall, like flags, that can be seen by passersby. They are commonly used on streets, lamp posts, and around various types of campuses. Aside from rigid poles, rope or dowels can also be used to hold the banner in place.

Banner Tape

If sewing or stitching is not an option you find too appealing, consider a nifty alternative- banner tape. One popular and effective solution is hemming 3” to 4” edges with LexJet TigerTape Banner Tape, specifically designed for heavier banner substrates.

The tape is a double-sided, super-aggressive tape used for hemming banners that is stronger and more cost-effective than sewing. It’s the preferred process for banners created using inkjet technology. TigerTape Banner Tape consists of clear polyester film coated on both sides with a specially-formulated permanent acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesive. The tape utilizes a densified Kraft paper release liner. This tape is designed for bonding applications requiring resistance to plasticizers, solvents, and high temperatures.

Power Tabs

Made of high-strength composite film, LexJet Promo-Point PowerTabs® are stronger than grommets and are a great option for extra durability. This new and unique design allows sign shops to make strong yet inexpensive banner blanks instantly in their own shop. They are less conspicuous than grommets with their thin profile and blend into the banner substrate for a more pleasing visual effect. They are available in regular size for outdoor banners, mini size for indoor or light duty outdoor use, in white, and now in crystal clear for full-color digital banners.

Banner Material

Create durable and colorful double-sided banners with the HP 15-oz Prime Double-sided Blockout Banner, perfect for long-lasting indoor displays to demanding outdoor display conditions. This heavy-duty matte banner produces water- and tear-resistant prints, with double-sided construction allowing the banner to lay flat and resist curl in various environments.

The polyester scrim reinforcement provides excellent rip-stop qualities and extra strength when grommeting. It provides excellent durability and fine image resolution for banners that will be viewed up close. And thanks to the 100% opaque blockout layer, you can print graphics on both sides without show-through, maximizing your message. This solution is excellent for indoor and outdoor signs and graphics, banner stands, POP displays, and hanging banners.

The HP 15-oz Prime Double-sided Blackout Banner is compatible with solvent, latex, and UV curable printers.

Whatever banner finishing solution fits you best, we have the products you need to achieve professional results. To learn more, please contact a LexJet Customer Specialist at 800-453-9538 or visit lexjet.com.

 

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Tips & Tricks
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Finishing Banners Quickly, Reliably & Economically

Why sew when you can tape? Whether it’s to make pole pockets, create a seam for grommets, or to tile two pieces together for a larger banner, double-sided LexJet Heavy Duty Banner Tape provides all the advantages of sewing, plus it’s faster and is easier on the material.

Sewing perforates the banner material, which can lead to fraying and cause premature failure at stress points. Heavy Duty Banner Tape avoids this problem, and is designed to be conformable to the varying checkerboard-like patterns in the scrim.

Banner Tape application makes finishing banners a lot quicker and easier than sewing, plus it's less expensive and less damaging to the banner material.

Because it’s so conformable, it works with any material one might use for a banner, from polypropylene to fabrics. Simply mark a straight line on the back of the banner where the edge of material will fold over, apply the tape along the mark and attach the edge of the banner to the tape.

A 3×8 banner should be easily finished in five to ten minutes, which is much preferable to waiting for 24 hours or more if you send it out to be sewn. Even if you have this capability in-house, there is far more time and labor required to sew a banner.

Banner tape is less than 30 cents per linear foot, so the cost of finishing with it is minimal. “My six-year-old son can use banner tape, but he can’t use a sewing machine,” says LexJet’s product manager, Jeff Leto.

“The only time I would think someone would want a sewn banner is if that’s the look they want, so there’s no other reason why you wouldn’t use banner tape as a direct replacement for sewing,” says Leto. “The only thing to keep in mind about banner tape is if you make a pole pocket and stick ropes through the pocket instead of a pole. At the ends of the banner where it’s folded over on the corners, they will need to be re-enforced. You can either reinforce the corners with a grommet, or a single stitch with carpet thread. This will prevent the corners from lifting.”

If you’re installing the banner with ropes, or something similar, Leto says it’s preferable to run the rope through pole pockets as opposed to looping rope through grommets on the four corners of the banner and it tying them off. Instead, run the rope through the pockets. This makes the tension across the banner even, as opposed to all of the tension being placed on the grommets at the four corners.

Another method is to attach bungee cords to the four corners since the bungee cords will give in the wind and distribute the tension evenly along the banner. Furthermore, this method is much more preferable to cutting wind holes, which looks bad and effectively lowers the lifespan of the material.

“The nice thing about banner tape is that it fits all of the potential environments in which you would install a banner. There’s a reason why you’d use Tyvek, polypropylene, a 500×500 denier vinyl, or a 1000×1000 denier vinyl in different application situations, but there’s one product you can use to hem all of them in any environment,” says Leto.