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  1. #21
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    Hey Mark! Your cases look absolutely fantastic! The corner on the blue case is almost perfect! I never thought that paper could have achieved that kind of result. Thanks a lot for sharing!

    I've tried the film on the new machine and so far, I haven't had a respectable result (will share in due time). I'm curious about your technique if done on Samsung cases as well.

    Meanwhile, I'll do some experiments myself =)

  2. #22
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    Oh the Samsung cases are always 100% perfect as there's no 'sharp' corner; they're perfectly smooth and with a very shallow incline so there's never any gathering of the print to cause the gaps. I use exactly the same technique for all my cases though, but for the Samsung I don't HAVE to do it that way but I CHOOSE to so that I can line up the white guides with the apertures.

    Here's a photo of some of my own S4 cases (yeah, I change my phone case regularly!) You'll notice that none of them have any blemishes whatsoever at the corners, because of the nature of the case itself. I've just never had any concerns with the S4 since I started them.



    And here's a case I came up with for my friend as they've launched their first game, Nekro, so I thought I'd treat him to a personalised case for his S3. Again, no problems at all at the corners and no special concessions need to be made as the paper just effortlessly covers the curvature.


  3. #23
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    *Speechless*

    You, sir. Have mastered this art

  4. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by asfasf View Post
    Great, thanks for the photos. Good job, these cases look awesome.
    May I ask you what press you use? Is it this red model?
    Sorry, I totally missed this post earlier - I tend to rely on email notifications and then jump to the last unread thread, so I've only just noticed that there'd been other replies. Yeah, it's that same vacuum press that most people tend to use. I lucked out when the black one turned up as I'm not sure I'd have like the red or the silver ones! I don't have any room left in my workshop for the vacuum press y'see, so it's in the guest bedroom on a black sideboard next to a black plasma TV so it makes it blend in to the background a bit more than it would if it were brightly coloured :D

    Quote Originally Posted by g1njeremy View Post
    *Speechless*

    You, sir. Have mastered this art
    I wouldn't say that; I still have issues getting the S3 and S4 cases to fit on the dummy phones (and my S4 phone) properly where sometimes I'll have to put it back into the heat press several times to make it pliable again, then re-apply it to the dummy phone and will invariably have to actually hold it tight while I submerge it in the water, constantly squeezing to make sure it fits. In terms of the design transfer, I never have problems with the Samsung cases (they also take the colour better, so they're more vivid with incredible blacks) but it's the damned camera holes that sometimes just don't line up with the phone properly.

    Oh, I also have to spend ten minutes 'modifying' the S4 cases before I print to them as they come with these annoying thin bars where the buttons go. The bars warp with the heat and it's tough to get them to remain straight while you cool it down so now I just cut them off with a scalpel and then use a heavy-duty buffer attachment on a Dremel 3000 to smooth it all down so that it's perfectly curved and shiny like the rest of the case. I have to do these in batches of ten in advance as I don't have the time to do them as I'm making the cases, but it's a real pain. I've since managed to source a company in China who makes the cases without the thin bars but they have a minimum order of 100 cases and I don't want to spend any more money right now as I've spent a lot on t-shirts and cases in the past couple of months. The fact that I have 1200 cases sitting here though, I'm going to take some time to play around with gold film to see if I can get them to work... just out of curiosity.

  5. #25
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    Great, thanks for the reply. I am looking into this type of press right now.
    I am a newbie, printed about 40-60 test cases using a Sublideck-type machine. It is a film machine which is very easy to operate and all the corners are fine except for two points:
    1. Sometimes the corners are stretched and the print looks not so good. Though I would not mind it but...
    2. ... Since there is no silicone membrane in this kind of machine, lines (if there are any in the image) are almost always uneven. It seems to me that the film melts and gives some curvature. I have been fighting with it for a while but have had no success.

    For usual photos without any geometric patterns this machine is great though.

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    Other than the colour inconsistency and the moisture bubbles, the main reason for me ceasing all my trial and error with the gold film was that it stretched so the image always distorted. By my calculations, the only way around it would be if you had a jig the same height as the phone case itself (I have one for the iPhone 4 but no others) so that when the vacuum kicked in, the foil wasn't being pulled very far by the suction. That would probably eliminate the stretching at the edges but I can't tell you how you could prevent issues with other aspects of it twisting out of shape.

    Stupid question: You ARE pressing down on the top of the case as you switch the vacuum on, aren't you? It was just a thought... maybe you don't, in which case the foil is being left to its own devices. I always 100% EVERY SINGLE TIME press down on the design as I start the vacuum so that I'm getting the tightest seal possible over the back of the case, and I imagine that would also stop it from stretching if you're using foil. Like I said though, it was just a thought.

  7. #27
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    Well, I would say that the colours we get are great. I use transparent film though.

    Regarding pressing the case - the machine is totally different. You cannot press down on the top of the case when the vacuum works because the vacuum will kick in only when the tray is closed. We use this machine http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuW0v1lOVNY

    Invested LOTS in it but not happy with the results. That is why we are looking into a cheaper paper press. It seems that it is more messy in terms of wrapping but you have way better results.

  8. #28
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    Hi, just joined the forum but have been following this thread. Thanks very much for posting all those instructions detailing your technique! I'm considering getting a vacuum press either the big red/black/silver Chinese one you have or the small cheaper mini one by the same manufacturer (wouldn't be able to afford the uk made ones!). What printer model and type of ink are you using? And what paper?

    I was reading about a company sublideck I think they are called that do a special 3d sublimation ink that sublimates at lower temperatures 140c. I wonder if using this would stop cases deforming as much. But maybe it will only work on the particular case blanks sold by this same company and they are expensive... Has anyone tried these inks? Do you think it would work? I haven't bought a subli printer yet so may buy one that takes these inks if they work with generic 3d sub cases. If I do decide on trying the vacuum pressing it does seem quite difficult with all that can go wrong!

  9. #29
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    You'd probably be better starting a new thread, to be honest, as this is all about getting corners to print well and you're looking for actual start-up advice :)

  10. #30
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    Quote Originally Posted by ArtyGamer View Post
    You'd probably be better starting a new thread, to be honest, as this is all about getting corners to print well and you're looking for actual start-up advice :)
    Ok, will do, sorry if I was deviating from the subject...

    Would you mind though letting me know what printer model and ink you are using, your prints look really good

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