Printing Companies

[jdbailey1206]

I'm sure this has been beaten into the ground in this forum but I was wondering who everyone has been happy with or not happy with when they had their own arcade artwork printed.  In depth explanations would be appreciated.  Even if to complain about how well the artwork was but it took 3 months for a turn around on your artwork. 

Thank you all in advance.

[kahlid74]

I've used Game on Graffix (Formerly Mame Marquee) and have been very happy with both their quality and customer support.

The last set of prints I ordered I tried to attach to a cabinet that had Matte paint finish.  The adhesive won't stick very well to Matte, which is something I didn't know at the time.  Game on Graffix offered to send me new prints without any cost to fix the issue.  I told them no as it was my bad using Matte paint in the first place.  I sanded the paint down an then used Liquid nails to help the adhesive stick. 

I know several people on the forums have gone to places like Kinko's for the stuff too, which would be quite a bit cheaper than Game on Graffix.  I'm fine with paying a little higher price for the quality and support they provide.

[mgb]

I'll keep it pretty simple.

My first controllers CPO was one of the generic designs from mamemarquees
(Which is now gameongrafix).
That controller has been sitting in my basement, stripped of controls and stacked with other stuff and its still not scratched or damaged. It's held up great.

Both the CPO and marquee for my Vertical Retrace cabinet are from gameongrafix and they came out great.
The CPO which does not have any plexi over it, holds up great and looks great.
The marquee light perfectly fine.

The only slightly negative thing I'd say is that the black on the marquee is slightly less than pure black when lit but I'm fine with it.

I did my graphics myself and uploaded them full size to gameongrafix and had no issues. I don't remember how long it took exactly but it was very reasonable.
 All the colors came out correct which is more than I can say for my trial run with kinkos.

[AGarv]

I think jammin0 talks about his (positive) online vendor experience in his Ninja Monkey's cabinet thread: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,118228.40.html

Decent quality and very inexpensive from what I remember.

[GregD]

If you are covering the CP with plexi then go with Souldraw.  Can't beat the price and the speedy service.  If it is going to be exposed then go with one of the more high end CP overlays.

[leapinlew]

Here is the deal with Souldraw. Good prices, in fact order a couple extra because there prints aren't perfect. You'll find areas that are scuffed, or the color isn't right, or the adhesive is peeling off. I've ordered lots from them and I always order extra and pick the best from the bunch.

[Zzap]

Has anyone tried this frosted vinyl from Souldraw for a control panel? I'm not sure if the surface would be to rough, or if the print resolution would be ok with this texture?

http://www.souldraw.com/non-skid-decal-frosted-vinyl-floor-sticker.html

[rhys]

I work for an international printing company.  We do trade show graphics for Cisco, Microsoft, and other large companies as well as blueprints, vehicle wraps, and all kinds of other stuff.  We don't specialize in arcade graphics like other vendors mentioned, but we can print just about anything on literally just about anything.  We have equipment to direct print on just about any substrate (including plexi and other sheet goods), as well as engraving and CNC cutting.  The CNC mill is sitting next to me in my office, as I built it and am the only one that knows how to operate it.  If anyone has anything out of the ordinary they would like to have done, I can more than likely arrange it.  I can get marques reverse printed directly onto the back of plexi cut to specified size if anyone would like to give it a shot.  Not sure about how "black" the blacks would be when backlit, as I've only ever seen the printed plexi used with wall standoffs, but no worries about it peeling.

Also, we usually come in less than half the price of Kinkos or Fast Signs, although turnaround time may be a bit longer depending on which office has the equipment to complete the order.  We have aqueous, solvent, and latex large format color printers local to me, and can get just about any media that's made.

We have offices all over the US as well as some in Canada, the UK, China, and India.  Our website is http://www.e-arc.com.

I'm part of the IT and service department, so I don't do the printing myself, but I can help coordinate if anyone is interested in something other than basic printed self adhesive vinyl.  For that you can contact the office closest to you for pricing.  Production capabilities vary from one office to the next, but if one office doesn't have the equipment in house, they will have the nearest office that does handle the production.

Sorry, don't mean to sound like an advertisement.  I just have some interesting ideas for things other than standard printed vinyl that make use of some of the unique capabilities we have....

---Edit---

After speaking with my production manager, we can do 3mil polycarb laminated 3M 5yr permanent adhesive vinyl overlays for somewhere in the neighborhood of $7-$9 per sqft, depending on order size and such (at least at my office).  If I did the math correctly, GoG is charging somewhere in the neighborhood of $22 per sqft....