PRODUCT NAME: NYLOREFLECT CODE: NYRF (+color)
Easy to use, bright opaque colors that glisten in the sun and reflect focused light in the dark Available in 15 colors shown on the Pavonine reflective color chart plus white and an Extender Base that can be tinted with Pavonine pigments to create a wide range of colors.
FOR USE ON: Designed for use on most water repellent nylon, but can be used on T-shirts, fleece, LycraŽ, etc. Not quite as opaque as PavoReflect on highly absorbent materials.
PLEASE NOTE ! Water repellent treatments vary greatly. NyloReflect should work on most typical water repellent materials but no guarantee is implied or intended. If the print is repelled by the treatment and beads up on a specific fabric, further efforts to use NyloReflect are useless. If the print looks good but adhesion is not adequate, addition of up to 8 % FIX H should improve adhesion of prints cured through adequate oven. Increasing FIX C level (see DRYING recommendations) of prints dried through inadequate ovens or air dried should also improve adhesion but pot life will be reduced.
NyloReflect is designed for ease of use. For maximum reflectivity and opacity or for use on fabrics that repel NyloReflect, dusting of glass beads (BRF) over a wet Pavostretch print as described in the Pavostretch booklet and data sheet P-10 is recommended.
DESIGN TIP: Design around reflectivity instead of replacing a color in an existing design if possible. For maximum visibility at night use reflective inks in broad areas and avoid fine lines. Remember that NyloReflect is brightest in focused light at night and in sunlight when displaying your work to a potential client. For best brightness in all light conditions incorporate bright non reflective colors into the design.
HAZARDOUS MATERIAL INFORMATION: NyloReflect Extender Base or inks represents no health hazard in normal use. NyloReflect container label should read:
HEALTH - 1; FLAMMABILITY - 0; REACTIVITY - 0; PERSONAL PROTECTION - B
PAVAFIX RF should represent no health or safety hazard after mixing into an ink at recommended percentage but ingestion, prolonged contact with skin or eyes with PAVAFIX RF in pure form must be avoided. Label should read:
HEALTH - 2; FLAMMABILITY - 1; REACTIVITY - 1; PERSONAL PROTECTION-D
STENCIL: Water resistant. ~ MESH: 110 range recommended ~ SQUEEGEE ~ Medium sharp angled to push glass retroreflector beads through.
PIGMENTING: NyloReflect Extender Base (NYRF) can be tinted with any standard or fluorescent Pavonine pigment. For maximum reflectivity keep pigment levels as low as possible. Avoid pigment loads higher than 6% with any Pavonine pigment and not higher than 2 or 3% with greens and blue pigments. Pigment levels for extremely strong colors such as Pacific Blue, Blueberry and Jet Black should be 0.5% or less for best reflectivity.
MIXING: Addition of 0.75 to 1% FIX RF is essential for washfastness. Even though the daylight colors of prints made using NyloReflect without FIX RF may remain bright through many washes, reflectivity will decrease. Mix only what will be used in a few days.
REDUCTION: Reduce with water to maintain reflectivity during long runs. Pot life of inks containing FIX RF should be several days at room temperature and should be over a week if inks are refrigerated but not frozen. Once inks containing FIX RF start to thicken in sealed container they should be discarded. CUSTOMER TESTING OF INKS STORED FOR ANY LENGTH OF TIME AFTER ADDITION OF FIX RF PRIOR TO A PRODUCTION RUN IS REQUIRED!
LESS IS BEST: Coverage and reflectivity are two different things. Heavy deposits may look better in room light but are not as reflective at night. Maximum reflectivity is obtained by printing with a single stroke through meshes in the 110 to 156 range. Double stroking will reduce reflectivity substantially and flashing and rehitting will destroy it. Given these restrictions on amount of ink that one can lay down without affecting reflectivity, it is best to use colors with good hiding power like blues, greens, red, silver and gold when printing dark materials.
PRINTING: Stir prior to use. Please note that brightness of colors in regular light and reflectivity are two different things. Colors can appear bright in day or room light and not reflect light well in the dark. For this reason print technique must be adjusted based on checking samples for reflectivity. For maximum reflectivity adjust squeegee position to drive the reflective beads through the mesh rather than undercutting them. Contains the maximum amount of retarder recommended. Additional retarder can effect washfastness.
NyloReflect colors must be printed last or flashed prior to printing subsequent colors to retain reflectivity. For maximum durability 1.5% FIX RF by weight must be mixed into the ink. When printing items that will not be washed often such as pennants or possibly caps the addition of FIX RF may not be required.
OPEN TIME: To avoid drying in the screen during continuous printing flood heavily between impressions and keep a gloss on the ink in the screen by misting with water occasionally. Remove ink from the image area and clean area with a damp sponge prior to work stoppages of a few minutes or less. Remove ink from the screen and place in a sealed container prior to prolonged work stoppages.
DRYING: A minimum of 90 seconds at a minimum of 320°F (160°C) in a well vented oven is required to set a NyloReflect print by heat alone. That might sound like a long time but it is less than the time required to set some reflective plastisols in an infrared oven.
Printers lacking adequate oven, or even with no oven at all can still use NyloReflect by adding 1 to 2% FIX C. Mix only what can be used in a couple of hours, do not allow inks to dry in the screen and do not store catalyzed inks. Higher percentages of FIX C (up to 4%) will improve adhesion and scuff resistance but cut pot life. With FIX C, printers with shorter ovens need only get prints dry enough to stack or pack. As prints can be racked or line dried, even printers lacking ovens such as sign shops can not only do jackets with NyloReflect and Nylo-Opaque ( see data sheet 12) but turn out a more durable product than the ones produced by most shops specializing in them.
ADHESION PROMOTERS: NyloReflect must have a relatively low viscosity for maximum reflectivity. This being the case, it is possible for the water repellent treatment on a specific fabric to be effective enough to actually cause a NyloReflect print to bead or puddle. If this happens, NyloReflect can not be used on that fabric. If the print looks good but is not adequately adhered, the problem can usually be corrected by adding an adhesion promoter in addition to FIX RF.
PAVAFIX H FOR HOT CURE: 4% to 8 % FIX H will improve adhesion and internal film strength of NyloReflect prints dried for a minimum of 90 seconds at a minimum of 320°F (160°C). This is the preferred method of improving adhesion because it can be checked at the end of the oven with no waiting. Mix only what can be used in one day and do not store inks containing FIX H.
PAVAFIX C FOR LOW TEMPERATURE CURE: 2% to 4 % FIX C will improve adhesion and internal film strength of NyloReflect prints when it is not possible to properly set the prints by heat alone. Pot life of an ink containing 2 % FIX C is about 4 hours at room temperature and that of an ink containing 4% is only a couple of hours. Adhesion of prints containing FIX C, dried through shorter ovens or air dried, will continue to improve for 48 hours but it is usually possible to determine adequacy in 24 hours. Mix only what can be used within pot life and do not store inks containing FIX C. If inks containing FIX C are allowed to dry in the image area they will be difficult if not impossible to remove.
CLEAN UP: Water or water with an all purpose cleaner with ammonia. Window cleaner with ammonia or similar product will help remove stains and dried ink. Follow with clear water wash.
Viewing Instuctions
Hang a printed garment on a wall in a dark room. Hold a flashlight next to your head, level with your eyes, and shine the light at the print. The reflective effect,wich is almost invisible in daylight, will become dramatically apparent.
!!!NOTE!!!
"Please keep in mind that while Unions plastisol or Pavonines water base reflective inks give as great an amount of reflectivity as any screen printing inks are capable of, no inks (including 3M), are capable of meeting NFPA standards Fire Department Safety Marking on Fire Department Safety Garments. Those standards can only be met by ReflectiveTapes or Fabrics or some new very specialized (and expensive) transfer films."
Regards,
Richard Labov
CUSTOMER TESTING REQUIRED!
"Our technical advice and recommendations given verbally, in writing, or by trials are believed to be correct. They are not binding also with regard to the possible rights of third parties and do not exempt you from your task of examining the suitability of our products for the intended use. We cannot accept any responsibility for application and processing methods which are beyond our control, nor can we accept responsibility for misuse by you of the products or use by you of the products outside the specified written instructions given with the products. User must protect sensitive skin, exposed wounds and eyes from contact with products."