What is the difference between cast and calendered vinyl?
| Cast vinyl | ~2 mil, conformable, 7-10 year outdoor life |
|---|---|
| Calendered vinyl | ~3 mil, flat surfaces, 5+ year outdoor life |
| Our default | 3 mil premium calendered, laminated |
| Cast used for | Vehicle graphics, compound curves, long-term fleet work |
How they are made
Cast vinyl starts as a liquid organosol that is poured onto a moving casting sheet and cured. Nothing is stretched, so the film has no memory and will not try to shrink back later.
Calendered vinyl starts as a solid mass that is rolled through heated rollers until it reaches thickness, like dough through a pasta machine. That process leaves internal stress, which is why cheap calendered film shrinks and lifts at the edges over time. Premium calendered film is stabilized and does not misbehave on flat surfaces.
When each one is the right answer
| Application | Use |
|---|---|
| Laptop, water bottle, hard hat, packaging | Premium calendered (our standard) |
| Flat window, cooler, tool box, machinery panel | Premium calendered |
| Vehicle door with a body line or rivets | Cast |
| Full or partial wrap, boat hull, curved equipment | Cast |
| 7+ year fleet identification | Cast |
What we ship by default
Standard Stickerine die-cut and kiss-cut stickers are printed on 3 mil premium calendered vinyl from 3M and General Formulations and laminated, which is rated 5+ years outdoors. If your job needs cast, tell us the surface and we will quote it on cast film instead.
The honest version
For 95% of sticker orders, calendered plus laminate outperforms the surface the sticker is stuck to. Cast is worth paying for when the substrate is curved or the sticker has to survive longer than the thing it is advertising.