printing on transparencies?

[piginapoke]

Has anyone tried to print onto overhead projector transparency paper?

The Shanghai Tower model im thinking about designing has an outer glass skin and the only way to reproduce the details on it would be to print onto transparency.

[wag]

I had some 3M transparency paper for copiers and tried printing with my inkjet printer. The ink wiped right off. You could try sealing it immediately with some clear spray but that would probably ruin the transparency.
Wayne

[Burning Beard]

I have printed thousands of transparencies, and they work fine. I used to use them with an overhead projector for sign layouts. You have to make sure you get inkjet transparencies. They have a water-soluble coating on the clear mylar sheet that allow the ink to adhere, regular laser and photo copier sheets do not have it and the ink will wipe off because it wont dry. Being water-soluble, the image may bleed if you get it wet, so you may have to spray it with clear to keep from running. If you want super clear windows (or what ever) you can wash the coating off of the sheet with water. Also it is tough to get glue to stick to the back of the sheet (shiny side). You can shape regular curves into it with a hair dryer.

Beard

[Zakopious]

I occasionally need a template printed on a transparency for a wargame.
After allowing the ink to dry for at least a couple of days, I use a 3M thermal laminator to sandwich the template between two sheets of plastic.

[JohnM]

Reading between the lines of Burningbeard's post ... can I assume that the viewfoil sheets I bought might actually work in a Laser printer? They gave me the wipe off syndrome through my inkjet, but there is an old disused Brother mono-laser printer tucked away in the shed. I doubt I'll find a driver for my main PC, but it just might work with this old XP laptop I'm using today.

[Kevin WS]

For laser printers you can also get transparency film.

The laser bakes in and gives a permanent result, though it may flake if over bent.

[Burning Beard]

You could have tried to print on the wrong side of the sheet (I've done that a bunch of times, lol), that will give the same results. The side you print on should be slightly rough.

Beard

[chicharrero]

I have printed, for example, the spokes in aircraft spoked wheels (not for big scales).
Always be careful to print in the layered side (matt), not over the gloss one

[chicharrero]

My message is reffered to inkjet print.