Spoke Card Advice
Thread started by
icarus at 11.5.10 - 2:37 am
I was going to start making spoke cards for some of my group rides that I do with friends and I was also going to try and make spoke cards that any donation would go to a bike coop or to help pay tickets of cyclists that get targeted by police or another good cause.
Anyways, I don't really know what I'm doing.
Do I need to print on card stock or is regular computer paper ok?
If I use regular paper, do I need to use an index card backing for rigidity?
How big are cards usually? I was going to do 4x6 cards, is that too big?
I was going to get this laminator: http://www.mybinding.com/.sc/ms/dd/ee/46812/GBC-HeatSeal-H115-ID-Badge-Pouch-Laminator-W59109B?utm_medium=shoppingengine&utm_source=shoppingdotcom
and a box of 100 4 1/4" x 6 1/4" 5-7mil thick pouches
or should I just do it all at kinkos/staples/office max or something?
Are the cards double-sided?
And... lastly, this may be a dumb question but how do you get spoke cards in your spokes? My spokes are so close to each other it's hard to put anything between them.
I appreciate any help I can get.
Keep Ridin!
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Also I forgot to mention that I'd like to keep costs down as much as possible cuz I'm broke ass poor right now.
icarus11.5.10 - 2:45 am
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Having some sort of card stock in the mix definitely helps.
Double-sided definitely looks better, since you can see the cards from both sides of the wheel.
Many Kinkos locations have a laminator out where you can use it for free if you bring your own pouches.
theroyalacademy11.5.10 - 2:57 am
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I'm buying the "230" machine today. best deal on a laminator.
http://www.laminationdepot.com/Home-Pouch-Laminating-Machines/products/73/
they sell 5mm sheets as well on amazon.com for $22/100 sheets for i think $22. buy 2 boxes and get free shipping. get a few people together to go in on the order. best deal in town..
barleye11.5.10 - 6:29 am
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I use real playing cards paper and glue around 6 bucks for two hundred
rev106 responding to a
comment by barleye
11.5.10 - 7:27 am
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Using at least 5 mil. plastic, you will be fine with standard 20 lb. paper. If yo go with card stock, the plastic tends to leave a small air pocket around the edge of your paper.
Printing both sides, a thicker paper won't bleed the image through as much as 20 lb. will.
Don't go to Kinko's to laminate, unless your bringing you own maierial. Last time I checked, Kinko's was 1.99 per lamination sheet.
Staples is $1 per sheet.
If you're doing spoke cards on a regular basis, buying your own laminator is the way to go. That will save you money big time. You can buy 100 sheets of the plastic pockets for $20.
Creative Thing11.5.10 - 7:57 am
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I bought a Royal PL2112 laminator a few years back. It's been used a lot and is still going strong. They're available for around $50.
mr rollers responding to a
comment by barleye
11.5.10 - 9:24 am
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4x6 seems way too big. That's the size of a postcard. Something around 3x2 is more in line with the size of a standard playing card. If you want to go with something slightly bigger, bump it up by half an inch to 3.5x2.5. You'll also end up with a border of laminate around your card so that will also give you more area. I got a spoke card from someone that cut them by hand and they cut all the way to the edge of the paper leaving it open where the laminate should be. I say that's a bad idea. Keep a border of laminate around.
As for paper 20# is flimsy. If you want to use paper that your printer can handle, then go with 28#. It's thick enough so that the graphics won't bleed through to the other side and it's readily available at any office supply store. No additional support necessary. If done right, 100# will be fine even if laminated. If your printer can handle paper with a coating, then I'd go with that since that looks nicer than flat paper. What program do you plan on using to design your card? Just curious.
If you have no idea what to do and if this is a one-time project where you can part with some money, then going to kinkos/staples/etc is fine. Maybe you can find a printer that can do it cheaply online. Not sure how many you plan on making.
Finally, the spokes are indeed tight but you can wedge the card in between them. Just keep trying. Put some light pressure on one as you try to slip the card in. Shouldn't be too bad.
graciela11.5.10 - 10:39 am
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I have the scotch tl901 works great. grabbed some card stock from walmart 500 sheets for 3 bucks. laminating sheets off amazon is the cheapest
mr.j11.11.10 - 11:25 am
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so wat size pouches do u get for spoke cards?
Pedal Feens11.11.10 - 3:13 pm
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i'm pretty sure everyone uses the same... 5mm 9 x 12 sheets.
just bought 200 sheets for $33 total on amazon from laminationdepot.com's store on there.
barleye responding to a
comment by Pedal Feens
11.11.10 - 3:58 pm
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First, let me say how impressed I am with all the beautiful spoke cards I see here in our bike culture. Really cool designs in both graphics and shapes. Spoke cards don’t have to just be rectangles. Odd shapes look great; they are way more labor intensive though, and for all of you that have done this, Thank You!
Everyone KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!! WOOT WOOT!
Many, many times I have gone to a local Kinko's with ALL my own artwork and pouches, and used their paper cutters & laminate machines for free. They have always been helpful.
I do like the look of the "new" cold laminate artwork. No machine, no extra border. I'm not sure of the longevity of the cold press though as a spoke card. With exposed edges it may wick moisture and delaminate soonnever= Fail. I guess only time will tell.
Heck, some of my hot laminated spoke cards are falling apart.
Just to be fair though: they are still in place on my "lot bike", from 2007 and only 3mil.
I guess they should have come off before now. Now I need to pull them & re-laminate.
Please DON'T use 3mil.
I think 5mil or 7mil are good.
I love how the prices came down to less than $100 for laminators.
My machines were all $300-$500+.
20 years ago while making show passes, my work took me to Western Graphix in Torrance; great shop, friendly staff -www.camlox.com. We bought pouch stock there, and I saw they had the full production shop. They have preset sizes and will make a size for you if it isn't a set stock size. When I need stock they mail it to me. They do laminating up to wall poster size if you ever need/want it. I like pre sized pouches over sheets, seems quicker & cleaner.
Making spoke cards is fun and all, but, my favorite part is what it’s all about: insertion, you know, riding it.
I’ve gotten good at doing it one handed. I spread the spokes a bit, & it slides right in.
Look at the spokes where they “cross” last away from the hub. The spoke on top (your side) of the cross is the one you want to touch first.
On the ‘long’ tire side of the spoke (the section of spoke with no more crosses) grasp the top spoke with your fingers close to where they cross. Place your thumb on the bottom spoke right next to the cross. Slightly pull the top spoke towards you with your fingers while pushing the bottom spoke away from you with your thumb.
I do this with the card under my thumb; when the pressure lightens the spoke tension, I am able to push the card in place with my thumb.
Repeat the process for the other end of the card.
Once the card is in the spokes it can be easily positioned to your liking with the same finger technique.
If you are inserting a 3mil-5mil card and you just grab the card on each side of the cross and ‘force’ it in, using both hands-without separating the spokes-the card may well rip...
BTW, this works both right and left handed.
Gern11.11.10 - 8:22 pm
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Hey icarus;
so how did it go? there was some great advice here.
DeKadenzy11.12.10 - 5:25 am
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i made some spoke cards at staples by my casa for a buck a page, fit about 3 - 4 per page. made em at 3 x 5 and they were perfect for my gf, best friends and my bike.
my sis wants to get me a laminator and pouches for xmas so i'll probably just wait till then to do a ton of work.
i didn't have card stock so what i did was print on regular computer paper, cut them out, glued them to black 3 x 5 index cards, let em dry and the next day took em to get laminated just to see how they'd be. there really weren't any air bubbles and the girl at staples was really cool about making sure she did them properly. also laminated some political stickers i had. here are some pics:
icarus11.13.10 - 5:45 pm
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thanks everyone for their advice. you all are a ton of help even for a noob like me. btw the cannabis sticker was a little smaller than 4 x 6 and i think the fox sticker was 2.5 x 5.5.
i'm gonna be doing a lot more cards for future rides i'll be doing when i get a break from school. i'm in the 562 area if any of you all want to join probably in december that'd be sweet. i'll also be doing art cards and political cards for fun and i'll throw up some pics.
if i get a job soon hopefully i'll be giving them away at the rides, but if not i'll sell em for my cost like $0.50 or a buck or i'll trade a card. watev. hopefully i get one soon, i'd like to give them out to you all.
peace, and keep ridin'!
icarus11.13.10 - 6:19 pm
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Awesome!!!!! Love the Lotteria Soldado. Flight of Icarus is original too! He was the son of Daedalus who built the maze in Crete, watch out how HIGH you fly, dude.
DeKadenzy responding to a
comment by icarus
11.14.10 - 6:10 am
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thanks, yeah i wanted to laminate some loteria cards but i saw those up on the internet from an artist and i had to do it.
i'm definitely gonna make a ton more and give them away or try and make a deal with the artist so he can get money off of it.
i'm fascinated by the story of icarus that's why my mr name is icarus.
icarus responding to a
comment by DeKadenzy
11.14.10 - 4:14 pm
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