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Our laser engraved valve tags are completely bespoke so no more compromising on size or shape (or both)! Whether you are after valve discs, rectangular or square valve tags, maybe with rounded corners, or even triangular valve tags, with one hole or two, the choice is yours. We have a huge range of stock colours in the flexible 2 ply material, with even more available. These are cost effective and the lead time is only 1 day on most orders. Therefore it's nearly never too late to order your bespoke engraved valve tags. We can also supply ball chain and connectors for fixing your tags on site so we are a one stop shop for valve tags.
What material should I use for my laser engraved valve tags?
The standard plastic we use is Rowmark. This is similar in appearance to Gravoply but it is UV stable. Therefore it is suitable for exterior use. The standard material is 1.6mm thick but we also stock 3mm in a large range of colours.People often refer to engraving plastic as Traff or Traffolyte when they request a quote. This is the original engraving plastic and whilst it is still in use today it doesn't laser cut so isn't ideal for discs. You will see old signs around from time to time that are Traff, they will be very faded. This is beacuse Traff is not UV stable. It's been used for exterior signs for many years, because it remains readable but at a low quality. It is also very brittle, especially when used outside. The slightly flexible Rowmark also remains less brittle because of its flexible nature. We will always suggest Rowmark and use it as our standard for the above reasons.
What about metal?
If you want a product that will last indefinitely then stainless steel is the way to go. We can laser engrave stainless steel, like the pictures you can see below. This gives a black finish that looks like printing however, it doesn't rub off and isn't affected by chemicals. We use 316 grade stainless steel as standard, 0.9mm thick with a DP1 (brushed) finish. However we can get any thickness and finish you need. We don't recommend using mirror polished tags because in some lights they are difficult to read. You have to be in the right position if the sun is shining on them for example, or your torch. They are also more expensive, so it seems a waste if it can be avoided. Sometimes people don't want black infill. That is no problem as we can mechanically engrave the tags too. If it is highly detailed or with very small text chemical etching is the way to go. We are happy to assist you with your decision as we like to think we are experts in valve tags by now.How do we make bespoke tags so quickly?We are able to provide a fast turnaround because we laser cut our labels rather than routing them or using our saw. The laser engraving machine also cuts the holes for us to save time drilling. We have been using the Gravograph engraving software for a long time now so we are almost computer whizzes. Because of this we can set up complicated tags relatively quickly. Firstly we received a picture of an existing tag for the laser engraved stainless steel valve bezel below. Secondly we set it up from scratch, whilst waiting for the metal. Thirdly we sent a proof to our customer and we were ready to go, without delays once the material arrived.We have a great relationship with our local laser cutters and can therefore also offer these in any shape, as with the plastic tags. The turnaround time is usually 4 working days to get the stainless cut. However our supplier is happy to express for a small fee.
Want to know more?
If you want to see more examples of what we can do whilst we reply then our engraving news page is the place to go. If you want to know more about stainless steel valve tags this is a good place to start. These are some picture of mechanically engraved plates with no paint infill so you can really see what we can achieve.Send us an email using the address at the top or send us an enquiry if you prefer.
