Gator Board Printing

Gatorboard is a cousin of foam board and is much more rigid and durable. In fact, its rigid characteristics make gatorboard an industry standard for trade shows.

Gator board signs are technically considered a form of foam board. It is a rigid black compressed foam center encased in a wood-fiber veneer. However, the gator is more rigid, and the clay face will only allow for a matte. No semi-gloss finish is available. Gatorboard's exterior plastic surface is much more rigid and resistant to warping. However, it's not acid-free, so it needs to be handled with proper care if used for permanent use.

The traditional foamboard is a cheaper alternative, but it can easily dent and bend. In turn, permanently damaging your board. We suggest a custom gatorboard sign for those who need a more rigid product. Read more on Foamboard vs. gatorboard

Comparing - ultra board vs. gator board - they are very similar, but gator boards have a clay-faced finish while ultra boards have thicker plastic and an even more rigid and dense feel.

No, foam boards and gatorfoam boards are two unique materials. Here are some unique differences between the two;

Foam Boards

• compressed white foam and siding 

• paper face

• dry erase, matte, gloss, or no finish options (which is closer to matte)

• indoor use only

Gatorboard

• compressed black foam and siding 

• clay face

• matte finish only  

• indoor use only 

• dent, bend, crease, fold resistant

Since Gator Board is so affordable, they're great for small businesses. It's commonly used for menu boards in restaurants as well as pop-up signage in a retail setting. Gator's matte finish makes it perfect for the bright lights of the showroom display. We have a wide selection of board printing for advertising; you can be sure we have exactly what you need for your next project.

Grommets offer the edges of your board more additional reinforcement when hanging with hooks.

Yes, the drilled holes and grommets go all the way through the boards.

Drill holes are .25" and placed .75" on the center from each side of the board. You have the option selected. Grommet holes are .38" in diameter and also placed .75" in the center from each corner. Grommets are exactly the same as nickel-plated banner grommets. Placement options are as follows:

• Top Corners grommets

• Top & Bottom Center grommets

• All Corners Only grommets

• Top Center grommet

No, you can not. While the gator board material is relatively easy to drill through, it is not recommended. The Gator board's clay face will crack very quickly if the speed of the drill is not rotating fast enough; we offer special cut finish options that will allow for unique, custom shapes, custom sizes, and hole placement.

No, gatorfoam board is not exspensive in compareision to foam boards. The cost of a gatorboard varies depending on the purchase volume. The website has an advanced algorithm that will calculate sqft discounts on all purchasing levels; square foot discounts begin at 100 sqft and max out at 2500 sqft. At this time, the start price of foam boards with full-color direct print at 1000dpi costs $10.65 per square foot and can be as low as $5.97 a square foot.

Gator Board Printing Cost

A Cut option is not required; it is a unique finishing option for shapes other than squares or rectangles. Here is a list of Cut options styles;

1. Circle-Cut (perfect circles) We prefer you submit full-scale square designs with your colors flooded edge to edge; you will see the final circle layout in the proofing process.

2. Oval-Cut (perfect ovals), same as the circle above; we prefer you submit full-scale rectangle designs with your colors flooded edge to edge.

3. Halo-Cut (you are in control of the path the CNC machine takes, unique custom outside shape) 

4. Special-Cut (custom shape, inside and outside cuts are okay) Both Special & Halo Cuts require additional art set up; check out How to Set Up-Cut Files.

Your custom Gator board can last many years if stored properly. If mounted indoors and if the print is not in direct contact with UV rays from the sun, you can expect 3-5 years, if not longer.

There is always a lifespan on any product. If the products are cared for, cleaned, and stored away correctly, they last many years. We use UV-coated permanent LED inks designed to hold up over time to sunlight. The more direct contact with the daylight your prints have will impact the longevity of your gatorboard prints.

No, Gator Boards are not waterproof. Gatorboard is made from compressed black foam board and has a clay face; the material will degrade rapidly if left outside or exposed to outdoor weather.

The term Gatorboard mounting is actually used to describe a photo or photopaper mounted onto a gatorboard; this process is called photo mounting. This process uses lamination for different finish styles like matte, gloss, or semi-gloss. This technique is aged, and the poster paper tends to separate over time and degrade. Since then, advancements in technology have taken over the printing industry. New cutting-edge flatbed direct UV digital cured printers and inks are the way of the future, and photo mounting is now a thing of the past. Foam core print only uses a UV digital direct-to-substrate printing method, we do not offer photo mounting. 

The physical weight of the 3/16" gator board is 0.2093 lbs per ft.². The formula for weight calculation on your specific dimension product can be figured by multiplying your length x width divided by 144 = Your Physical Weight.

Standoff hardware looks like a complicated version of a screw, and it is. It's a separator that's threaded. What are standoffs? They come to different lengths to raise one material over another. They consist of a wall screw, barrel, and cap, usually made of aluminum. Please take a closer look in detail with images in our blog post.

Standoff holes are .41" and placed .75" in the center from each corner the option is selected. Immediately after your purchase, you will upload your graphics and see a visual representation of the standoff holes in the online proofing stage.

It refers to the finish of the physical board itself. The edges will have a nice straight-cut finish without round corners, where round allows smooth rounded corners. The measurements refer to the corners' severity or degrees (radial bend). Rounded corner sizes from less to more dramatic corners;

• 1/4"

• 3/8"

• 1/2" standard

• 3/4"

• 1"

A Cut option is not required; it is a unique finishing option for shapes other than squares or rectangles. Here is a list of Cut options styles;

1. Circle-Cut (perfect circles) We prefer you submit full-scale square designs with your colors flooded edge to edge; you will see the final circle layout in the proofing process.

2. Oval-Cut (perfect ovals), same as the circle above; we prefer you submit full-scale rectangle designs with your colors flooded edge to edge.

3. Halo-Cut (you are in control of the path the CNC machine takes, unique custom outside shape) 

4. Special-Cut (custom shape, inside and outside cuts are okay) Both Special & Halo Cuts require additional art set up; check out How to Set Up-Cut Files.

Our custom Gatorboard is made from compressed black foam board and has a clay face, and is only in a matte-up finish; the UV liquid gloss coating absorbs directly into the clay face very porous, and will not bind to the material. 

Easels are a vertical table display option installed on your substrate's backside with an adhesive. The items are shipping flat, but when the items are received, the boards are unpacked, and the easel back simply swings out and allows the board to be displayed. A prevalent option in retail settings along with tradeshows.

Everything Foam Core Print offers are manufactured to spec or "custom to order," meaning the clients selects the exact custom size down to 100th of an inch. We can manufacture gator boards as small as 4"x4" and as large as 60"x120" on gator board sheets. 

Standard turnaround for custom gatorboard signs is 3 business days and is based on the approval of the art file for the order, not the time of purchase. We do offer next-day turnaround as well as same-day production. The cut-off time for production to begin is 10 am PST for a "standard" 3-day turnaround, 8 am for next-day & same-day printing and production. The website is fully automated and will generate pricing when you add items to the cart. The best way to get pricing is to add all items to your cart and "proceed to checkout" to update your zip code for shipping & turnaround options for grand total pricing.

You will need to place the minimum order and fully complete the transaction. Once the order has been placed, you will be directed to the Upload Artwork page. From there, you will be able to upload your artwork and view the pre-proof. 

In proofing, you can scale, stretch, and adjust the file to fit if any scaling is needed. If everything looks great, go ahead and send your artwork to print, and production will begin. You can remove and upload as many times as you like; production will not start until you approve the proofs.

File types accepted: Photoshop (PSD, TIFF, EPS, PDF, JPEG, PNG, SVG) Illustrator (AI, PDF, with all fonts outlined) Any other graphic program capable of creating a PDF, TIFF, EPS, JPEG, PNG, SVG file. Our preferred file format is a Print-ready Vector PDF set up in CMYK with bleed.

Great question! We now offer a FREE ONLINE DESIGN TOOL; it's very easy to use, and it will allow you to upload designs and create vector files that print flawlessly. As an additional option, we do have an in-house graphics team that can help create the design of your dream. Start a chat or email info@foamcoreprint.com with the details of your requests to schedule a phone call to go over pricing and the final details.