Suggestions on CardStock for Business Cards?

[Nifty]

I'm going to be printing out a lot (sets of 150) business cards for some friends and was wondering if anyone had suggestions for paper / card stock to use with an inkjet printer.

I'm thinking about using the Kirkland photo paper from Costco, but it is a little bit too think for business cards.

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Tysonic]

Red River has some thinner papers, including several card stocks:
http://www.redrivercatalog.com/sbproject/buscards.htm

That's assuming you will be cutting your own. You can get a sample pack that is pretty complete for about $15 dollars. If you can do 13x19, it would be pretty cost effective to use those sizes. Using Qimage for a recent job I did, I was able to fit 25 wallet size photos on one 13x19 sheet. Took all of 5 minutes to setup.

If not, the only others I've seen are the Avery brand, which are OK, it's just you can spot them a mile away:
http://tinyurl.com/4kt4d


Tyson Schettig

 

[Nifty]

Tyson,

Thanks for the info, but the first link is a little pricey for the simple project these cards will be used for.

Cutting the stock will actually be the easy part since I own a little piece of machinery: a MONSTER Challenge paper cutter.

Long story short: I got it for almost nothing at an auction. Getting it home and off the truck was the hard part!

It's such a fun toy... can cut through a ream of paper like a hot knife through warm butter. The digital readout is a pretty nice feature too.

Okay, I'm off track... I'll be using my i860 or i560 for these, so I'm limited in the size. For most of these I'm not too concerned with color fastness or water resistance. I'm just looking for something quick, cheap and easy.

This kirkland paper is pretty nice at 69lb but I think I'd like something thicker.

Like I said, for most of the cards I'm doing they need to be as cheap as possible and preferably heavier than the Kirkland stock... maybe around 80 lb?

Wait one minute!? I just read this in my i860 user's manual:

"Weight: 17 to 28 lb. Do not use paper heavier than this (except for supported Canon-brand media), as it could jam in the printer."

Are they kidding? 28lb paper max?

It seems that 80lb is pretty standard for business cards. Would something like this work:

http://www.officedepot.com/ddSKU.do?level=SK&id=240556&location_info=_SK_240556

 

[Tysonic]

The Wausau paper does say inkjet guarented:
http://www.wausaupapers.com/products/Products.aspx?ID=16

So you should be okay. 250 sheets for $9 is a steal.

Tyson

 

[Nifty]

Tyson,

Thanks for finding that page for me, it gives lots more info than the Office Depot page!

It says 89 bright at office depot which I think is pretty good, but isn't brighter always better?

One thing I noticed: On the Wausau page it says acid free, but on the O.D. link it says it isn't. I guess it doesn't matter much anyway.

Maybe I'll go pick up a ream and let you know how it goes.

Thanks again!

 

[Nifty]

Okay,

Just got back from Office Depot. They didn't have the 90lb, but had some 65 and 110 lb.

I got the 110 lb exact index, but wanted to check if anybody thought it would brake my i860 before I stuck it in.

Tyson (or anybody else) have any ideas?

Thanks in advance!

-Rob

 

[Nifty]

Well, I went ahead and printed on the 110 lb paper and it seems to run through just fine (I was ready to hit the power button if I heard rubbing and scraping!)

While the cards don't look as great as they would on a nice inkjet glossy stock, I think the cards came out pretty well for the purposes I'll be using them.

Thanks for the help!

 

[wrbjr]

What kind of software are you using for the cards?

 

[Nifty]

I'm creating the card using Macromedia Fireworks, then exporting the image and sticking a bunch of copies of it into a pre-defined template for business cards in Microsoft Word. Out of all the options I've tried this gives me the most control with the best results.

 

[fotofreek]

I've used Wasau 80 pound cover in my HP5P laser printer for black text only business cards. I think the weight is adequate. I haven't tried it in my canon I960 as I haven't bothered to print colored cards. I have used Wordperfect (I have MS Word as well but like WP best) and set it up on the label format used with the perfed special card stock. I believe that the standard card size is 2x3.5 inches. Both WP and MS Word will import and manage photo images quite well. I Use WP for greeting cards into which I import photo images as it is sometimes easier to manage text and photos together rather than switching between layers in PS. The I960 does have a setting for thicker stock, but I think it prompts you each time you make a print. Kind of a nuisance.