Labels falling off all my systainers

[Joe Jensen]

I have 7 Festool products.  The labels are falling off 5 of the 7 systainers.  Does anyone else have this problem?  I live in AZ where it's bloody hot so I assume this is the issue.  Also, the print is falling off the nice labels McFeelys sent me...joe

 

[bill-e]

My systainers are stored in my barn shop where the temp ranges from 3F to about 80F and the humidity from 15% to almost raining over the course of a year.  I've had one label lift at the corner but nothing serious that I can recall.

As for the lettering abrading off the McFeely's labels.  I don't think there's anything you can do short of covering each one with a square of clear, sticky laminating plastic sheet.

 

[Lou Miller]

I have 7 Festool products.  The labels are falling off 5 of the 7 systainers.  Does anyone else have this problem?  I live in AZ where it's bloody hot so I assume this is the issue.  Also, the print is falling off the nice labels McFeelys sent me...joe

I have the exact same problems, so I doubt you're being in AZ has much to do with it. I have 11 systainers and I think 2 or 3 labels are still intact. All of my McFeeley's labels have had the print wear off.

I'm not real concerned over it though. I care far more about how the tools perform than what the labels look like.

 

[ccmviking]

Some of mine are off and some are just hanging by a thread.  It's probably a combo of the porous surface and oils from Injection Molding.  I wish they hadn't came off but it's not that big of a deal either.

Chris...

 

[CharlesWilson]

I have sprayed behind the errant ones with 3-M adhesive. That seems to keep them in place.

Charles

 

[Trevor H]

Magic Marker works great if your sticker falls off, considering it's not the sticker but the tool that counts!

Mine fall of too. I just write on the systainer.

 

[Daviddubya]

Same problem here.  I also live in AZ, and move my Festools from the hot Valley to the cool high country.  Doesn't seem to make a difference.  The labels come loose and some have fallen off.  The McFeely labels are getting rather dim.  I also use the magic marker solution, in my case a big Sharpie.  Not quite as pretty, but very functional.

 

[Ned]

Some labels I made with a Brother P-Touch wouldn't adhere over time, even after prepping the Systainer with alcohol.

These High Strength label tapes have never failed:

Brother Mall

3/4" = 19mm = perfect for the small recessed area near the top edge of the Systainer body, all four sides.

Ned

 

[Dan Clermont]

I have one label falling off and the tool was actually shipped with it that way from Festool.

I think if you sprayed some 3M 77 Spray adhesive on the errant label you'd be fine. Probably best to mask the area you don't want the adhesive to contact so you don't end up with dirt and grime on the side of your systainer.

Dan Clermont

 

[Dan Clark]

My systainer labels have been doing fine except for the C12 systainer label which has gotten chewed up.  I have a bunch of other storage boxes and cases which have no labels.  However, I decided that writing labels on sticky tape, systainers, boxes, etc. was for the birds.  Besides being messy (my handwriting is horrible) it's either TOO permanent or comes off quickly.

To remedy this, I got a "Brady ID Pal" (http://www.bradyid.com/idpal/Specifications.html) at Home Despot about a month ago.  The ID Pal is a little pricey, but the labels use thermal transfer technology not ink jet, so the text is pretty permanent.  The labels come in a little cassette which pops in and out quickly to change label height or material.  You can print multiple font sizes, multiple lines on a single label, and the labels come in sizes .375", .5" and .75".  The labels come in white vinyl, clear and white polyester, and white nylon cloth.  I only have the white vinyl and it sticks to all the surfaces I've tried so far.  For real stickiness, the nylon cloth labels are supposed to be better (but I don't have any).

The ID Pal works well and provides a quick way to create a clear, relatively permanent label.  If it get's damaged, I can print out a new one in a minute or so.  I'm not sure if it would be everyone's cup of tea, but it works for me.

Regards,

Dan.

 

[Dave Rudy]

Dan,

How does that compare to the Brother p-touch label system?

 

[Dan Clark]

At HD, they had another brand.  I think it was the Brother.  If that was the one, I got the Brady for two main reasons and a few minor ones. 

A minor reason was the you could hold it in one hand and type with the other.  One major reason was that you could get multiple label sizes and materials. 

The other reason was that they had a wire label mode (not sure of the official name).  It prints labels that specifically for labeling electrical wires.  (If you've ever seen a rats nest of electrical wires that all look exactly alike, you'll know what I mean.  In wire label mode, it prints vertically across the tape instead of horizontally along the tape.    You can specify how many time it repeats and then it prints the code a bunch of times in small print.  That way, when you wrap the label around the wire, you can read it without turning the wire.  I LIKED that a lot!

Maybe the Brother had both of my major features and I just missed them, but I didn't see that. 

Another upside (which has a downside) is that the ID Pal can print up to four rows of text on the tape.  I.e., you can get lots of detail in a small label.  The only downside of this is that all of the rows have to be the same font size.  It would be nice to have one "Title" row at the top and two-three small "Detail" rows below that.  A workaround is that you can print a "Title" label and then print a separate "Details" label.  Not perfect, but it works.

After looking at one for a few minutes, I thought the Brady looked a little more "industrial-strength".  No real evidence for that; just gut feeling.

I hope this helps.  If you're still interested, I can take a few pics and share them here.  Let me know.

Dan.

 

[Greg in Memphis]

Brady labels and p-touches stay stuck on plastic when you put a line or two of stationary glue stick underneath the sticker. The best glue stick for this purpose we have used is called ROSS STIK. That's how they spell it.
It helps if you press out the air bubbles with a putty knife and let it set.
The labels we use are usually black on clear. No discoloration with the glue stick.
We do it all the time at work for DC power plants (the assignment strip is made of plastic and it's usually pretty hot in there). If we didn't use the glue stick, they'd fall off in a couple of weeks.
Maybe a few lines of glue stick under the festool label would help.

Greg

 

[Dan Clark]

Greg,

Have you tried the cloth or polyester labels?  From the brochure chart in the PDF below, it looks like nylon cloth is recommended for high temps and textured surfaces, and polyester is recommended for very high temperatures. 

Dave,

Here's a brochure on the ID Pal:http://www.bradyid.com/downloads/IDPal SS.pdf?msgkey=downloadsDetail.pleaseWait.msg.  On the second (last) page, they show the combinations of labels.  It looks like they have colored labels too.  And that the nylon cloth (black on white) is the recommended label for wire and highly textured surfaces. 

OK.  I've just exhausted my "vast" knowledge of labeling systems.

Regards,

DAn.

 

[Greg in Memphis]

I have not tried the cloth or polyester labels.
We've been using the regular (plastic) labels, and they hold up very well in excess of 120 degrees Fahrenheit.

Greg

 

[Dan Clark]

According to the specs, the nylon cloth should hold up at about 190 degrees and the polyester should work at 240.

Dan.

 

[Mirko]

Lets start a petition in favor of global Festool sticker recall, maybe i'm a sissy but I cant bring myself to write on with a felt marker the contents of the systainers.

Mirko

 

[Dan Clark]

Mirko,

Join the sissy crowd.  That's one of the reasons I bought my labeler.

Dan.

 

[Daviddubya]

...OK.  I've just exhausted my "vast" knowledge of labeling systems.

Regards,

DAn.

My knowledge of labeling systems is not so vast as Dan's.  Mine is only half vast.  Black Sharpie, you da man.

 

[Dave Rudy]

Thanks Dan.  I'll go check it out.