Paper descriptions & advice
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TheOnlinePrinter offers the most appropriate choice of papers suitable for the products we offer. We have included a description of our papers below, as well as recommendations for their use. We only use premium quality paper from premium suppliers. We are an environmentally sensitive organisation. Read more about TheOnlinePrinter and the environment.
Uncoated stocks are easy to write on, are not reflective, are the whitest stocks we offer, and have a very smooth finish. They are suitable for books, booklets, office stationery and, in heavier weights, business cards.
Our satin and gloss stocks are suitable for a variety of products, as listed below. Satin is a smooth dull finish, and would be better described at a Satin/Matt (i.e.: too shiny for Matt, but not sufficiently shiny for Satin). Satin has a classical, sophisticated, understated and very elegant look. Gloss is a much shinier, more reflective ‘get up and go'’ stock. Both are suitable for text and images. Satin is a better choice if reflections from light sources might be a problem.
Here is a detailed description of the various papers we use, along with recommendations for their use.
60gsm carbonless paper
This paper is also called no carbon required paper, or NCR paper. It is used for our carbonless docket books. If duplicate carbonless docket books are ordered, then the original page is white and the copy is green. If triplicate carbonless docket books are ordered, then the original page is white, the duplicate pages are green, and the triplicates are blue.
90gsm laser printer safe uncoated recycled
A high quality high white smooth stock suitable for stationery, letterhead, with compliments slips, saddle-stitched booklets, etc. Currently, we only offer this stock on our letterhead and one-third-A4-sized 'with compliments' slips.
100gsm laser printer safe bond
A high quality high white smooth stock suitable for stationery, letterhead, with compliments slips, saddle-stitched booklets, etc. The paper is light and thin, but being high quality, limits ‘see through’. The light weight of the paper is suitable for booklets and catalogues that you might mail or put in letterboxes.
120gsm Satin and Gloss
This is our most commonly used stock for digitally printed products. It is particularly suitable where a job needs to be folded. We recommend it as the first choice for:
- small (A4 and A3) posters;
- all flyers, brochures, leaflets, pamphlets, or whatever you call you promotional material;
- large posters;
- A4 & A3 calendar text;
- booklet text pages;
- booklet covers if the booklet is self covered (does not have a separate heavier cover); and
- book text, provided the book does not have too many pages.
150gsm Art Board
150gsm stock is used for most of our discount priced printing products. It is sufficiently robust for:
210gsm Satin and Gloss
This is a heavier stock that is used on:
- all posters;
- all flyers;
- A3 calendar text;
- booklet text pages for booklets up to about forty pages;
- booklet covers; and
- book text provided the book does not have too many pages.
280gsm satin and gloss
A robust stock suitable for:
- all flyers;
- A4 calendar covers; and
- booklet covers.
300gsm and 350 gsm satin and gloss, and 310gsm Art Board
These are heavy board type stocks. They are suitable if your document needs to be robust (e.g.: rack cards, business cards, posters that will hang from ceilings, etc). They are commonly used for:
- book covers;
- A3 calendar covers;
- business cards;
- A2 posters that may require some rigidity where they are displayed;
- presentation folders that need the heavier weight to resist damage;
- bookmarks; and
- greeting cards.
390gsm Beermat Board
This stock is a hardy material that is used for drink coasters. It is not water-proof, but it is somewhat water resistant.
JAC Gloss
This is a gloss paper that we use for indoor sticker and labels. The paper is robust and has an adhesive on the back — it can stick to most surfaces.
Vinyl
Our custom bumper stickers are printed in full-colour on durable vinyl, using a high-resolution 150-linescreen process. The vinyl that we use, whist not a paper, remains a stock upon which we print. It is, as mentioned earlier, durable and very robust. The coating that we apply to outdoor bumper stickers also assists in ensuring the outdoor bumper stickers do not fade.
Two Words of Warning!
First Warning: Other printers might offer you a greater range of stocks. This might seem good, but there are associated pit-falls with such a selection - THE PAPER THEY OFFER MAY NOT NECESSARILY BE THE BEST FOR YOU.
An example is when 170gsm paper is offered for small brochures that are to be folded. At first it seems that the end product will have a better 'feel', or it might suggest 'quality' to the end-user. You should note, however, that 170gsm paper must be scored (i.e.: creased) before it is folded, and this adds to the cost.
We have found that our customers whom wish to have the better 'feel' or 'quality' are better off selecting 210gsm paper. The reason is simple: 210gsm stands-out from other brochures because that grade of paper is clearly better, and the additional cost of the 210gsm paper is not that great.
If you are determined to have a 170gsm brochure, however, then ask us for a custom quote and we will supply such to you.
Second Warning: Other printers often acquire their paper from the cheapest source. As a result, THE PAPER THEY OFFER MAY NOT NECESSARILY BE THE BEST FOR YOU. TheOnlinePrinter only uses paper that is approved by the manufacturer of our presses.