Save time, money and stress when buying elastic barbed cord
Barbed elastic cord can be the best solution to completing items like folders, organizers, menus, and masks, but they are often missing during the initial stages of product development. This is because barbed elastic is hard to find, it takes a while to get pricing and most of all, it can be challenging to determine the appropriate size needed. You may be frustratingly asking yourself these questions:
- How big should I make my holes?
- How long does the cord stretch?
- How much does it cost?
- How long does it take to ship?
- What sizes and colors are available?
- Where can I find samples?
If you are stressing over these questions, don’t worry, we can help! After reading this blog post, you will know exactly what you need to do in order to complete your project.
Why Samples are a Pain
Getting samples is a great way to make sure you are getting the right items. However, samples can cost you quite a bit of time. It can take a while for the samples to ship, especially if the supplier does not have the material in stock. And if the sample doesn’t meet your standards the first time around, then you will have to go through the whole process all over again.
Samples can also cost you money. A lot of suppliers will charge for samples just to make sure you are a serious buyer.
There is a way around that, though. If you say the right things to the right supplier, you could get them for free. We’ll explain more about that in a moment. First, there are some tips and insider information that you can use now to get the right items without jumping through a bunch of hoops.
How to Measure for your Elastic
The first thing to make sure of is that you have an efficient hole size. Barbs are usually less than 1/2 inch long, so your hole should range from 1/8 inch to 5/32 inch in diameter. Reinforcement is a good idea if the stock is not heavy duty. This can be in the form of fiber patches, grommets or eyelets.
Finding the right length is tough because you must consider the stretch of the elastic and how taut you want it around your items. Barbed elastic cord can stretch up to twice its length. However, doing so will fasten your items too tightly and may even damage them. On the other hand, you want the elastic to stretch at least one inch in most cases or it will be too loose.
The tautness needed depends on the application. For example, if you’re holding a bunch of brochures in a folder, you want it pretty tight, if you’re just holding a menu insert in its cover, not so much. Here is a quick breakdown of what sizes are needed for these 4 popular applications:
Menu Binders
XHW (Extra Heavy Weight) is the most widely requested elastic width for menus. This is mainly because the paper stock for menus is usually pretty strong and often laminated. You want the elastic cord length about 1-3 inches shorter than the distance between the holes only IF that distance is at least 8 inches. If the distance in between the holes is less than 8 inches than you want an elastic cord length of only 1 inch shorter.
This is because the less elastic there is, the less stretch is available. For instance, a 10 inch elastic cord stretched 4 inches will provide just enough tension for a menu. However, a 6 inch elastic cord stretched 4 inches will be too tight causing warping or damage to the item.
Portfolio Closures:
The same rules apply to a barbed elastic loop on folders and portfolios, except you have to have enough stretch to get the loop around the binder and still hold as tightly as needed. In this case a more precise measurement is needed. The most frequently requested sizes are 8, 9 and 10 inch loops since folders and portfolios are often 9 or 11 inches.
Masks and Hats:
Because of its soft cotton braid, a size #166 elastic barbed cord is most commonly used on masks and hats. Size #166 elastic has a higher stretch factor making it more conferrable to fasten around someone’s head. An 8, 9, or 10 inch cord are the standard lengths for elastic barbed cord for masks.
Small Item Fasteners:
Fastening small items like pens and jewelry with barbed cord is easy. A 1 inch cord is all you need. A loop with barb can be used, but a 1 inch elastic in between two barbs will hold a bit better. Although a slightly pricier than round elastic, flat elastic is recommended for better performance and look.
4 Important Pricing Factors:
Lead Time
Your lead-time is the biggest factor determining the price of barbed elastic. This is mainly because it is often considerably less expensive from China than the US. You can save up to 50% by getting your elastic from China, but you will need to wait up to 6 weeks for it. You can even save up to 65% if you have 8 weeks to wait for the items to come by ocean.
Quantity
Generally speaking, the higher the quantity, the less cost per piece your order will be. If you are seeking a nice big discount by purchasing from China, be aware that there usually is a 2,500 piece minimum. Anything below that quantity can be purchased in the States for a premium. Most suppliers have a minimum of 1,000 pieces unless it is a stock item. However, Finish Line Custom Finishing has only 100 piece minimum for stock elastic barbed cord.
Quantity discounts vary by supplier but we can give you a general break down. For each price point, there is a 3% to 10% discount. These price points typically are: 5k, 10k, 25k, 50k, 75k, 100k
Weight
Weight also influences barbed elastic pricing. Length and width are directly related to this price increase since they determine the weight. When it comes to pricing, weight has the most influence on the cost of shipping. Expect to pay more for shipping longer and thicker cord.
Color
Elastic barbed cord has two types of color,matte and metallic. There are many more options for matte colors than metallic colors. Metallic colors are usually limited to metallic gold, semi-metallic gold, metallic silver and semi-metallic silver. Metallic colors are usually 5% more expansive than matte colors.
Barbs come in two colors, gold and silver. Gold barbs are slightly more expensive and less available than silver barbs.
Time is Precious
The most important take away from this post is to leave yourself as much time as possible for acquiring elastic barbed cord. It will save you the most money. However, most folks only have a couple of weeks to get their project complete. This is why Finish Line Custom Finishing, Inc. keeps certain elastic barbed cord in stock. Stock items from Finish Line Inc. are sold for wholesale, over-seas prices and can be shipped the day of the order.
The Sample Secret:
Despite the fact that you are now, officially an expert on elastic barbed cord, samples are still a good idea when estimating for a project. The trick to getting free samples and saving time is to give the supplier as much information as possible about your project; mainly your item/project details, quantity and lead time. This will show that you are a serious buyer and gives the supplier the info they need to process a quote or sample while reducing communication lag.
Finish Line Custom Finishing has made it easy to communicate this information with its product-specific quote request form. Finish Line Inc gives free samples to all quote requests for 1,000 or more pieces. You can get started right now by clicking below!