Materials
Materials2 min readUpdated
SBS board: C1S and C2S
SBS is a bright white paperboard, coated on one face (C1S) or on both (C2S). Which one you need depends on where your box carries print.
Printed only on the outside? C1S
Most folding cartons carry print on one face, the one the shopper sees. C1S has its coating on exactly that face and leaves the inside plain. Our dielines show the outside, the print side, so on C1S your artwork lands on the coated face.
On press, that face gives crisp type and clean solid colour. The board is stiff, and it cuts, creases and takes foil without fuss. Look for it on chocolate and sweet boxes, cosmetic cartons, labels and paperboard inserts.
Printed inside too? C2S
When the inside matters as well, a message under the lid or a pattern inside a sleeve, choose C2S. Both faces are coated, so ink sits on top on either side instead of soaking in, and both prints stay sharp.
C2S takes embossing and hot foilHot foil stamping A heated metal die presses a thin metal foil onto the board in the shape of your design. The brightest shine of the foils. well too. It is also the usual printed paper glued around the grey board of a rigid boxRigid box A gift box glued up from grey chipboard and covered in printed paper. It is made another way, and we don't draw it..
Why it is so white
SBS stands for solid bleached sulphate, or solid bleached board. The whole sheet is bleached virgin wood pulpVirgin fibre Fresh wood fibre that has not been recycled. Strong and clean, it brings no smell or taint, which counts next to food., not only the top layer, so a cut edge is white as well. A coating of clayClay coating A thin layer of clay and pigment on board, smooth and white, so ink sits on top and prints sharp. and pigment closes the surface for fine print.
Fresh fibre brings no smell or taint into the pack, which counts next to food, medicines and cosmetics. Cups and moist food add a thin plastic layer on top to keep the wet out.
If you need recycled fibre
Look at white-lined chipboard (WLC)WLC (white-lined chipboard) Paperboard of mostly recycled fibre with a white top and a grey back. The cheapest grade, for cereal, shoes and dry goods. in Paperboard basics: it is mostly recycled. SBS is a virgin fibre board, though some mills blend in recycled fibre; the board's data sheet says how much.
Thickness
SBS is sold by weight, like any paperboard, and the same weight can be thicker or thinner from mill to mill. Ask your printer for the caliper and type that into the dieline. A tuck box or a hang tab box takes it from the Board list or as a custom thickness.