Hot Stamping Fundamentals

About this course

Understand the physics behind a clean stamp. Learn how temperature, pressure, and dwell interact, how to choose the right foil for a substrate, and why marks fail when they do.

What you'll cover

• The stamping process
• Temperature & pressure
• Dwell & release
• Foil types & selection
• Substrates

Course curriculum

1. 1What hot stamping actually does
2. 2Heat, pressure, dwell — the three variables
3. 3How temperature is set and held
4. 4How pressure is built and measured
5. 5Dwell time and release timing
6. 6Foil construction and release coatings
7. 7Metallic vs. pigment vs. holographic foils
8. 8Matching foil to substrate
9. 9Leather, board, plastic, and ribbon basics
10. 10Reading a failed stamp
11. 11Edge definition and fill
12. 12Ghosting, skipping, and sticking
13. 13Environmental factors: humidity and drafts
14. 14Building a repeatable recipe
15. 15Documenting your settings
16. 16Moving from first stamp to production