Coated canvas can offer numerous advantages, including waterproofing, scratch resistance, stiffness, and easy cleaning, and these advantages make it becoming a popular choice for bag brands and retailers when customizing tote bags, backpacks, messenger bags, crossbody bags, and bucket bags. Bag manufacturers provide coated canvas bag solutions to meet diverse market demands, offering bag brands and retailers a cost-effective and durable option. Today, Kewei will explain in detail the definition, characteristics, manufacturing process, and suitable bag styles of coated canvas, helping you understand why it’s an ideal choice for your custom bag business.
What is Coated Canvas?
Coated canvas refers to canvas with a polymer coating (such as PVC, PU, or acrylic) applied to one or both sides of a strong base fabric (such as cotton, polyester, or blended fabric). The process effectively improves the base fabric’s abrasion resistance, waterproofing, and ease of cleaning.
What are The Characteristics of Different Coatings?
Applying different coatings to the base fabric can improve various properties. Below are common coating types and their characteristics:
Coating Type | Characteristics |
PVC | High cost-performance ratio, strong waterproof ability |
PU | Soft feel, strong waterproof performance, environmentally friendly |
| Silicone Coating | Lightweight, compressible |
| Acrylic Coating | Stain-resistant and easy to clean |
What are The Characteristics of Coated Canvas?
Coated canvas offers multiple advantages such as abrasion resistance, tear resistance, waterproofing, and easy cleaning, effectively improving the practicality and environmental adaptability of bags.
- Abrasion Resistance:Industrially treated canvas can withstand 25,000 cycles of bending and surface abrasion, possessing superior bending resistance and abrasion resistance. The coated canvas effectively enhances the bag’s stiffness and durability.
- Tear Resistance:Coated canvas has a tear strength of 150-400 N/5 cm and a warp and weft tensile strength of 1500-4000 N/5 cm, improving the coated canvas bag’s load-bearing capacity and resistance to abrasion in harsh environments.
- Waterproofling: The coating on the bottom surface effectively enhances the fabric’s waterproofling. Light to medium waterproof membranes have a waterproof rating of 1000-5000 mm, while heavy-duty waterproof membranes can reach 5000 mm.
- Easy to Clean: The dense, smooth coating effectively fills and covers the numerous gaps in the canvas fabric, forming a non-porous, continuous film on the surface, improving the fabric’s ease of cleaning.
These advantages make coated canvas bags extremely durable, and daily maintenance and care are exceptionally convenient, making them popular with many consumers.
The Manufacturing Process of Coated Canvas
The manufacturing of coated canvas involves four steps: preparing the base fabric, selecting the coating, applying the coating, and finishing the product.
Preparing the Base Fabric
Prepare a tightly woven polyester or cotton woven base fabric. Clean any oil or dust from the base fabric to avoid affecting the bonding effect. It is Noted that polyester fabric needs to be heat-set before coating to prevent shrinkage during the coating process.
Selecting the Coating
Choose a suitable coating based on the applicable scenario and consumer preferences. You can refer to the content in Section 2 of this article for guidance.
Applying the Coating
The coating process varies, with common methods including blade coating, dip coating, or calendering. It allows the coating to be evenly spread on the fabric.
Finished Product
The finished coated canvas is obtained by evenly applying the coating to the base fabric. The weight of coated canvas used in production is approximately 300-800 grams per square meter.
Which Bag Styles Use Coated Canvas?
Coated canvas is widely used in various bag styles due to its performance advantages, from everyday backpacks to professional backpacks. Below are some common bag styles that utilize coated canvas.
Bag Types | Base Fabric Selection | Coating Selection | Advantages |
Tote Bag | Cotton Canvas | PU | Sturdy design, easy to clean |
Backpack | Polyester Canvas /Cotton Canvas/Nylon | PU/PVC | High durability |
Messenger Bag/Shoulder Bag | Cotton Canvas | PU | Vintage feel, wear-resistant and scratch-resistant |
Travel Bag | High-grammage Cotton Canvas | PU/TPU | Tear-resistant, wear-resistant |
| Tool Bag | Cotton Canvas/Nylon | PU/TPU | Tear-resistant, scratch-resistant, and wear-resistant |
Gym Bag | Polyester Canvas/Oxford Cloth | PU/TPU | Strong load-bearing capacity, tear-resistant |
Lightweight Outdoor Bag | Polyester/Nylon | TPU | Lightweight, waterproof, soft to the touch |
| Promotional Bag | Polyester/Recycled Canvas | PVC/PE | Low cost |
How to Choose the Right Coated Canvas for Custom Bags?
Choosing the right coated canvas for custom bags requires comprehensive consideration of factors such as the base fabric, coating type, and performance.
Choose the Right Weight Base Fabric
Different base fabrics have different weights and performance characteristics. Selecting the appropriate base fabric based on the style of bag you need.
- Promotional gift bags are suitable for lightweight base fabrics, such as 6-8 oz/200-230 g/m², but not suitable for carrying heavy items.
- Shopping bags or standard tote bags should have a heavier base, such as 10 oz/290 g/m², which can withstand 5-7 kg.
- Shoulder bags, bucket bags, and messenger bags can choose a 12 oz/340-350 g/m² base fabric, which can withstand 8-10 kg while maintaining portability and sturdiness.
- Tool bags and laptop bags are suitable for heavy-duty base fabrics, such as 14-16 oz/380-450 g/m², which can withstand 10 kg and have a long service life.
Choose the Right Coating
Choosing the right coating can effectively enhance the performance of the base fabric, such as abrasion resistance, scratch resistance, tear resistance, and water resistance.
- PU coating: Lightweight and soft, but slightly less abrasion resistant, requiring a durable and scratch-resistant base fabric. Suitable for making soft, stylish bags or foldable pouches.
- PVC coating: Excellent waterproof performance (withstanding hydrostatic pressure up to 5000 mm of water column) and durability, ideal for urban travel bags. However, avoid testing in temperatures below -10 degrees Celsius, as it may harden and degrade in performance.
- TPU: Very durable, ideal for outdoor bags, travel bags, and sports bags, but more expensive.
Performance Reference
Coated canvas products still need to undergo performance testing. Only when abrasion resistance, tear resistance, and waterproofness reach certain ranges can they meet your performance expectations for the bags and gain customer trust.
- Abrasion resistance: Measurements should ideally show a resistance of 10,000 to 40,000 cycles or more to meet the requirements for use in bags ranging from tote bags to travel bags;
- Tear resistance: Tear strength should be between 25N and 50N; Tensile strength: Tensile strength should be between 400N and 1000N;
- Water resistance: Splash resistance should be 1000-1500 mm, rain resistance should be 3000 mm or more, and outdoor rain and snow resistance should reach 5000 mm;
- Colorfastness: A colorfastness grade of at least 4 is required to prevent fading;
- Shrinkage: Shrinkage should be below 3% to avoid excessive shrinkage affecting capacity and performance.
After Kewei’s introduction, you should have a more detailed understanding of coated canvas, including its materials, manufacturing principles, and performance. Whether you are a bag brand owner, retailer, or distributor, you can always design different styles of fashion and practical coated canvas bags. Kewei, a professional bag manufacturer in China, cooperate with trustworthy, reliable, and high-quality coated canvas fabric suppliers to turn your designs into viable products. Want to customize coated canvas bags for your business? Contact us today.
