The way an airport bead works is simple, yet amazing. Made using Virgin Glass, these perfectly round, ultra clear beads allow light to enter, collect that light, concentrate it, and return it back only to the source of the light. Reflecting light only back to the source is called Retro-Reflectivity, and results in a brightness unachievable using standard reflective technology.

Two factors set airport beads apart from other reflective beads. First is clarity. By using virgin glass with minimal impurities, more light is able to be returned to the source of that light through reflectivity. Second is roundness. Perfectly round and clear glass beads reflect light instead of distorting it, resulting in a brighter return of light. Airport reflective beads reflect at a rate of about 1100 mcd (micro candelas per square meter)

Traffic beads that make road lines light up are a similar product, however, the brightness of an airport bead is much more intense. Traffic beads have a refractive index of 1.5nd while airport beads have a 1.93 nd rating. This equates with a ground marking that reflects at 350 mcd for standard beads and airport reflective beads that reflect at 1100. High performance type 3 airfield beads have to be bright due to the extreme distance that they need to be seen. Imagine how far away a 747 Jumbo jet needs to be able to see the lines on a runway, and you will immediately see the need for such a bright product.

Reflective Airport Beads are ultra-bright, type 3 high index beads made from Virgin Glass and created especially for airport runways and taxiways. Because of how bright these beads are, they are perfect for a multitude of other applications where maximum visibility reflectivity is necessary. In fact, almost any object can be made reflective by simple coating it with paint and applying the beads while the paint is wet. Then allow to dry.

Some examples of the things you can add retro-reflectivity to are as follows – Floats for crab traps, rocks, trees, posts, parking lot logos and lines, sign backgrounds, bollards, painted house numbers, foam letters, bike frames, helmets, traffic cones, gates, step faces (vertical surface only), loading dock areas, cinder blocks, rocks and boulders, life rings, climbing gear, fishing bobbers, rod tips, snow poles and more.

If you need to see it at night, a little clear or colored paint and a shaker of reflective beads is all you need to make it happen.

Reflective Airport Beads can be applied in a couple of ways. The most popular method is to first apply a coat of paint, then while it is wet, cover the top of the paint with a layer of beads. Once the paint dries you can recover the excess beads back into your container. The lighter the paint you use, the brighter the reflectivity will be. A white or silver is optimal. Our shaker bottles work very well for this purpose. We have small and large shaker containers. You can also buy our beads in bags to refill your shakers.

In the example above, we used a plastic computer cut stencil that is reusable. Since this was just a demo, we did not mask around the edges of the stencil, however, normally you would. This way, only the letters would be reflective . As you can see, the white spray paint makes an excellent background for the bright airport beads and returns a maximum amount of light.

Another way to apply airport beads is by mixing them into a clear base. If you do it this way it is imperative that you use only a thin coat. The reason for this is that the tops of the beads need to be exposed in order to capture light. It is easy to mix this product with clear and paint, just remember to brush down the coat until the beads are exposed. This method would be optimal for odd shaped objects or surfaces that are not horizontal. A thin coat of clear coat mixed with beads could easily be applied to a vertical surface. As long as the coat was thin, it would light up very nicely. The beauty of this product is that if you put it on too thick and did not get the reflectivity you desired, you can just put another thin coat on top and this should solve the problem.

ARTICLE COMING SOON

ARTICLE COMING SOON.

Standard highway beads are made from recycled glass and have a 1.5 – 1.6 refractive index. Because recycled glass is used, the spheres have a slightly lower level of clarity, but more than enough to light up road stripes. The beads have a white appearance when viewed in quantity, but are actually clear. Highway beads can run from $50 to $150 per 50 pound bag depending on quantity.

Airport beads are made from virgin glass which gives them more clarity. They are also more round than standard beads. These characteristics allow the bead to return more light to the source than standard beads. The refractive index for an airport bead is 1.9 versus the 1.5-1.6 for highway beads. Both pictures below are of airport beads. One is clear and the other has a golden coloration. There is little difference in reflectivity. Airport beads are about 4-5 times more expensive than highway beads.

In summary, standard highway beads and airport beads are similar and are applied the same way, by evenly distributing them over wet paint. Airport beads, however, are more round and made with virgin glass, so they are brighter.

ARTICLE COMING SOON.

This is a good question, and the answer is yes if the paint is clear, and no if it is opaque. Remember, the beads have to have the tops exposed to reflect, so encapsulating them with paint would do nothing except make the coat of paint last longer. For an opaque paint it is best to sprinkle the beads on top of wet paint, then you will get the results you are looking for.

Now for clear paint, you can mix the beads in, but you cannot encapsulate them. In other words, don’t cover the top of the beads with clear. Make the coat thin enough to where the bead is exposed. That way light can enter, be concentrated, and then returned to the light source. A process known as retro-reflectivity.