Using two Screens for a one color job

[Logoman]

We usually stack two screens of the same image to print on a dark shirt to make it bright. I take a 156 mesh screen for the first print(white ink) and then stack the next screen 110 mesh (orange ink) so it will bleed a little and cover the white under base. I had another printer told me he took a 110 mesh for the first screen and a 190 for the second. How can that work when the second screen will not push as much ink through to cover the edges?

[ebscreen]

Well, they're kind of inverse to eachother. Or converse? Chuck Taylor?

At any rate, the lower the mesh you use for the base the higher you can go on the top.
It is color dependent, both shirt and top color. For a bright orange with large coverage we likely
would go 150 base and 180-230 top.

[kirkage]

I always choke the white underbase. 125m or 140m on white then 180m of color on top.

[blue moon]

We usually stack two screens of the same image to print on a dark shirt to make it bright. I take a 156 mesh screen for the first print(white ink) and then stack the next screen 110 mesh (orange ink) so it will bleed a little and cover the white under base. I had another printer told me he took a 110 mesh for the first screen and a 190 for the second. How can that work when the second screen will not push as much ink through to cover the edges?

print your underbase as usual and put the top color with a little bit of stroke (trap) on a thinner mesh. It will let you print wet on wet and you'll use less ink.

Since the top colors are generally less opaque than the ubase, if they go directly on the dark background they are hard to see. Thus, it's OK to add a trap. Choking on the other hand changes the shape of the underbase and since only underbased ink is visible it will change the final look. Imagine choking the letter I, there would be nothing left . . .

pierre

[Sbrem]

We usually stack two screens of the same image to print on a dark shirt to make it bright. I take a 156 mesh screen for the first print(white ink) and then stack the next screen 110 mesh (orange ink) so it will bleed a little and cover the white under base. I had another printer told me he took a 110 mesh for the first screen and a 190 for the second. How can that work when the second screen will not push as much ink through to cover the edges?

print your underbase as usual and put the top color with a little bit of stroke (trap) on a thinner mesh. It will let you print wet on wet and you'll use less ink.

Since the top colors are generally less opaque than the ubase, if they go directly on the dark background they are hard to see. Thus, it's OK to add a trap. Choking on the other hand changes the shape of the underbase and since only underbased ink is visible it will change the final look. Imagine choking the letter I, there would be nothing left . . .

pierre

no mixing without the flash, Pierre?

Steve

[blue moon]

We usually stack two screens of the same image to print on a dark shirt to make it bright. I take a 156 mesh screen for the first print(white ink) and then stack the next screen 110 mesh (orange ink) so it will bleed a little and cover the white under base. I had another printer told me he took a 110 mesh for the first screen and a 190 for the second. How can that work when the second screen will not push as much ink through to cover the edges?

print your underbase as usual and put the top color with a little bit of stroke (trap) on a thinner mesh. It will let you print wet on wet and you'll use less ink.

Since the top colors are generally less opaque than the ubase, if they go directly on the dark background they are hard to see. Thus, it's OK to add a trap. Choking on the other hand changes the shape of the underbase and since only underbased ink is visible it will change the final look. Imagine choking the letter I, there would be nothing left . . .

pierre

no mixing without the flash, Pierre?

Steve

even with a flash, translucent inks will blend. It would have to be a high opacity ink and then the stroke would actually show and change the print. In the end, it's only one point, should not really make a big difference.

pierre

[Gilligan]

Steve is asking about the Wet on Wet... I'm confused as well.  You are suggesting printing an underbase, for this example a large square of white, and the coming back with that same square of orange (plus an extra stroke around it to hide the base) and print without flashing the base?  Straight wet on wet?

I think we are assuming we are misunderstanding you.

[blue moon]

Sorry, wow after flash if there are multiple colors.

Pierre

[Gilligan]

That's what I ASSUMED you meant, but it wasn't reading that way... thought you had some new trick you weren't sharing... a magic squeegee!

[Sbrem]

had me going too, but I got caught up in a bunch of tasks and didn't have time to think about it. Glad to see this last note. We are usually WOW after the first flash, sometimes a second near the end if it looks better. Oddly enough, we had a white and orange on black job for a local HS, and we had to remind the contract customer that the orange on the back would need the white underlay (the front has white showing, so the underlay on that side is already accounted for). Go for it was their response.

Steve

[Gilligan]

We just had a contract guy saying "wouldn't this have been cheaper as a two color?" (It had to have an under base)

Yes, and your royal on black would have looked even worse than it does now! At least he moved away from navy on black!

[jvanick]

Ah.. underbasing.. the #1 reason that I LOVE it so much when we can discharge.