Heresy for screen printing

[squeegee]

Having been an all roller frame shop, to an all static shop, to a combination of static/roller frame shop, now an all EZ frame shop, my perspective is there is NO WAY I would go back to either.
Roller frames are great, but the downside is all the work.  Sure you have almost limitless control with them in terms of tension, but tension above a certain point is negligible to improving print quality IMHO.

To me roller frames mean a skill set someone on my staff must have, and also a staff member that will dedicate a large % of their time to their upkeep.  EZ frames mean a cross-trained employee can stretch with only a little down time and still keep 98% of our frames in play.  Tension on the panels is right on spec to the manufactuarer's specs, so all the qualities of the mesh are realized as they should be with no variables.  No missed tensionings because we are too busy, hardly any frames sitting in a corner because no one has time to stretch.  Fewer popped screens.

I think the EZ frame is very well suited to some, and not so well to others.  Personally we love them, we take them for granted at this point because there's nothing really to think about when it comes to frame upkeep which truly let's us concentrate more on printing and other processes within our business.

[tpitman]

One other thing I forgot to mention is that, with the exception of a few 305s and 156s still in the mix, I've changed all the mesh to ShurLoc panels. I busted too many that were done off roll mesh, and, while the ShurLocs aren't cheap, it's just me using them so I can give them the care that'll keep 'em usable for years.

[virgil427]

Been thinking about switching to newmans this makes it more appealling, we're on a septic system disposal is a bitch, could easily stack old screens in a box a drop off on haz clean up day twice a year.

[alan802]

I've put a little thought into this scenario but never with the shurloc or roller frames in mind, only the panel frame product.  I had figured with the price of the panels being so high that reclaiming would be cheaper for every shop, but then again, I haven't thought about this like Douglas has, nor do I have a presence in a shop that's doing it.  I'm a huge fan of the shurloc panels for the ez frame and newman rollers, and I know they are way more expensive than bolt mesh, but the 20 seconds it takes me to put a panel in a roller frame and start tensioning the mesh is so much faster than me messing with bolt mesh. 

Obviously, the shop that has the resources and ability to turn a screen around quickly and get it back into production will likely not benefit but I can see how it might be the perfect scenario for some.  I'm one of those guys who is fairly new to this industry and have always been amazed at how resistant to change a lot of print shops are.  When I visit other shops in our area I always see someone doing something that was industry standard 20 years ago, but is not standard today.  I don't think this topic falls into that category however, but I do think that there are some shops out there should look into it. 

[DouglasGrigar]

I've put a little thought into this scenario but never with the shurloc or roller frames in mind, only the panel frame product.  I had figured with the price of the panels being so high that reclaiming would be cheaper for every shop, but then again, I haven't thought about this like Douglas has, nor do I have a presence in a shop that's doing it.  I'm a huge fan of the shurloc panels for the ez frame and newman rollers, and I know they are way more expensive than bolt mesh, but the 20 seconds it takes me to put a panel in a roller frame and start tensioning the mesh is so much faster than me messing with bolt mesh. 

Obviously, the shop that has the resources and ability to turn a screen around quickly and get it back into production will likely not benefit but I can see how it might be the perfect scenario for some.  I'm one of those guys who is fairly new to this industry and have always been amazed at how resistant to change a lot of print shops are.  When I visit other shops in our area I always see someone doing something that was industry standard 20 years ago, but is not standard today.  I don't think this topic falls into that category however, but I do think that there are some shops out there should look into it. 

As virgil427 noted this is best for small shops (with no time) and ?special needs? the idea actually came about because of a customer that could not dispose of reclaimed screen chemicals because of a fragile septic system that requires lots of maintenance.

The idea has grown to fit other needs where fast, chemical fumes and disposal are issues.