Color Matching/Ink Mixing Station

[tonypep]

OK this is'nt for everyone but.....we all know how out of hand the ink room/area can get. I'm certainly guilty of storming in and making a mess. Once I was even banned by own employee from even entering the room! So heres a concept for making an ink mixing station.
 Picture a Baskins & Robbins ice cream counter then tilt it 45 degrees. The ink "tubs" are placed in pre cut template holes that are staggered seven on top seven below (they are staggared to minimize contamination). The "template" is made from cheap bathroom
shower material re-inforced with 3/4" plywood. Jutting out from this horizontally is an 18" w piece of 1/4" glass which is supported by a base which doubles as a storage cabinet. A Sartorius scale is mounted on a mini table with wheels. Grainger supplied the rigging that allowed the power supply to follow the scale as the operator moves down the line dispensing the necessary components.
Finally at the end of the line the actual mixing station (we had a Turnabout mounted on a bench).
Of course this was built for a high volume shop but one using gallons or quarts could be made to suit your needs. I gave the plans to a friend who used PCs and it was about half the size. In either event if you're anal about keeping that area clean and have the time and skills its a worthy project. A Saturday and some pizza ought to do it.
I have pic somewhere but well......I appear to have issues with that technology!
(There is a step by step in Printwear but I have no clue what issue)
Enjoy the Holiday Everyone!
tp

[ebscreen]

Excellent idea. I've been trying to come up with something like this for awhile.
I used to work at a homebrew supply place and we used to do the mobile scale thing under bins
of various grains. Ive got all of my waterbase pigments in squeeze bottles, but some of the plastisol pc's aint gonna squeeze.


Do you have any experience with the commercial dispensers Tony? I see them used from time to time pretty cheap so I've always wondered.

[jsheridan]

I wish I still had some pictures of when I was back at Custom Logos.. You could eat off my ink area tables.

I used 5 gallon grease pumps for all my colors (Rutland M2) except fluorescent colors in gallons get the spatulas.
Slide the scale over, pump out what you needed, move to next color then mix and go.

I even printed out formula labels to affix to each cup, that way the formula was on the cup.

Anyone could walk over to the ink area with the cup and dispense away. Avg time for a QT of ink, 3 minutes from empty cup to ink back at the press.

[blue moon]

I wish I still had some pictures of when I was back at Custom Logos.. You could eat off my ink area tables.

I used 5 gallon grease pumps for all my colors (Rutland M2) except fluorescent colors in gallons get the spatulas.
Slide the scale over, pump out what you needed, move to next color then mix and go.

I even printed out formula labels to affix to each cup, that way the formula was on the cup.

Anyone could walk over to the ink area with the cup and dispense away. Avg time for a QT of ink, 3 minutes from empty cup to ink back at the press.

what's the deal with the grease pumps? how expensive are they and do you remember what type were you using? any other thoughts?

[inkbrigade]

Yea i'd like to hear more about the grease pumps as well

[jsheridan]

what's the deal with the grease pumps? how expensive are they and do you remember what type were you using? any other thoughts?

I got mine free from Screen Printers Resource out here in Cali way back when with an agreement to buy ink only from them.
They are referred to as the "South Swell" pumps named after the company who made them. They sell for $125.

They start as a grease pump like this:
http://www.mcmaster.com/#grease-pumps/=cifv6v


You remove the existing piping from the head and get two 90 reducing elbows with a male and female thread. 1 to fit the threads on the pump head, 1/2 to 3/8 reducer and a 3/4 to 1/2 reducer. Twist one into the head, then the other into that one, then a 3/4 pipe that extends a couple inches past the edge of the top threads into that one.
 http://www.mcmaster.com/#iron-and-steel-pipe-fittings-and-pipe/=cifx1d


The final part is the ball valve. If you know or have a machinist friend, stop and pick up a 12 pack on your way to see him.
http://www.mcmaster.com/#ball-valves/=cig3yw

The trick to the valve is you have to cut the front off (all the threads basically) until you just touch the inner face w/out cutting into the plastic behind it. This lets the ball close on the ink with a cutting action so you can squeeze the lever, build up a little pressure, crack the valve and squish out .01 worth of ink. The cut-away model shows that face and plastic. Getting that right makes all the difference. You can close the valve, swipe the face with your metal mixing blade and it's virtually zero clean up.


Had I a picture.. oh well,,...  ya'll can figure it out.

The pumps work great for basic colors but when used for thick whites, they tend to blow the seal cup out the bottom. Use the graco style piston pumps for heavy whites.

 

[tonypep]

Played with these at JSR and found several flaws. Heres what I remember: When using say, an MX system the different viscosities and rheological properties cause the pumps to behave differently. The thicker inks are difficult to pump and the various seals and gaskets leak. Could see it for PCs but you would need to be a large volume user. That said we have used aero pumps for base, white, and black in 30 gal drums which works fine..........until you get to the bottom and have to deal with scraping the last couple of gallons.
So no simple solution there.

[jsheridan]

the different viscosities and rheological properties cause the pumps to behave differently. The thicker inks are difficult to pump and the various seals and gaskets leak.

Yep.. the M2 yellow was a bear and blew two seals over the years.. then there was the M2 blue which would almost drip out.