Screen Tensions....???

[Gilligan]

Granted his meter could be 2n low and yours is reading correct.  Either way you know your meter is working good enough to say that those screens you got are GARBAGE!

Eye opening experience huh?

[Rocfrog]

Truly eye opening!!! I know have a new out look on this industry. It has also shown me that "it can be done" and it can be done the "right" way with out this much headache.....

Nick

[Rocfrog]

So small update.....

I talked to the one of the owners about the screens the other day and it went kind of as expected. But at least once I called the company that did the work they are willing to work with us and get them rescreened. Sadly though I was going thru our screen closet yesterday afternoon and it seems like almost all of them are 12n and below! I found a few that 14n-16n but most of them are lower. I even had a few that didn't even move the needle on the gauge!

Other than that, we went thru the emulsion that we have just sitting on the shelf so I could check the "solids content" per Danny's recommendation and aside from most of it being really old everything we have is around 38%. We did have a small sample of Ulano Orange that a rep gave us and it says its around 44% so we used it to coat our last round of screens, and burned a couple of them yesterday and once we got the burn time down they looked really good and I could defiantly could feel a better ink gasket!

Nick

[inkman996]

How old is really old?

[Rocfrog]

some of the containers had dates on them of 2007!

Now these are the ones we are using everyday to coat. These are ones that we have just had sitting on the shelf, that I assume they have tried over the years and for what ever reason moved on from. The Ulano Orange I want to say the rep dropped off over the summer some time.

Nick

[JBLUE]

Dispose of all of them and start fresh. The only one that may be any good is the orange.

[inkman996]

some of the containers had dates on them of 2007!

Now these are the ones we are using everyday to coat. These are ones that we have just had sitting on the shelf, that I assume they have tried over the years and for what ever reason moved on from. The Ulano Orange I want to say the rep dropped off over the summer some time.

Nick

Toss them! Or use them for block out.

[Rocfrog]

What about the ones that are the two part emulsions? I can't seem to find a date on those anywhere?

Nick

[alan802]

What about the ones that are the two part emulsions? I can't seem to find a date on those anywhere?

Nick

The shelf life is longer before you add the diazo but it's likely out of date.  I bet the only emulsion you have worth using is the orange.  I didn't like the orange but it's not bad.  I hate the low solids content emulsion.  I wish someone had a dual cure that was upper 40's, low 50's solids.  Anyone know of any?

[Rocfrog]

The shelf life is longer before you add the diazo but it's likely out of date.  I bet the only emulsion you have worth using is the orange.

Interesting....I wonder what the shelf life is on the two part ones because we only order 4 gallons at a a time and I want to say we only order it once maybe twice a year....

Nick

[Orion]

@ Alan, the Murakami Photocure Pro HV comes in at 44% solids. River City Graphics in Austin is a dealer.

[ScreenFoo]

The shelf life is longer before you add the diazo but it's likely out of date.  I bet the only emulsion you have worth using is the orange.

Interesting....I wonder what the shelf life is on the two part ones because we only order 4 gallons at a a time and I want to say we only order it once maybe twice a year....

Nick

I think most manufacturers say somewhere between 30-60 days after sensitizing a DC is the shelf life, but it's just to cover their behinds.  Takes longer to wash out when it's old, and fine details and dots may not work as well, so the older stuff is OK for bold spot designs and such, and unless you store it somewhere hot, will likely at least kind of work for the better part of a year...

[Rocfrog]

Interesting. We don't mix them right away only as needed, but sometimes (especially now) it can sit in the dark room for a month or more because we don't have any work or not enough to use the whole gallon in a month.....

Nick

[ZooCity]

Interesting. We don't mix them right away only as needed, but sometimes (especially now) it can sit in the dark room for a month or more because we don't have any work or not enough to use the whole gallon in a month.....

Nick

Nick, for the work that is typical for you guys, just go with a decent, affordable pure photopolymer/sbq (same thing, photopolymer or "pre-sensitized" are the operative words). They have a shelf life up to a year, are presensitized, shoot quick and typically have the higher solids content.  Get one that you like, dial it in, stick with it and keep the stock fresh.  Don't order 5gal of it, order 4 one gallons or the like and keep it rotating.

You can get away with using older emulsion but it's going to mess with your head and behave differently from new, then the new will mess with you when it comes in and behaves differently from the old.  Better to use it for blockout.

Last off, check out the Ulano EZ films.  This is affordable cap film- the price per sheet is competitive with a similar direct emulsion.  If you can train your crew to apply it properly (very easy, if they can wash a window they can apply cap film) your screens will have very consistent EOM and minimal pinholes from drying in that nasty ass screen cabinet (you can even dry cap film screens upside down) and it has the long shelf life as well.  Not for wb ink and not as durable as direct emulsion but very user friendly.  Might make a good bridge as you work on better screen processes.

[Rockers]

What about the ones that are the two part emulsions? I can't seem to find a date on those anywhere?

Nick

The shelf life is longer before you add the diazo but it's likely out of date.  I bet the only emulsion you have worth using is the orange.  I didn't like the orange but it's not bad.  I hate the low solids content emulsion.  I wish someone had a dual cure that was upper 40's, low 50's solids.  Anyone know of any?

I think CCI might have what you are looking for 46% solids
http://www.ccidom.com/products.php?product=C%252dTEX-HYBRID-DUAL-CURE-WATER-RESIST-EMULSION