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screen printing => Equipment => Topic started by: ZooCity on March 14, 2013, 09:07:43 PM
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What are you all using?
I have religiously stuck with 70/90/70 blades using a push stroke for plastisol on the manual and for plastisol transfers and some paper prints on the clamshell.
60 and 60/90/60 duro, pull stroke (this is rough on the body) for DC and WB on the manual. Also use a 70 with a pull sometimes but just b/c there is a lot of 70 still kicking around the shop.
"Manny" blades with a pull stroke using the bevel for higher detail DC and WB.
I'm trying to decide what to toss on the auto. All together have an epic amount of squeegees (thanks brad, bill faust) going on and while I could make a set for at least three different duros since it's only a six head, I'm intrigued by these dual durometer blades. It would be cool to have something like a 55/75 that would have good flex characteristics and two totally different blade edges that you could just flip on press.
Also, Dr J blades- worth it on the auto? I like the Manny blades and get the concept but the cost is intense. You do get the flip it around benefit with these as well I suppose.
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I use 72/90/72. Love them. i have some straight 70's right now and they are way too soft.
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I use 72/90/72. Love them. i have some straight 70's right now and they are way too soft.
72/90/72 is that just harder then a 70/90/70 :D
I like 65/90/65 for top colors and plastisol white when its thick.
I like softer ones for WD and DC I like 55/90/55 for DC white.
Blade selection has something to do with your pallets its the soft/hard combo that works. I have a MHM and hard aluminum pallets so I tend to like softer blades then others. If you have rubber top pallets then you will like a harder blade. soft/hard combo. Its the same for fleece soft material so a harder blade works better. IMO
Did the press fit?
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70 single and 75 single for plastisol prints on tshirts up to 5 colors wow with white base
65/95/65 for poly bases, sometimes hoodies or water base printing
smiling jack bevel for 1 fast hit of waterbase / discharge underbases etc
one thing I don't like about using a lot of triple duro or triple duro on regular prints is the angle needs to be greater (less print area, platens need to be out a bit further) and I don't see a quality increase
perhaps I would on more process / sim process but I haven't had a quality issue with what I use
using S mesh probably makes the triples not matter so much for me, lot less pressure so I don't have to worry about buckling
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The press fit like a glove...a very tight glove. Installed a new screw compressor today hoping to begin setup on the gauntlet next week but have to many orders flying in, wish that press was running now! Look good just sitting there though. It's going to be forking great.
I prefer the 70/90/70 as a push stroke manual printer. We'll see how I feel about it on the auto. I do like having that backbone which offers more blade control and repeatability in any application and then the soft stuff on the outside, it's a good combo it seems and I use 70/90/70 on our auto flatstock press with good results but that thing is definitely printing with high pressure.
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If for any benefit, when I worked at any of my larger shops, we used 70/90/70 on all halftone work. I don't remember one job where we didn't on halftones but we did use lower duro for special effect inks of course. but never REAL low. I just can't imagine the benefit of some flexible blade that you can pick up and bend yourself so easily.
We had a slight rubber padding on our pallets also. We used those same blades for sim process (on sweats). But the intent was to maintain the image detail and not so much to fill in the weave. They looked more airy compared to tees but a light feel. We would lay down more ink on the underbase. Sometimes adding in another screen for a 2nd white underbase but we had the space on press and the quantity was about 700 units per item as a min order. Most orders were 1000 or more.
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I got a bunch of different blades in house but the majority of our work is done with smiling jacks and mannys. I've also got a 75 & 85 duro double bevel and some special blades I've tested that I really like. I prefer the blades from Joe Clarke with the bevel built in so we can run our angles close to 90 degrees. You can print faster and with less pressure with a blade built like the smiling jack or manny and still get the ink deposit you're looking for. Plus the blades are two blades in one, and they last a lot longer...plug over.
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different jobs call for different blades.
White gets 55/90/55.
top colors start with a 65/90/75 on the 65 side and very rarely get changed. The angles for spots are usually what ever was left from the last job.
For sim process we reset the angles and speeds and start with the 65 side of the 65/90/75. We adjust the angles with it first and if we need less ink we flip it over to the 75 side. Combination of two duros, pressure, angles and speed gives us almost a 20% range in the deposit. Most seps can be printed right away and still achieve excellent color correctness with such high adjustment range.
'have not tried the specialty blades yet, but hopefully will by the end of the year. Really need to talk to JC next time he is in town!
pierre
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I really believe that one can gear a print to look good (from what they are using). You can work with what ya got. Meaning, A shop can get the print to look good using 70 and then be forced to use a 70/90/70 on a re-order...and tweak things on press to get it dialed in to look like the print done with a 70. Same thing applies to a degree with mesh. You could be doing a job with a 230 mesh and get the same results using a 305 mesh by slowing the print stroke down, changing the angle or changing out the squeegee. etc. and visa vera if halftone line count allows.
IN the end tho. Those are work arounds. The real key is maintaining documentation and repeatability. Consistency from order to re-order. Many skip that process and assume the task of doing all of the trial and error of dialing in again as part of the norm. Setup times can be reduced in half as a result of press setup documentation.
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I had a white ink job last week, black and green shirts for St. Patricks Day for a bar in Georgia, and while I was waiting for my dryers to heat up, I swapped out a soft 70 that I've had for 8 years with a new 70/90/70 blade. Damn near a 1-hit white. I couldn't believe the difference. Redid all my 12 and 14 inch squeegees last night with the new material. I've had that roll sitting around for a year, too lazy to swap them out. Those new blades are really stiff in comparison to the 70s that were getting way too soft. You can just about feel every thread of the mesh as it passes over the stencil.
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Pretty much all I've been using on the auto and manual is 70/90/70. I find they are significantly better that a straight 70.
I started sampling Joe Clarke's squeegees. I think there can be an advantage there, but they will take some time to really dial them in. Alan, seems like he will be the resident expert here.
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All triples here too. 55/90/55, 65/90/65, 70/90/70's.
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I had a white ink job last week, black and green shirts for St. Patricks Day for a bar in Georgia, and while I was waiting for my dryers to heat up, I swapped out a soft 70 that I've had for 8 years with a new 70/90/70 blade. Damn near a 1-hit white. I couldn't believe the difference. Redid all my 12 and 14 inch squeegees last night with the new material. I've had that roll sitting around for a year, too lazy to swap them out. Those new blades are really stiff in comparison to the 70s that were getting way too soft. You can just about feel every thread of the mesh as it passes over the stencil.
Don't forget how much that nice sharp edge changes things too...
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Started Testing JC Smiling Jack. Trying different angels to get it dial, and I still think I'm having to use too much pressure.
Using Beveled edge on UB and DC. Started with 0-5 angle (almost straight up and down).
Moving to 10-15 next
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I had a white ink job last week, black and green shirts for St. Patricks Day for a bar in Georgia, and while I was waiting for my dryers to heat up, I swapped out a soft 70 that I've had for 8 years with a new 70/90/70 blade. Damn near a 1-hit white. I couldn't believe the difference. Redid all my 12 and 14 inch squeegees last night with the new material. I've had that roll sitting around for a year, too lazy to swap them out. Those new blades are really stiff in comparison to the 70s that were getting way too soft. You can just about feel every thread of the mesh as it passes over the stencil.
Don't forget how much that nice sharp edge changes things too...
The one thing that most forget about. Sharp edge is super important and should be the first priority on ones squeegees.
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And what are you using to cut the blade?
I usually just use a fresh box cutter blade but it ain't always pretty.
Then I have these bastards, both of which need new blades very badly. I was thinking of getting new blade for the corner rounder, that's sweet having consistency there, and necessary so you don't limit your image area by accident.
But then instead of keeping the crank style cutter, maybe a tiny miter saw, like something cheapo from harbor freight, with a fine tooth blade so you could trim the squeegee right flush to the holder. I dunno.
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We have always just cut our blades with a miter saw. Good idea? Who knows? Probably not the best, but it works!
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I like miter saw, gonna try it. Cheaper than the cutters and hey, now you have a miter saw too.
Where do you all buy your smilin' jack/manny/dr j? ryonet is the only supplier in my area with them and the 16" Jacks are $56, mannys and dr. js $61.
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These craftsman cutters cut squeegee blades like butter with a super clean edge, and very inexpensive, after using them it makes no sense to me to do it any other way:
http://www.craftsman.com/craftsman-3-7-8-in-handi-cut/p-00937301000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1 (http://www.craftsman.com/craftsman-3-7-8-in-handi-cut/p-00937301000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1)
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Awesome, that looks like the $120 jobby the sq co sells.
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We use this:
(http://gallery.flybc.ca/albums/stuff/IMG_6814_2_1.jpg)
Of course we use it for more than just squeegees......
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WOW, that Craftsman tool looks like a winner!!!! I'll try one of those.
pierre
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I almost bought the following but at $50 bucks I kindly refused.
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Razor blade