Equipment/Screenprinting

Equipment

Screenprinting frame:

• Hinge clamps to hold frame
• Reversable bed with:
  • Hinged platen for printing larger t-shirts, tote bags etc.
  • Flat surface for printing onto paper and other single-layer materials

Print-drying rack 20 spring-loaded A2 wire shelves

Plan chest A1 primarily for storage of papers and flat items. Currently in use for screen-drying until a dedicated rack is constructed.

Screens outer w x h (max printable area w x h)

• 1 x 31cm x 32cm (21cm x 22cm)
• 2 x 45cm x 58cm (35cm x 48cm)
• 3 x 56cm x 77cm (40cm x 60cm)

Squeegees

Textile printing (D or V-profile blades):

• 1 x 8" width, V-profile blade
• 1 x 12" width, V-profile blade
• 1 x 38cm width, round profile blade (best suited to textiles)

Paper/other non-textile printing (square-profile blades):

• 1 x 8" width
• 1 x 12" width

Other small tools:

• Palette knife (for transferring ink to/from the screen)

Protective clothing:

• Printer's aprons (2)

Set-up items

Workbench, drying area and storage

• Adjustable-height bench (as in craft room but somewhat deeper) -- 2 x Finnvard trestles or sheet with screw adjusters (found)
• Space to store screens -- can be a vertical space, also under the table

Small tools and accessories

• Palette knife for transferring ink to/from screens
• Hose for tap to help with screen washout
• Additional artists' aprons (1 or 2? kids' one too?)
• Additional airtight plastic pots for mixing and storing ink
• Honesty box

Consumables

Supplies

• Unprinted newsprint paper, A2 sheets (500)

For test printing and creation of paper stencils (using manual cutting or lasercutter) This is not considered 'stock' as it is not fade-proof and not suited to making finished products

• Washing-up liquid

User stock

Inks/paints

• Acrylic print medium (paper/general use)
• Acrylic print medium (fabric)
• Acrylic pigments for colour mixing: Black, white, yellow, red, blue
• Pre-formulated fabric inks (e.g., Permaset Aqua Fabric Magic) in a few basic colours

Papers

• A2+ 250gsm printing paper. 27 sheets @ £1.30 per sheet.

Issues to be resolved to commission

• First-aid equipment on the wall above the bench. Could this be moved closer to or above the sink?
• How to charge for materials Suggestion is to charge for paper by size rather than ink.

Stencils made on the vinyl cutter would be charged as for other vinyl cutting.

• Methods to Allow/Support
  • Printing methods
    • Allow only Water-based printing -- oil-based methods require toxic products, specialist disposal, ventilation etc.
    • Allow printing using any screens which have stencils compatible with water-based inks. This includes photo-stencils created offsite.

• • Stencil-making methods

The following dry stencil-making methods will be trained or recommended:

• Paper-cut stencils

Using the thin newsprint paper provided, stencils can be made by manual cutting (or tearing) using scalpels or scissors. For trained users, lasercutting can also be used.

• Vinyl-cut stencils

Based on trial sessions, recommend using vinyl on the squeegee side for durability of stencil. Needs care when weeding especially on small details and lettering.

Note: We cannot reliably support photo-stencil creation, mainly because it requires a space which is guaranteed to be dark during the exposure. A small darkroom or walk-in cupboard would be needed for this, and a light-safe screen-drying rack. If there is demand, this is something we could think about, maybe for the future space.

• What classification?

Safe enough to be green but maybe should be orange as would like opportunities to make people aware of good practices to avoid wastage and ruined screens when sharing the equipment. Posters above the area would be useful to remind people to washout immediately after use etc.

• Training session formats

Probably need to run sessions focusing on either fabric or paper printing. If trainees need to demonstrate their learning then sessions will probably be 2-3 people for around 3 hours.

• Storage of screens during work in progress Printing several colours may take longer than one session, as each colour needs to dry. So a user should label their screens with a name and date on masking tape. The policy on re-using screens could be similar to the private stock cupboard.

• Determine thread-count of screen mesh

Needed to determine approximate resolution and expected results with particular inks and squeegees