Discuss the different types of equipment needed for screen printing. Topics include manual screen printing presses, automatic presses, dryers, folding machines, starter kits and high end machines.
I am looking to get a press but do not have the money right now to go for a press with micro registration and i was hoping someone or anyone could tell me how much of a pain in the *** it will be to register a 2 3 or 4 color job?
It is a pain but it can be done. I have heard you can preshrink your paper by running it down the line before printing. Never worked for me When you do your additional colors you will need to use a graphics program that will allow you to shrink your design. In Coreldraw you can shrink your design 99.6 and that will take care of it (or use to for our company) I use to say it was like having a puzzle that you have to recut because the pieces no longer fit. Good luck!
I am looking to get a press but do not have the money right now to go for a press with micro registration and i was hoping someone or anyone could tell me how much of a pain in the *** it will be to register a 2 3 or 4 color job?
thanks
If you're looking to get in the business of screen printing, don't buy a press without micros.
If you're doing this as a hobby, it's fine to buy one without micros, BUT it will be a huge pain to register multi color prints. Also try buying a side clamp press, the registration is tighter.
If you're doing this to print your own clothing line, forget about ittttt!. Outsource the prints to a professional print company. You'll waste more time and money then it's worth by printing it yourself.
The first press I bought was the table top press from Ryonet without micros. I used a hammer to register, and the screen wouldn't stay registered for 3-4 prints. What a nightmare, the next week after I bought it, I bought another press lol. Now the table top press has been sitting there collecting dust.
I had an old hopkins without micros and multi color jobs were no problem to setup. Nowadays most presses have micros and the ones that don't are just cheap and even if they did they still wouldn't hold registration good.
thanks for the responses, i would love to pick an RH press but just dont have the money for it right now. I will try to wait and see if i can save some money and hold out and get something nicer.
I am brand new to the screen printing world and this site, so please excuse my ignorance but can you purchase some sort of add-on micro registration?
Go to Home Page and watch his videos about the microtuners and see if you get any ideas. I don't know any reason that his micro tuners wouldn't be able to work on a cheep rotary press with a little shade tree engineering. good luck. Terry
They do work. I pulled my hair out ALL weekend trying to register two screens. I realize I'm a print designer so I'm used to my jobs coming off the press perfect. Screen printing is just DIFFERENT! BUT those side tuner things work. I didn't buy this system. I basically made my own. They work GREAT! I currently have two mounted on each frame up toward where most of my art work lands. I've spun the machine...pushed and pulled...even knocked it with head (DON'T ASK!) and it stayed in perfect registration WITH the side tuners.
I'm considering putting two more on the frames toward the head area...not at the end...but space about the same distance from the corners. This way I can adjust any art that lands lower and be able to HOLD that too.
By doing that I can use the clamps at the head to really just hold the frame in place. I've been using a Spring Clamp at the head to help hold the frame...it also is a great little squeege rest.
registration without micos... 
When you do your additional colors you will need to use a graphics program that will allow you to shrink your design. In Coreldraw you can shrink your design 99.6 and that will take care of it (or use to for our company) I use to say it was like having a puzzle that you have to recut because the pieces no longer fit. Good luck!
Terry
