Hi. i was hoping anyone reading this would willingly share "any" and "all" substitutes or alternatives to any aspect of screen printing. this includes: chemicals,equipment,methods,supplies,and just little tips and corner cuts that make life in screen printing cheaper , easier, and more fun!!!!! just use this post to "go off" on anything you want that will help educate or enlighten the screen printer from novice to pro!!!!!!!!!THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!!!!!!!!
The number one thing is that you get what you pay for!!!! Buy good quality equipment and you will not regret it.
OK, tips.
There are a lot of solvents that you can buy at your local hardware store or paint shop that will clean or open screens in stead of the aerosol cans sold buy many suppliers.
Do buy the screen tapes that your suppliers sells and don't use masking tape. Masking tape leaves a glue on your frames and you will spend more time and money removing the glue than the money you might be saving.
Use platen tape for your platens and use water based glue (thinned down with 50%water) instead of the spray glue. This is cheaper and much cleaner.
Buy a good pressure washer, a good exposure unit and a good printer for your films.
Go to a good trade show and take classes, you will meet other people that will trade techniques with you, plus you will learn something from the class.
Retensionable frames are cheaper than static frames in the long run.
Keep good records on every print you do!!! Color, mesh, squeegee, amount of strokes, placement...
Ink goes on the shirt, not in the shirt. Don't push the ink into the fibers of the garment, learn to print on top of the fibers not in the fibers.
These are a few of the things I learned the hard way, I'm sure others can chime in on many others.
Remember this can be fun and challenging at the same time. Don't give up, if something is not working ask someone or try something else.
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Mike
If you dig ditches be the best ditch digger you can be.
I just got through saying on another thread exacty what Mike is saying. You get what you pay for and there are only a few exceptions to this rule when it comes to screen printing.
Mike suggested a lot of good things to get you going. One thing I did was purchase an ebook by Bill Hood. It is written in a way that is easy to understand and covers just about everything you need. He has several books and I can't remember the exact title of the one I got.
"any" and "all" substitutes or alternatives to any aspect of screen printing
Then I would answer have plastisol transfer made for you. No screen printing, no chemicals. No clean-up. No screens. No storage of screens. No stocking ink. No buying equipment. I think there is a long list that is why many of us use plastisol transfers. Lou
I personally only use transfers for a few things - mostly team numbers - but that's because I enjoy screen printing. The screened transfers are nice though.
Tape-wise, I prefer the blue painter's tape for smaller runs (under 100 pieces) because it comes off easily and doesn't leave a residue. For large runs I use a heavy clear packing tape (not the thin stuff - it leaves an adhesive residue) as the painter's tape loosens up after a while.
If you use a run-of-the-mill laser printer for your separations, Casey's Page Mills offers a translucency paper that is great for one-color jobs. It's cheap and holds up well. It will give you a few problems with multi-colors though... the paper tends to shrink a bit while going through the printer, so butt-registrations are a challenge.
Good squeegees are a must. I have several with fat handles that make a world of difference at the end of a long day. If I use the thinner squeegees, my hands ache pretty bad after a while.
The guy upstairs from me has a sign & trophy shop. Whenever he cuts the metal plates for plaques, he saves the trimmed excess for me. The scraps are usually about 6 or 8 inches long and maybe 2 inches wide, and they are awesome for scraping ink off squeegees and screens.
Spend the money for a temp gun. Could save you a ton of heartburn. Same with a spot-removal gun.
I would caution you about using some solvents from the hardware store. Mineral spirits and other hot solvents can cause the emulsion to lock up in the mesh. Pure photopolymer emulsions are the worst for this. The only thing I use from the hardware store is Simple Green, diluted way down for final degreasing before letting the reclaimed screen dry. Other than that, most screen printing chemistry is reasonably priced, works far better than most "hardware store" substitutions, and is less inclined to render that expensive mesh useless. I've lost screens after cleaning with mineral spirits that couldn't be cleared with a pressure washer, bleach, stencil remover, atomic bombs or anything else.
I also use the blue painters tape, and take it off as soon as I'm done printing. I've tried the packaging tape and it leaves adhesive on the inside edges of the frames, and that tends to stick to the vacuum blanket of my exposure unit. I only tape the front and back edges of the frame. No need to tape the sides. Block out liquid is also a cheap alternative to tape on the sides if you're sloppy with the squeegie and washes right out.
Equipment wise, get the best you can afford. No one ever regrets buying a good press, and good ones come up used all the time . . . usually at half what they cost new, depending on how old they are. I bought my 4-month old press at 2/3 the cost new. There was not a mark on it.
If you make your own exposure unit, make it with a rubber blanket and fit it with a vacuum to pull the blanket down tight to the mesh/film/glass. This is by far the most important feature you can add to an exposure unit.
Mineral spirits is "not" a hot solvent and is safe to use. But you are entirely correct that "hot" solvents such as lacquer thinner will lock up pure polymer emulsions.
The reason you may have had problems (and subsequently related it to mineral spirits) is that any screen that is underexposed will exhibit the same results as those on which lacquer thinner has been used. If a screen is underexposed, you may be able to get the emulsion out with haze remover or ordinary bleach. If this fails, I'd suggest reclaiming the screen with a razor blade and replace the mesh before you spend more than the $5 needed to remesh. Of course, that doesn't include labor cost.
Alan, the book that you are referring to that you purchased from me at billhoodbooks.com was Screenprint Solutions eBook. You have also purchased articles, but I am sure that this is the book that you wrote about.
For the Pallet mask, I use 24" transfer tape from my sign shop.
- Scotch brand packing tape is ace, doesn't leave a residue. Its way more money than dollar store tape, but worth it for the time you { or your employees} save
-Craigslist. I know it isnt a Substitute........for anything......But i have pretty much been successful in business because of craigys. Promotion, is key. I have met so many good clients off of that site. Not to mention great deals. For example, Yeah i didnt need a new epson 3000, mine still works fine. But one popped up on Craigys yesterday, and I couldnt turn it down. like 10 full epson brand ink carts, a roll cutter thing, and all software, box manuals, for only 20$ And it was 3 blocks from my shop. Perfect! Ive bought my press, exposure unit, tons of screens, light table, embroidery machines, flash dryers, Ink squeegees, and much more, for much less than retail. Always keep an eye peeled. YOu may not need it now, but if you see a good deal it could come in handy. LIke my HIX hat heat press for 35$. I still havent used that thing more than a couple times, but one day.......
substitutes/alternatives in "screen printing" 
Re: substitutes/alternatives in "screen printing" 
