adjusting registration after printing?

No its very possible..i do it all the time since my micros slip occasionally

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You don't have to see through the screen to make slight adjustments to registration once a job is in progress. You look at the image, determine what direction the screen has to move, then move it as much as you think appropriate, and check again. Best to throw a test shirt on the platen to do it in case it takes more than one adjustment.

I put a test tube on the press to clear the screen and reset on the rare occasion the initial setup is off

One more thing: make sure it's a screen out of registration, and not a platen with some movement or another press issue.

Thanks, guys. I guess I just don't trust that fixing one portion wouldn't throw out the other side. Maybe the micros on my Hopkins press (not joystick kind) are just not as precise as some others presses, or maybe I just need more practice!

When I first started, I hardly ever used micros. I always did it by eye and if I needed to fine tune it, I would. I found the micros on my press would sometimes move further than I wanted etc. Later when I invested in an auto, micros were necessary. It was very simple to take a look at how much you were off and use the micros on the auto to register the design. Once the ink is the on screen, there's not much else you can do other than get a good feel for the registration of your press and "blindly" adjust whatever is necessary.

Sometimes you can adjust the direction of your print stroke to correct minor registration issues. And if there is an issue with slipping registration, you may want to go over the entire press to make sure everything is tightened (snug not TIGHT) and calibrated. This is a good idea to do periodically anyway.
And if there is not enough contrast with the garment to see through the screen, flash it, take one of the films lay it on the shirt, tape it down then slip a white piece of paper beneath it to contrast the black on the film and re-register to that.

To add to Tom's excellent advice, if you have an image where one half registers, and the other half doesn't, you likely have screen or setup issues--having one screen with more off contact or tension will throw off edge to edge registration as well--and no amount of nudging will make it all register correctly.

Changing print stroke direction? you're cheating.

And I've heard from reps that the joystick micros aren't very well favored by those who have used X-Y axis micros. I haven't tried them, myself.

ScreenFoo said:

Changing print stroke direction? you're cheating.

And I've heard from reps that the joystick micros aren't very well favored by those who have used X-Y axis micros. I haven't tried them, myself.

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Yes, cheating and too lazy to want to stop and go through the trouble!

There was a post a while back. I've heard more thumbs down but there's the occasional rave review of the joystick.

I confess to cheating once. Last year I had a print with a heart drawn with one of the kind of grungy Illustrator brushes. Did my usual choke on the underbase, but no matter what I did, it would register left to right but not up and down, even after reshooting the film with a bit of trap added and a new screen. I "fixed" it by printing on both the pull and push stroke. Sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Solving the problem by finding it is ideal, but when you've gotta get a job out and the correct solution is elusive, well, fudge it a bit.

tpitman said:

...Sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Solving the problem by finding it is ideal, but when you've gotta get a job out and the correct solution is elusive, well, fudge it a bit.

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Especially if it's a run of 50 or less!

Sometimes all you need it to loosen the micros and move the screen into place just using the slack in the micros (don't touch the micro knobs). Even the tightest press will have a tiny amount of slack in the micro. Tighten them back down and they should stay there...

Changing print directions is great too! Sometimes I'll even print at a slight angle instead of straight push/pull.