[out da box]

Seems like a lot of folks are having problems burning screens lately. I was just thinking that maybe it is the single most difficult task in screen printing.
I remember when I first tried to burn screens outside of my apartment using the sunlight- Jeez what a pain! Couldn't coat my screens smoothly with the proper amount of emulsion.... couldn't find a good spot to dry them, had to wash them out in the bathtub- what a mess! God that episode was horrible! I finally gave up and had a company I used to work for burn a couple of screens for me.
Later I finally built a system that had glass, a vacuum, rubber, and a good light source- voila!
Only serious problem I ever had after that was ultra-high humidity at my mom's house in the room I used to store my sensitized screens.
Like a lot of things in printing, it's just a matter of trial and error. Don't give up and you will eventually conquer exposing screens.

P.S..... It's the vacuum and the light!!!!

 

[Solmu]

I was just thinking that maybe it is the single most difficult task in screen printing.

Probably. Registration and off contact can be a pain, but screen burning probably has them beat. Curing probably comes up in second place.

 

[fdsales]

When burning screens, it has to do with good emulsion, proper exposure unit that has good vacumn & light, and also a good dense film positive or velumn. Also, proper screen prep (emulsion removal using a good removal chemical & power washer & degreasing), plus also having a dry box to dry coated screens in helps also. When it comes to printing verus screen burning, I rather deal w/ the screens and leave the printing to my employees. You can't even begin to get a good print unless the screen is good. Also, we got away from wooden frames long time ago...aluminum is the way to go, and they're now about the same price as wood frames, a lot lighter, and just hold up much better thru repeated reclaiming.