[NastyN8]

Good evening users,
I am getting so frustrated and I don't know what to do, so I figured I would seek the help from the experts.
I bought a 2 color press on Craigslist. It came with 2 screens, and all he chemicals needed for prep and cleaning (I.E. emulsion remover, screen wash, degreaser, ghost image remover....). I personally have bought 3 more screens, 3 water color inks, 3 plastisol inks, new emulsion, and some other misc items.

I believe the screen included to be about 1-2 years old as they have some give.

We have exposed 5 screens and can't get a single print out of them which is clean.

First, we tack the shirts down with spray adhesive, but the screens stick to the shirts when printing and then the print is all tacky.

Second, the ink isn't flooding properly, the squeegee is new but when I pull to flood the screen the ink is like sparse and not moving with the squeegee.

Third, our prints aren't solid, parts are missing ink completely and then by the time we've hit the screen 3 times to fill in those areas the other portion of the image is like a dime thick.

Fourth, clean up is an absolute terror! These videos make screen cleaning look to easy with shop towels and spray wash but it's not working as shown.

Fifth, I can never seem to get the emulsion completely out of a screen using a high pressure one nozzle. I have a 500 watt lamp which is 24" away from the screen, I exposed a 11x15" design for 16 minues hit the screen with my nozzle and it just isn't working too well. Takes like 29 minutes to get the emulsion out.

I'm so frustrated, and I don't know what to do.

The screens I've printed on are the older 110 mesh screens but still..... I have one brand new 110 mesh screen ready to expose tomorrow but I needed some help before hand.

ANY HELP? PLEASE!
I'm stating to hate this hobby And I dont want to!

 

[NastyN8]

I just typed this on my iPad and didn't realize how many typos ere in the post. I apologize about that ahead of time.

 

[TYGERON]

This is just a copy and paste answer of mine to another post very similar to yours. Everything applies.

If you're at a point where you're frustrated, I suggest you put the squeegee down, walk away from the press and go do something relaxing and take your mind off screen printing for a while.

When you come back to it, don't even look at a screen or ink or piece of equipment until you've either purchased a comprehensive screen printing course on DVD, read a book or watched a Youtube series that covers the process from start to finish. Or better yet, work with a mentor and get some one-on-one direction.
Make sure you are clear on exactly what is being done and why, then go at it again. A good instructional method should address the issues you're having and may encounter.

It's like taking drivers training, using a simulator, then getting behind the wheel.

A forum member posted awhile back that she studied a video series, did everything it said to do and she experienced none of the common beginner issues. She of course is quite exceptional

I don't want to make it sound too easy. But there's an order and technique to the whole process.

It really is fun.

Let it be fun

 

[NastyN8]

My brother and I are both trying to print with our current set up as listed above. We own about 12 discs worth of printing from silk screening 101 by Ryonet to printing with water based ink. I could tell you by memory every step in printing, but it's not coming out as seen in these videos.

We've probably watched over 9 straight hours of video.

 

[wormil]

Watch them again. Better yet, go take a screenprinting class or pay someone locally who is experienced (5+ years) to come teach you. It's possible to learn from videos but videos can't see your hands on mistakes and tell you where you went wrong. How many times have you been in a class, the teacher gave clear instructions and half the people still did it wrong, the other half did it half right, only one or two get it right off the bat.

 

[Tonyt79]

I gave up early. Did 2 jobs and found out it was way more work than I thought. If you can figure it out then keep going. Every time I go pick up shirts at my contract printer I wish I did it

 

[20vK]

If your emulsion is not washing out (ie the places where the ink will pass through onto the shirt) then this is going to effect ALL your prints.

Take things step by step and make sure each one is perfect before you progress:


First, we tack the shirts down with spray adhesive, but the screens stick to the shirts when printing and then the print is all tacky. - Why is the screen sticking to the shirt? Does the screen feel tacky before you even print? Maybe your screens are not dry before you expose them

Second, the ink isn't flooding properly, the squeegee is new but when I pull to flood the screen the ink is like sparse and not moving with the squeegee. - ink needs to be moved around before it will flow. THink of ketchup. Crap. untill you shake it up and get some energy into it, then it moves around. your plastisol ink is the same. My black and white inks are super thick until I stir the CRAP out of them. Then they start to "flow"

Third, our prints aren't solid, parts are missing ink completely and then by the time we've hit the screen 3 times to fill in those areas the other portion of the image is like a dime thick. - look at your emulsion washout ie is the stencil clear of emulsion BEFORE you even print. if you do a flood (filling the stencil with ink) make sure you perform enough strokes to get the ink from the screen onto the shirt BEFORE you do another flood stroke. If your flood is rubbish, you are never going to get a decent print. What squeegie are you using? I use a 70 durometer at least 1 inch wider on both sides than my printed design. Make sure your squeegie angle is not too low - keep it more vertical so 1 sharp edge of the squeegie sheers the ink. apply enough pressure onto the shirt too. If the squeegie is more horizontal, your print will be rubbish

Fourth, clean up is an absolute terror! These videos make screen cleaning look to easy with shop towels and spray wash but it's not working as shown. - card up all the excess ink. really scrape it up. I use disposable cards from Ryan Moor - silkscreensupplies.com SOme people just use their squeegie. Once really clean, then use an old t-shirt to mop up excess ink. paper towels are rubbish for me. then spray ink cleaner - I use the enviroline series, again from ryonet, and mop up with t-shirt again. Job done. clean screen. happy printer

Fifth, I can never seem to get the emulsion completely out of a screen using a high pressure one nozzle. I have a 500 watt lamp which is 24" away from the screen, I exposed a 11x15" design for 16 minues hit the screen with my nozzle and it just isn't working too well. Takes like 29 minutes to get the emulsion out.


On washing out or removing the emulsion??
To remove emulson after print:

what emulsion remover are you using? Again, I use enviroline series. Spray it on. hardly even scrub it before it starts breaking down the emulsion. spray with pressure washer, then work on the drips that inevitably take more work. Still no big deal though. Make sure your emulsion and emulsion remover are compatible. Make sure you are not spraying any chemicals that will lock in the emulsion before you clean it off


FOr washout to create your stencil:

I spray both sides of the screen with water. THen walk away - maybe start to expose your next screen! Leave it for 1 minute - 1 min is longer than you think so use a timer. Then start to spray the screen again, this time with a little pressure. I use a variable spray head on a hose - NO PRESSURE WASHER. By this time the emulsion should start to wash out. if it doesn't YOU are doing something wrong! Have you performed a step test to determine your exposure times? WHat happened? If you have not, like I said at the beginning. Start slow and methodically go through everything - coat screens in darkroom, drying of screens, good strong dark positives, sufficient but not excessive exposure with good positive contact, washout in dark room, drying of screens, tape up, mix crap of ink, nice flood stroke, good print stroke.

Richie

 

[reugenio]

this might help...

Reasons for shirts sticking on to screen from my experience
1. not enough tension on screen....
2. off contact is too low. tape 2 quarters to the top of the screen closest to u.

Uneven printing???
1. calibrate your machine ASAP... VERY IMPORTANT (DONT SKIP ANY STEP, unless u want more headaches) Manual Press Calibration | Printwear

Are you using water and power washer only?
1. buy reclaim solution. It will take only a min or 2 to remove emulsion.

Jus adding this in because buying this prevented a lot of headaches for me as a starter...
Buy a stouffer 21 step screen printing calculator for $8-12 for all screen burned in the future... set it between registrations if multi-color.

 

[beanie357]

I think you are describng all the issues we first experienced.
Go back and start with the prepress. The exposure calculator is invaluable.
I think to start you have emulsion left in the screen.
I think your off contact is too low.
Your emulsion may be bad, if it came with your kit, it's probably too old.
We finally went back to square one and did each step over, and finally got great results. We also went to Vastex for training, and the idea fo bringing in a consultant for a day is excellent.
It's usually a whole lot of little things on each step that end up creating a pull your hair out at the end situation.

 

[TYGERON]

Make sure you don't let all the info here make you feel like you're the only one not getting it...LOL!

On the contrary, what you're being told is that all these folk have been there and gotten past where you are so you and your brother can too!

Except Tony. He'll come back to it when he gets tired of paying his printer money he could be keeping in his own pocket...LOL!!

ALL the info here is sage and dead on point.

Where are you located?

 

[TshirtStan]

Tyger Ron is on track. It's not easy and there are a lot of variables. People watch me print shirts and they think they can do it. I give them the squeegee and..... Boom.... A print that describes what you are talking about. It takes time and practice. It took me about 3 months to get it right. Then about 4 years to get a great handle on it. I uses to mess up about 10 percent of the shirts I printed. Now I am at about half a percent. I have printed 14000 shirts in 5 years of printing.... I have made all the major mistakes at least once!!

 

[reugenio]

I know beanie357 said an exposure calculator is invaluable but as a starter TRUST ME you need one. When you start experimenting with different screens, how would u know what ur next exposure time? Plus the screen is where the design is and if u cant make a proper screen, you wont make ideal prints. How do u know if you are even burning the screens right, right now?

 

[JeridHill]

There are so many variables that could be effecting what is happening. You did a good job explaining your issues, but again, with so many variables, it's not easy to pin down any one thing. Here is the best I can help out with what to go on.

First, we tack the shirts down with spray adhesive, but the screens stick to the shirts when printing and then the print is all tacky.

1. If you are printing white ink or an opaque ink on dark colors, the ink may be too thick. You might need to stir it up a bit and try to get it to smoothen out. Some people will place the gallon (or smaller) of ink on a warm heat source like a flash unit or conveyer dryer. Let it sit on top for 15 - 20 minutes then stir it up and see if it loosens.

2. If you are using the flash unit as a dryer, then the platens could be getting too hot. If they are too hot, the ink starts to close up in the screen and can cause the results you are getting.

3. Check your off contact. If you are too high and trying to push all this ink through the screen and your squeegee angles are off (more angled than 75 - 80 degrees), then you could be pushing the ink through heavier than you need too. This could cause the extra build up and not releasing from the screen well enough.

4. Screens could be too loose and cause the same effect as above. My guess is, if the screens are only 1 year old, it's more likely to be 1 - 3.

Second, the ink isn't flooding properly, the squeegee is new but when I pull to flood the screen the ink is like sparse and not moving with the squeegee.

1. The ink needs stirred and loosened up, as per above suggestions.

2. The screens may not be fully dried and there is still moisture trapped in the emulsion. This in theory could be repelling the ink and not allowing it to flood properly. (My guess is number 1)

Third, our prints aren't solid, parts are missing ink completely and then by the time we've hit the screen 3 times to fill in those areas the other portion of the image is like a dime thick.

1. Squeegee angles are wrong and inconsistent. I would go closer to 90 degrees vertical then angle back slightly. When you are printing, think about the pressure you are applying on both hands and you will be able to achieve a better print.

2. Your screen could be under exposed. If this is the case, you are not getting the ink to flow through the areas that aren't fully opened up.

3. Ink is too thick and needs to loosen.

4. Off contact too high. Your off contact should only be about 2 quarters thick. Off contact would be the distance of your screen to the shirt.

5. Your screen could be warmed up from the platen and closing up as well.

6. Your screen mesh could be too high for your ink. But it looks like it's 110, which should be fine.

You should only have to push or pull ink through one time, especially with flood coating.

Fourth, clean up is an absolute terror! These videos make screen cleaning look to easy with shop towels and spray wash but it's not working as shown.

Not sure what chemicals you are using, but you can spray an ink degradant on the screen after you remove the thick deposits. Then scrub it down in the sink with water and a brush. The degradant will break down the inks so where they are safe to wash down the sink, but you will want to find the right ones. I think Franmar makes great chemicals for this, they are soy based and work really well. After you scrub it down, spray it clean, then apply an emulsion remover to the screen and scrub it in on both sides. This will break it down quickly, then spray it down with a pressure washer.

You can then use a dehazer and degreaser afterwards, make sure you don't touch the screen at this point or you won't be able to coat the emulsion evenly.

Fifth, I can never seem to get the emulsion completely out of a screen using a high pressure one nozzle. I have a 500 watt lamp which is 24" away from the screen, I exposed a 11x15" design for 16 minues hit the screen with my nozzle and it just isn't working too well. Takes like 29 minutes to get the emulsion out.

1. Are you using an emulsion remover like mentioned above? If not, this could definitely happen.

2. If you are using an emulsion remover, don't let it dry on the screen, you lock the emulsion in place and this could easily happen. After you apply the emulsion remover, again, scrub it in with a brush on both sides, then use a pressure washer to remove the emulsion after a couple of minutes.

As already said, don't back away. If you look over each of these points and find the commonality between them, most likely the resolution should be easy enough to find. I'm sure we could look at more variables than this, but this should be a good start to go back and revisit what you are doing. Good luck.