question on newmans

[Homer]

I am ditching all my panel frames, going over to newman M3 - I bought a dozen frames, a table, and a few bolts of mesh just to get started. I have them all up to 34-40N, which is ridiculous compared to what I have been using . Just in the little handling I did -I put a small hole in one, right on the outside edge, like I banged it against another frame, I guess - what do you guys do to protect the edges from this? Do I use the purple tape and leave it on, or is it something you have to reapply after going through the wash cycle. We use a dip tank so I am not sure if those tapes will hold up? Right now I have a roll of Oracle 651 going around the outside edge, I guess it will work for now but I think I want something more permanent. I hate like hell to "Pull the Al" on the guys after busting mesh for a year. thanks guys!

[balloonguy]

I use layered pieces of gorilla tape. It is very thick duct tape. It helps. You can super glue a small piece of mesh over that hole. Glue it down as smoothly as you can. You may have to get your finger stuck a little but it will help.
Matt

[Fluid]

The purple tape if it came with your frames should hold for a couple cleanings. They do make roller mesh guards yet can get pretty messy depending on how you work.   Using gorilla tape will work as mentioned yet can leave some goo when time to re mesh yet the time cleaning as apposed to the amount of mesh saved is well worth it.

Also if you find yourself getting some small holes here and there try using clear fingernail polish. Dab it on and let it dry for a bit.  Will hep to stop them from ripping into bigger holes yet you will not be able to restretch.

[tancehughes]

Homer you need the Newman Yellow Mesh Protect Tape. It is designed specifically to protect the mesh around the edges. I wouldn't use any other tape around the edges but the Yellow Mesh Tape.

[ebscreen]

You'll find a bit of debate and disagreement on this subject. We've used just about
everything under the sun. I'll lay it out for you:


Roller Protectors - expensive, adds gap between mesh and glass, messy, obnoxious.

Polyken - expensive, rather durable but extremely hard to remove if it's been on for
any length of time

Newman Yellow - moderately priced, not the best adhesive but still tears into strips on removal

Blue R-Tape - inexpensive, decent adhesive, easy to remove, our current choice



You'll find people that will swear by one of the above and curse users of the rest as cowards and fools.
Get one of each and try them out, see what works best for you. Degrease your screen (or at least clean
the edges) after meshing and before applying tape.

Congratulations on the rollers by the way.

[Parker 1]

We try to leave the protective tape on throughout the reclaiming process, and is removed when frame is retensioned.  Although we do not use a dip tank.  We have tried yellow Newman Tape works well.  We are now trying the Blue R Tape, the verdict is still out.  Like ebscreen stated try everything and see what works best for your shop.   

[tancehughes]

You can leave the Newman Yellow Mesh Protect Tape on for literally hundreds of reclaims, there's no need to pull it off after every use, that gets expensive!

[ebscreen]

I don't know that anything can make it through hundreds of cycles, even the Polyken. The R-Tape makes
it through probably 25 or so, sometimes more, sometimes less. A little more with the Yellow, but the
ease of removal with the blue makes up for it.

We apply tape only as long as the roller, leaving the wrench ends exposed for easy re-tensioning.

[Evo]

I use the blue R-tape until the screen is at final tension, then I apply the yellow Newman tape inside and out. 3" on the outside (print side) corners, 2" on the inside corners. Only apply to a clean, degreased, dry screen. I match the outside and inside edges of the tape and burnish with a Speedball brayer. Once the tape is on there correctly, expect it to last dozens of reclaims in a dip tank.


The white Polyken stuff is evil. It's too tough to get off. I wish there was an in-between tape from the Newman yellow to that stuff.

Gorilla tape is insane. I did one screen with it. I plan on re-meshing that one if I need to remove the tape. It's like the Polyken tape on steroids.

[Homer]

thanks guys -great info. now with all these tapes, do you have to remove them before tightening the screens up or do they manipulate with the mesh? i would assume you have to remove it but man, that's a ton of tape....I guess trial and error is needed, I just hate wasting time if there is a "go to" product out there. thanks again. i'll read up a bit more. J

good idea Evo...I'll try that on the corners.

[alan802]

I love the  polyken chemical resistant tape that most don't like. I find the tradeoff of never having to re-apply the tape over the life of the mesh well worth the extra time to remove it. It isn't that difficult for us to remove anyway, but maybe it's our technique. I take our heat gun and heat up the tape and it usually pulls off without much of a fuss, most times all in one piece.

[Parker 1]

We apply tape only as long as the roller, leaving the wrench ends exposed for easy re-tensioning.

eb, what if any effect does this have on the mesh when re-tensioning?

[bimmridder]

I don't know that anything can make it through hundreds of cycles, even the Polyken. The R-Tape makes
it through probably 25 or so, sometimes more, sometimes less. A little more with the Yellow, but the
ease of removal with the blue makes up for it.

We apply tape only as long as the roller, leaving the wrench ends exposed for easy re-tensioning.

I have screens that have had the same mesh and tape on them well over three years. These screens are used pretty much every two to three days. We use a dip tank in reclaim also. This tape stays on! Yeah, it's a bitch to remove,but if you only do it every few years,it's not bad.It's part of my production loop.

[Tagless Threads]

mmm  Newman frames... We use the yellow tape from screen printers resource and never had a problem with it coming off in the dip tank.

[Chadwick]

As was mentioned, there's alot of opinions on the subject.
Tightly stretched mesh on a frame is fragile if mishandled, and that's just the way it is.
Tape will not save you.
I've been using newman's since I started, and we don't use frame tape, ever.
Treat em as fragile goods, and they won't fail.
If they do, they can be re-meshed, which is the whole point methinks.

.02