screen printing > Tips and Tricks to Share (Please don't ask questions here)
Heresy for screen printing
DouglasGrigar:
Now that replaceable screen mesh panels are more commonly available...
The smaller the shop the more time efficient you need to be, every moment you are not printing you are NOT making money.
How about not cleaning and reclaiming screens... just replace the screen panels, there are panels for both roller frames and the preset hybrid square frames like the Shur-loc EZ.
You do not have to throw away the panels, save them for slow time to reclaim, or put adds out to sell them!
Add cap film and your prep time is lower (fewer drying steps with the wet degreaser/prep chemical application) and a small shop can be up and printing faster and not spending time reclaiming.
You cannot just count the reclaim time but the lost production, it is not an idea that will fit everyone but in some cases can be the most time efficient profitable way to run a small or one-person shop.
blue moon:
Hey Doug,
my first reaction is that new panels have to be washed before use and the time spent doing it is not mach less than actually reclaiming a screen. With some of the 300+ mesh panels going for $30+, I can't see the math working in my favor here (if disposing, selling or reclaiming later though it is worth thinking about).
You are a numbers guy, how does your math work here?
pierre
Evo:
Hmm.
My screen reclaim times are shaved pretty low now. I have a dip tank, and then I use a one step dehaze/degrease, then it's off to the screen room with warm, dry filtered air.
The re-claim times are down to about 1.5 minutes or less for each screen, and the coating goes real quick. Production continues while screens are drying, etc.
Stopping to remove tape and replace panels for single color jobs? No thanks.
DouglasGrigar:
--- Quote from: blue moon on May 13, 2011, 11:44:53 PM ---Hey Doug,
my first reaction is that new panels have to be washed before use and the time spent doing it is not mach less than actually reclaiming a screen. With some of the 300+ mesh panels going for $30+, I can't see the math working in my favor here (if disposing, selling or reclaiming later though it is worth thinking about).
You are a numbers guy, how does your math work here?
pierre
--- End quote ---
With cap films, you degrease and apply while wet then dry and then expose...
You have to degrease regardless it removes the reclaiming or diverts that time when available.
So how long does it take to collect the screens, place them into the tank, reclaim and go back to printing?
How many shirts can be printed in that time.
This Heresy is specific, may not work in many shops, and evokes lots of emotional resistance.
It is a very targeted idea that works well in busy small shops.
DouglasGrigar:
--- Quote from: Evo on May 13, 2011, 11:49:42 PM ---Hmm.
My screen reclaim times are shaved pretty low now. I have a dip tank, and then I use a one step dehaze/degrease, then it's off to the screen room with warm, dry filtered air.
The re-claim times are down to about 1.5 minutes or less for each screen, and the coating goes real quick. Production continues while screens are drying, etc.
Stopping to remove tape and replace panels for single color jobs? No thanks.
--- End quote ---
Exactly how low in time?
And as blue moon noted you do not have to dispose of the mesh, it can be a low day job, and could even be used in conjunction with ?soak tubes? and dip tank chemicals.
It is not for everyone but in the correct shop it works wonders, the small shops are the most likely to benefit the most, but it will not fit every shop.
Other considerations can be in place, including shops that cannot or should not reclaim because of sewage disposal issues.
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