I’m new to VHS and I saw the screen T-shirt printing machine at the shop. Can anybody instruct me about screen printing? What materials do I need? I can buy more colours and donate any left overs to the shop.
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Hey, I am the screen printing guy.
Unfortunately, I am too busy these days to make it down to the shop much. but i can point you in the right direction.
Screen printing is best for mass production. if you want to make less than 10 of something, I highly recommend using the vinyl cutter.
The local screen print supplier is https://www.thescreenprintstore.ca/
While it is technically possible to create the screen at the hackspace, it is the hardest and most error prone step. I would recommand getting a screen pre-made at the screen printing store.
Once you have a screen made, the process is super easy. you can learn a lot from https://www.youtube.com/c/Ryonetplus
Hope that is enough to get you started.
Thanks Yeungx. I’m interested in screen printing because of a Youtube. I’ve never done it but it’s on my bucket list to try. Since The equipment is there, let me assess the material cost. I’ll check out the links that you mentioned.
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I haven’t screen printed in quite a long time, but I do have one thing to add to what @yeungx said - if you’re not trying to print a pre-created image, you can paint a stencil directly onto a screen using “blockout” and print that. Doing it that way takes a TON of the complexity (and expensive chemicals) out of the process, since you’re not trying to transfer a high res image onto a screen. All you’d really need is blockout + screen cleaner + a brush, since it seems like we have a ton of inks and screens at the space. Maybe that doesn’t suit what you’re hoping to do, but it is a really easy way to get started. Good luck!
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Thanks Cory! I’m all for shortcuts and I’ll definitely consider the easiest method first. I’ll drop by the workshop this Monday afternoon to check out the equipments.
To add to what @cory and @yeungx said, we have some drawing fluid, in addition to that block out stuff. We also have vinyl mask-ease™️ you can cut with a vinyl cutter, which is my preferred method.
Let me know if you are interested in any of that
I was the shop today for something but I forgot to check out the printing stuff. Is there a YouTube link with the techniques that @xquared mentioned?
@xquared, are you available to help me with this? I’ll make sure I’ll have a design ready. I like to try 2 colours pattern if possible.
I havn’t done a two colour print in a while.
I also only really experiment with hobbiest level work, so as long as you don’t expect too much, I can show you what I do when we are both at the space
Hi, this morning I picked up 2 frames and some chemicals to put design on them. I talked to Greg at the workshop about this. Let me know if it’s ok for me to use.
Go for it. Just make sure to bring back the extras and share you results. Good luck.
@yeungx , I was busy but I finally started by cleaning the screen. The Speedball Speed Clean is not working after I brush it on, wait 5 minutes, spray water, and repeat.
Am I using the wrong bottle?
I am not exactly what you are cleaning. Are you cleaning the ink off, or cleaning the emulsion off, and are you using a pressure washer.
@yeungx I’m cleaning the emulsion off and I used a garden hose. I use a toothbrush with poured solution on the screen on both side and left it for 5 mins before spraying it.
Yeah, you almost for sure need a pressure washer to wash a screen. I have spent many hours with a tooth brush to realize this fact.
The thing with screen printing is there is very few short cut you can takes. (Trust me, I have tried to cut every corner) It is not a super hackable process.
@yeungx For now, I’ll postpone doing the screen printing and I’ll return all the stuff sometime this week. I’ll come back to it in a couple of months.
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Sounds like a good time. I will be here when you are ready to try again.
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