(Part 2) Best products from r/SCREENPRINTING

Go to Home Depot [or any home improvement store] and look for high quality 3/4" plywood. I normally go for the 2' x 2' pieces, and they're about $15 to $20. I don't care, as this is good stuff, and usually void free. You can have them rip it down to your desired size, but I do that myself.

Round the corners off [I have this metal flange that's the perfect diameter... maybe 2"]. DON'T round the edges, but sand it a lot [at least up to 220 grit]. Seal it with a good quality poly [I use Helmsman spar urethane, as it's really resistant].

Them, get some rubber [this stuff might be a bit too thin], some spray adhesive, and glue that stuff down. The more glue, the merrier, but make sure it goes on smooth. Trim the excess. Wait a few hours [preferably overnight], apply pallet tape and mount it.

Good as a real pallet. It might cost a bit to make, but it's still like 25% of an aluminum one.

Buying a cheap halogen work light from Lowes or Home Depot and a 8' 2x4 can make you a good starter exposure lamp.

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Copying and pasting one of my comments from another thread

I'm new to screen printing too and bought some Ecotex PWR emulsion.

Here is how it worked for me:

- 500 watt halogen work light with safety glass removed

- 18in away from screen

- 3mins 10secs burn time (this time worked for me, it will probably work for you too. I haven't done any testing of adding more seconds or less, this one just worked so I'm sticking with it)

- This was on 110 and 160 mesh screens

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Like others have said a heat gun to cure your ink is a good idea. You can use a hair dryer to dry the ink to the touch and then use an iron to set it if you want as well. I went on craigslist and you can normally (depending on location) find an old, but usable, heat press for around $50, that makes things a lot easier

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Also I bought some butterfly hinge clamps and used some 2x4s and such to make a diy single color press.

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Best of luck!

I love it. I run it right after the flash, and iron the underbase.

It knocks all the fibers down extremely well and then makes the over print look flat, or like satin. Very cool.

You’ll have to basically double the recommended settings.

I run mine on a higher “squeegee” pressure, a lower squeegee off set, and a higher temp. Other wise it was just not very effective.

The tech support basically told me those settings were a CYA and you need to exceed them to get a good press.

Oh, do yourself a favor and order some Teflon spray off amazon right now. It has to have so ink doesn’t stick to the underside off the sheet.

DuPont Teflon Silicone Lubricant Aerosol Spray, 14 oz

I think a kit from Ryonet is going to be your best bet. They’ve done a good job at putting together affordable and easy to use kits for beginners. This kit is a pretty good deal: https://www.screenprinting.com/diy-print-shop-t-shirt-kit

If you want to save some money and just get your hands dirty you can get the speedball kit on Amazon which is what we learned on about 15 years ago: Speedball Ultimate Screen Printing Kit https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000SKRHX0/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_NReNAb4AGFXF3

>Our current scale is covered in ink

First clean up your shop! Second, this is the one I went with I like it but it does "go to sleep" a bit too quickly for my tastes. Otherwise I love it and it works great for even small discharge mixes.

Pot lid organizer. Brilliant! Found this guy, and I think for the price it's a winner. Thanks for the inspiration.

Essentially, you can't. Over the years I've DIY'd a ton of equipment from presses to exposure units to flash dryers but $20 is just not going to happen.

Speedball kits are the best budget starter packages you will find (insofar as I've encountered). This is the cheapest but you should seriously consider saving up for this photo emulsion kit if you can. The second one is still budget but it'll teach you more of what you really need to know and help you build the skills necessary for when you get better equipment (or build it!).

G'luck

Yep, most visible-light LEDs have almost no UV. However, use good LEDs, no cheap ones. You want "binned" LEDs; those having a specific color temperature. There's more of a guarantee that there will be no UV.

I like Cree XM-L T6 (T6 is the bin code--warm white.) XM-L LEDs are very efficient, and can get very, very bright if pushed to their max. current. At high currents they do get hot, and require heat sinks to avoid burning out. You can find XM-L flashlight/bike light/head lamps that are real cheap when ordered from China. Wire the battery terminals up to a wall adapter, and they' can be pretty decent lamps. IKEA has some cheap-ish ($10,) but less-bright LED desk lamps. Right now I'm using 4 of those for my emulsion work.

Really frickin' bright bike light...

I got this hinge and pallet for just $99! https://www.amazon.com/SHZOND-Printing-Station-Machine-Removable/dp/B07DL1ZS9W/ref=asc_df_B07GVL4LFX/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312341912087&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=18218489740117698319&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9007261&hvtargid=pla-570561139845&psc=1&th=1
And yes, it is a whale. The concept was whalesongs. They use vibrations to convey information to whales, even miles away. This guy was basically crying for help (innards falling out, so it’s too late), but so loudly that the ground beneath him begins to break open. If you want to see the final print, I’m willing to share it! :)

This book is awesome, the first half breaks down the process really well. Granted it’s orientated more towards poster printing but the basics are pretty much the same.

https://www.amazon.com/Screenprinting-Ultimate-Studio-Sketchbook-Squeegee/dp/1616896558

Just a CIS, ink, and some sub paper. Here's a cis that fits the printer filled with ink that we've found to have pretty bright colors.

INKXPRO BRAND XPRO IV series True Color SUBLIMATION INK T252 Ciss Continuous Ink Supply System for Workforce WF 7710 7720 7210 7110 7610 7620 3620 3640 Printers (For Sublimation printing only) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AN014Y2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_SI0WCbKP8KSDZ

I use a Chinese exposure unit and its been awesome, paired with the emulsion I use I can expose a screen in about 23 seconds perfectly.

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This is what one I think I got, came in a package deal I bought.

Exposure Unit

You should check out this book
It's a great guide for beginners.


Also, consider getting a speedball starter kit, just to get a feel for things? I just screen printed my first shirt last weekend with one and had a lot of fun!

Contact paper like this? Never used it for this purpose (I would have thought the plastic might melt), but I have used parchment paper like this with a clothes iron to cure plastisol ink. It was my first big run, something like 180 white prints on black shirts. Took forever. Got a heatpress with the money from that job, and still recoil at the sight of an iron.

The pro 100. We would get streaks in our Epson if we didn't clean the heads twice a day. The Epson also had problems with taking the 11x17 paper we used for transfers onto white shirts; this Canon does not. I also personally think the prints are more crisp as well, but that could be bias. Canon sends you free photo paper too when you buy their ink, which is nice. The Canon does take up a lot more space on your desk though, things really big.

Canon PIXMA Pro-100 Wireless Color... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0095F5BCS?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

Edit: we use this printer (have 2 of em) for mock ups and scanning. I got it for $182, not $300. Also a solid buy, don't know how it would do for small transfers though

HP OfficeJet Pro 8720 All-in-One Wireless Printer with Mobile Printing, HP Instant Ink & Amazon Dash Replenishment ready - White (M9L75A) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CJNMMZG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_v5ZLBbFFZBTSR

Thank you for the advice everyone, I plan on buying a setup with a credit card so Craigslist is out of the question. Would this be a more wise purchase? https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0086P5KB0

Yep, they're LED strips, this is what I bought (2 of them). Works like a charm.