I pulled out some screens from 2016 to print a quick job last week and the mesh felt way looser than when I first taped them up. I guess the constant tension and cleaning chemicals wore them down over time, so now my registration is all over the place. Anyone else deal with their old screens losing tension or am I just being too cheap to replace em?
He said I was probably using too low of a mesh for my detail work and after I tried his suggestion on a 230 mesh last night my 3-color poster came out way sharper than anything I've done in two years, has anyone else had that random stranger advice hit different?
Was at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore last weekend and this old timer saw me grabbing some burnt out screens. He told me just spray em with Easy Off (the yellow can) and let em sit for 10 minutes. Tried it on a mesh I thought was ruined from a bad exposure. Worked like a charm. Anyone else got weird household stuff that works for reclaiming?
I was using repositionable spray adhesive and wondering why my colors never lined up on the third print. Saw a dude on Instagram just hinge-clamp both screens to a board and suddenly I felt like a complete idiot for all those misaligned Wolverine shirts I sold at the flea market last summer. Anyone else discover a basic setup trick way later than they should have?
Was pulling a wet print on a hoodie and the handle was slick with ink. Grip slipped mid-pull and that thing launched like a missile. Hit my cat Oliver square in the butt while he was napping on the workbench. He gave me a look like I did it on purpose. Hoodie was ruined anyway. Has anyone else had tools just yeet themselves across the room?
I bought a quart of that cheap dual-cure emulsion from a random online seller last spring, and by August it was already separating no matter how much I stirred it. Has anyone else had luck with the $15 gallon jugs at the local art supply store, or is that just another gamble?
I tried hitting my water-based prints with a cheap hair dryer instead of a heat gun and the colors came out way brighter after about 2 minutes of drying. Has anyone else had success with low-heat methods for curing at home?
After 4 ruined screens and a very slippery kitchen floor, turns out he was messing with me and I should have just bought the $12 bottle of dehazer from the art supply store - has anyone else fallen for a prank from a well-meaning friend?
Last month I had a run of like 5 days where every single print came out perfect. No pinholes, no misregistration, no flooding issues. I was so pumped I printed like 40 shirts for a friend's band. But here's the thing, I was so focused on getting the screens right that I forgot to tape off my pallet completely. Ended up with ink all over my favorite hoodie and two pairs of jeans. I used plastisol which is a nightmare to wash out cold. Spent three days scrubbing with mineral spirits and still have a faint blue stain on everything. Has anyone else had a crazy productive print session that wrecked your clothes?
Last Saturday I was cleaning out old screens with emulsion remover and a pressure washer. First one came clean no problem. Second one started to peel around the edges of the mesh, figured it was just old. Third one the emulsion wouldn't come off at all no matter how long I soaked it. Turns out I left them sitting in direct sunlight for two days before I started. Has anyone else had screens get trashed from leftover emulsion baking in the sun?
I was at a garage sale in Eugene last weekend and this old guy was selling a stack of used screens for $5 each. Turns out he ran a print shop for 20 years and said he'd pull 300 prints off the same screen before even thinking about remaking it. I've been tossing mine after like 50 prints because I figured they were worn out. Has anyone else been wasting screens way too early on basic jobs?
I spent 3 hours last night trying to print a simple 2-color design on cotton tees. Went with water-based ink because I hate the feel of plastisol, but my screens kept drying out after 2 passes. Ended up with a muddy mess on 3 shirts. Should I just cave and buy plastisol for my next run or try adding a retarder to the water-based stuff? Anyone else deal with this frustration?
I spent 6 months wondering why my fine detail prints kept bleeding on shirt number 30 or so. Then a guy at a shop in Austin told me to barely tighten my mesh and suddenly my lines were crisp. Has anyone else found that looser screens actually work better for home setups?
I set up my first DIY screen printing setup back in 2019 with a $40 hinge clamp rig from Amazon and some speedball ink. Last weekend I burned my 500th shirt, which I marked by printing a goofy design of a melting snowman for my cousin's winter party. I never thought I'd get past maybe 50 shirts before giving up, but here I am with a garage half full of misprints and old screens. The thing that surprised me most is how my technique changed over time, like I used to flood the screen way too heavy and end up with ink bleeding everywhere. Now I do a light pass and then a hard pull, which cut my waste down by like 60 percent. The milestone felt bigger than I expected because it meant I actually stuck with something for once. Has anyone else hit a random number like this and felt weirdly proud about it? What was your count?
Last weekend I was printing a 4-color design on light cotton tees and had to choose between a 110 mesh and a 156 mesh for the base layer. I went with the 110 thinking it would lay down thicker ink faster, but the detail in the text got all muddy and bled out after 3 washes. Now I've got 12 shirts with ruined fronts and $60 in materials down the drain. Anyone else ever regret a mesh count choice this bad?
I was cleaning a design off a 110 mesh screen and got impatient. Held the washer tip maybe 2 inches away and it just tore right through the mesh. Did it two more times before I figured out I need to keep it at least 6 inches back with a wide fan. Anyone else wreck screens this way or was it just me being dumb?
I bought this special screen degreaser from a print supply shop online thinking it would make a difference. Cost me $45 with shipping for a quart. Used it exactly twice and my screens still had ghosting and ink residue. Tried plain Dawn dish soap next time on a whim, scrubbed it in warm water, and it worked better. The expensive stuff stripped my coating off too fast for my liking. Now I just use Dawn and a soft brush and save the cash. Anyone else find cheaper alternatives that work just as good?
I set up my whole operation in my basement and after 6 months I realized the humidity was messing with my emulsion every time because my dehumidifier couldn't keep up. All my fine detail was washing out on the first spray of water and I blamed the emulsion brand for months. Has anyone else dealt with environmental factors ruining their burn quality?
I ruined a 110 mesh screen last week by leaving it in direct sun to dry and the emulsion cracked everywhere, but my buddy swears by 20 minutes outside with no issues at all, has anyone else had better luck with a box fan and darkness?
Last Tuesday my exposure unit died so I figured I'd wing it with my wife's hair dryer on high for 10 minutes. Ended up melting the emulsion into a crispy mess that looked like a map of Florida. Has anyone else gotten creative with weird heat sources?
I set my timer for 120 seconds like always with my 500W halogen, but the design washed out completely and I realized the bulb was way too close after measuring at 8 inches instead of my usual 14. Been seeing posts where people say closer is faster but nobody mentions how much it changes your timing, has anyone else wrecked a screen by assuming distance doesn't matter that much?
He was telling the clerk that digital printing killed it, but I just printed 30 shirts last weekend with a $20 kit from Amazon and a coat hanger, so how dead can it really be?
I was at a community print shop in Austin last month and watched two old timers almost get into it over this. One guy swears by washing the screen with water and drying it before applying any chemicals, says it saves him 15 bucks a month on emulsion remover. The other dude just sprays it off quick and goes straight to the reclaim tank. I tried both ways and the dry method was way messier for me, but I'm curious what you all do. Do you wash your screens first or skip that step?