Pad Printer ?

[NikGrey]

I fancy a Pad Printer, for Mug Bases etc and just found this HERE

It seems too good to be true - From Germany and just watch the video ! surely there is something not quite right here - anyone dealt with this company before?

And if you have a Pad Printer what are the things to watch out for?

I will put the video here as the listing will not be there forever:

youtube_share;jIcVm1ySunw

http://youtu.be/jIcVm1ySunw[/video]

How do you make the printing die/plate ? I wonder if my new Stamp gear will be just whats needed for that?

[arko]

I posted this a while back in another thread. I think it was because I mentioned Earl had something to do with Pad Printing at the time but I was wrong... its just that he is in Germany! hahaha... and its still the same price as last year around this time. If you look for other videos of this model, you will see that it is not so straightforward s this video makes it out to be.... it is very time consuming and you have to be accurate and very nifty to get it spot on each time.

edit:... p.s. you still have to purchase plate making equipment to go with it and various plate sizes and stuff etc etc etc.
I wouldnt mind having one but to do a job with this will take too much time. Its ok I suppose for very small jobs of say a couple of hundred pens for example but imagine getting a job for a couple of thousand?

[NikGrey]

Ahhh - ok, I have just realised how this works...

Ink is dropped into the plate as it slides over the impression..

[Red5]

This is a Very Good starter package, http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/330839045268? ... 1423.l2649

[John G]

Don't waste your money on the hobby type - they're crap. Look for a second hand Kent or Morlock (maybe PB&E aswell) which use a compressor. They are far more accurate, and infact, easier to use. You want one with X-Y table, closed cup, or, as I had - with a flood bar and doctor blade. This floods the plate with ink, the closed cup, or doctor blade, scrapes the plate clean leaving ink only in the indentation (image) of the plate. The pad picks this up and deposits the ink onto the item to be printed.

The Morlock one I had was well over 30 years old and was still going strong when I sold it. Check out ebay - they're going for between £250 - £750 for something that would last a lifetime, rather than a few months.

Cheers John

[arko]

Take a look at the mug base printing Nik.... I thought you might like this bit of it.... http://www.cheap-pad-printers.co.uk/ ... down the bottom of the page there are a few pics.

[Ucase Ltd]

I Nik,

There are so many variables in pad printing. My background is on multi-head printing for a masive company but the same principles apply.
If I were buying a pad printer I would want the following:

Ability to add delays before and after pickup on both cliche and substrate (you will often need this for the ink to tack off).
Ability to add delay when stroke is down both on cliche and substrate.
Ability to control stroke separately on cliche and substrate.
NOT be locked in for consumables (pads/cliches/inks etc) - There are so many options and everyone thinks there's is the best.
Depending on your run I would consider closed cup printing.

Other things to watch for is ambient temperature. Whereever you're printing you need control over temperature - General rule of thumb is around 22 degrees C.
Also humidity (not quite so important as temperature but optimal is around 50%)

I would never buy plate making equipment as it's a technical process and a few microns out will cause you problems.

I'll leave it at that before this turns into a book but I have 12 years in pad printing so let me know if I can help any further.
(Makes me wonder why I went into sublimation )

John.

[Ucase Ltd]

http://www.pdsinternational.com/printin ... inting.php

[Ucase Ltd]

Forgot to mention - Stamping will not work for plates/cliches.
The process is usually an acid etch and is done on either a polymer or steel. Polymer cliches are cheaper but will not last as long, thin steel is better, and obviously thick steel will last longest (up to a million prints).

You can buy the gear but its a horrible, messy, and smelly job - quick process explanation here: http://www.multicolourdevelopments.co.u ... aking/ch6q

Not sure about polymer but a good quality steel cliche will cost around £50-£120 (depending on whether you go thick or thin).

[John G]

I used to use polymer plates from BASF - exposed on a standard lightbox/printdown frame, and then washed out with BASF alcohol solution. Had plates that had done well over 20K prints with no issues.

Cheers John