Ahhh, I see what you mean now.Not entirely sure what you mean; you mean you leave a laminated edge around the print, but allow the polymer to extend all the way to the edges of the final plate (after optional trimming)? Give it a try, but in my workflow, it was neigh impossible to get clean edges all around.
Here's an example:
Note how there's a narrow blank edge along the top and bottom of the plate. Especially the bottom edge was rather dirty due to crumbling photopolymer. Note also the black stain about one quarter from the bottom left corner, which is basically a rather large ink reservoir held by this crumbling edge.
I managed to clean the top edge a little better, but it's still slightly dirty.
It's all nowhere near as clean as the results I saw from actual copper plates without lamination (i.e. 'proper'/old-fashioned gravure).
I suppose you could mask the edges of the plate, so that the photopolymer won't extend all the way to the edge of the plate. But then you'd still have a ridge where the polymer film ends and the plate continues. This will pick up ink and show up in the print as a hairline border, and there will be a slight difference in the depth of the intaglio depression on the paper. It'll likely be cleaner than the crumbly edge, though.
Thanks.
When I said "enroute" I didn't specify just how long that road would be, did I?
I've cobbled most of the gear needed by wandering down the enlarged digital negative salt print and kallitype roads. The last major item needed is the etching press, and maybe a point source UV light instead of the DIY UV LED strip light source made for contact printing hand coated papers.
Second hand etching presses are rare and expensive as you noted. A new one of this breed is totally out of the question.
To bring down the cost, I could make, or have someone (college or high school project?) make one: https://www.buildapress.com/ or, could order a small one from Quebec, but his only go to 15" wide rolls and are direct drive: http://www.micheldupont.com/etching-press.html
Using steel backed plates is also too expensive, so I'm looking into David Kachel's use of rolls of dry polymer sheets for direct to plate polymer photogravures: http://davidkachel.com/wpNewDK/?page_id=593
Still searching Alberta & BC for a second hand press, of the right size, chain or gear driven, at an affordable price, just in case...
So, the ultimate goal is printmaking ink on old world papers of character, but I'm a ways off yet!
Hi Dan,Hello Murry
I ran across this thread last night and then this link this morning
This is for a press maker in BCThomas Presses: The affordable etching press!
Great for etchings, drypoints, paper plate lithographs, engravings, collagraphs, and lino- block prints. Precision made, hand crafted for studios, schools, and artists.thomaspresses.ca
I do have a question I would like to ask, how would you be making the negatives used to create the plates for printing
I have read that the negative (for want of a better word) is actually supposed to be a positive
So would you develop your film to create a positive, or would you enlarge the image onto a sheet of lith film
Dan
So the theory goes...
Yup, someone here years ago said, "Try making some Ansco 120 and you'll never use Selector Soft again" and they were right.Hello Murray
"So the theory goes…" kinda sums up photography as a whole
Dan
Have gotten a bit further along into Kachel's ebook, and he describes using a mask during exposure, but has it slightly raised so the photopolymer extending out from the image area to the plates edge is subject to a 'penumbra shadow' resulting in there being no hard edge to chip....I suppose you could mask the edges of the plate, so that the photopolymer won't extend all the way to the edge of the plate. But then you'd still have a ridge where the polymer film ends and the plate continues...
Have gotten a bit further along into Kachel's ebook, and he describes using a mask during exposure, but has it slightly raised so the photopolymer extending out from the image area to the plates edge is subject to a 'penumbra shadow' resulting in there being no hard edge to chip.
Luckily for me, we had to spend a bit more money this summer than expected (they were trips, so all good) which has put a pause on equipment/materials acquisition and is allowing me to do more reading before committing.Smart! I never thought of that.
I'd not worry too much and just dive into it. Solve any problems as they arise. It's nice to know about options, but in the end, the only thing that matters is what works in your particular workflow.
Have been mulling this over.
Couldn't one include a pure white border or frame around an image in the image file before printing direct to plate?
The intention is to have a plate mark in the paper around my images...therefore...theory being...if you made a border of hardened photopolymer around the image, it would provide support for fine details along the edges of the image.
When the plate is trimmed to final size, just include the border as the plate mark area.
Make sense?
Source for dry resist photopolymer...still searching...grrrrr...
Thanks. It would have to travel from the Czech Republic. Probably okay in fall/winter due to cooler temperatures, but lots of opportunity for higher than recommended temperature exposure.Murray
I found this
High Quality Photosensitive Dry Film Photoresist for PCB Dupont Riston MM540 6 m | eBay
Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for High Quality Photosensitive Dry Film Photoresist for PCB Dupont Riston MM540 6 m at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!www.ebay.ca
Sounds good. I've contacted a few as well (for Riston MM550 and Eternal E9220) so maybe between the two of us...Murray
I have reached out to a US supplier of the DuPont resist and am trying to determine what I will need
When I get the information I will forward it on to you
Being right near the US border, shipping charges may not be as bad as getting it shipped to Canada
Dan
Weird...I ordered the Orangeman plans a couple years ago as well and received them, no problem. Had an issue where my Mac jumbled up the plans, I emailed him, and got a response right away on how to fix it.Just jumping in to say beware of buildapress.com. I purchased the Orangeman plans a couple years ago and got nothing. I also got zero response to any of my contacts to find out why.
I ended up using my “vulcanizer” as a wood block press. For short runs it’s not a bad hack.
Weird...I ordered the Orangeman plans a couple years ago as well and received them, no problem. Had an issue where my Mac jumbled up the plans, I emailed him, and got a response right away on how to fix it.
Would this unit be suitable and what sort of power connections would be required?
This is a 365 nm unit and going from the discussion above would it also work with other alt process, platinum, VDB, etc?
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