Remember that silkscreen and printscreen refer to the same printing technique. Silkscreen is the term applied to the time when the silkscreen mesh was actually silk, between the 18th century and the first half of the 20th century. Print screen is the term applied from the time when the mesh ceased to be made of silk and started to be synthetically manufactured with the discovery of nylon, at the end of the 19th century. But both terms are still used, regardless of its mesh origin, perhaps the silkscreen is more used in manual technique and the printscreen in mechanized model like the industrial screen printing. But to differentiate the artistic from the non-artistic there is still the term serigraphy, created by the American National Serigraphy Society, in 1940. You can read more about it in the History of Screen Printing post.
The frame constitutes the most part of the basic equipment, as it supports the image matrix to be printed. It generally has an aluminum or wooden frame, but in a purely occupational setting, the aspect of producing a good frame is not relevant; a cardboard frame can be used, another frame from home can be reused, or even the mesh can be simply stretched on the workbench with adhesive tape, without a frame. Even in a professional artistic context, the precision in the elaboration of the frame depends heavily on the type of work being done. Progressing to a commercial level, the dependence on a good sample becomes evident and unavoidable, since the origin of the most common printing problems lies primarily in the frame – e.g., a poorly made or warped frame, incorrect choice of screen mesh, or inadequate tensioning.
The frame is not an expensive item; buying it ready-made offers convenience, with the option of choosing an aluminum profile to avoid the limitations and maintenance requirements of wood, adding the possibility of a more versatile product for various levels of work, due to the quality of the mesh tensioning. However, the largest percentage of online purchases continues to be for wooden frames, and it is not difficult to build them at home, with the advantage of being able to do so in custom measurements. A wooden frame can also facilitate mesh replacement when necessary.
Although the manual construction of the frame requires precision, it becomes a very accessible task through acquired practice or with the help of specific tools. Learning to produce a frame also facilitates the practice of relining, which is also a more ecological option, as it allows for the reuse of the frames when the mesh wears out or is damaged. When buying a silkscreen frame , it’s common to find references to hardwood or Swedish redwood, indicating a high-quality product that doesn’t warp, making it suitable for more tensioned meshes and larger frames. In a context of home production, it’s perfectly feasible to choose untreated pine wood, free of knots, well-dried (preferably kiln-dried), and planed into small strips of the desired size – 2 to 3 centimeters thick for small and medium-sized frames, or 4 to 5 centimeters for larger frames.
To avoid printing defects related to image distortion, or even filament breakage problems, the screen mesh must be tensioned not only uniformly but also to the appropriate tension level, which in terms of manual processes is not so easy or even impossible beyond a certain tension level. The final appearance of a properly stretched canvas is similar to the feel of a tambourine or a small drum, so that placing a weight on the screen does not reveal any sagging in the mesh. Screen tensioning appears to be of lesser importance in simple jobs, without the need for rigorous definition and registration. As printing objectives progress, it becomes a fundamental factor. Most of the time, the formation of blurs at the edges of the image, the loss of sharpness and registration (especially in halftone and polychrome printing) is due to insufficient or defective screen tensioning.
It should also be noted that manual silkscreen frame making should be done in a well-leveled and very clean place, especially if low-cost polyester fabric or mesh without anti-static treatment is used, since polyester is naturally an electrostatic material, attracting dust and dirt.
This article is just a small compilation of samples from an e-book sold on this website, but its first edition is only available in Portuguese.
Find references and more knowledge in Learning Links.
Thanks a lot for sharing 🙏
Thank you!!!
My pleasure 🙏🌹🙏
Thanks for the information. I also read your post about the history of screen printing but was unable to leave a comment.
Of all the printing methods I’ve done (screen printing, etching, lithography, and wood cut) screen printing was always my favorite. I learned screen printing in high school many, many years ago. We used lacquer film and an X-acto knife to cut the stencil then adhere that to the screen with lacquer thinner. Emulsion was too costly, or so my art teacher said, for us to learn that technique, so I have no experienced with that method. I’d like to learn that someday….
Wow! Amazing comment! Thanks!
I wish I had learned screen printing in high school! It would have been fantastic! I learned semi-industrial screen printing at the age of 20 from a perfectionist master screen printer. Then I dedicated myself to other types of printing for the next 25 years, but I developed hand screen printing almost as a hobby because it is really a timeless, effective, fascinating technique. You can’t laser print without having laser equipment, but you can screen print anywhere and without any equipment at all. I even think that the more manual and rudimentary it is, the more fascinating it is. There are those who do screen printing using only sunlight and a piece of old fabric torn from a curtain :).
Thank you very much for stopping by! Loved it!
Hi D. For some reason, the Reader at WordPress.com isn’t letting me follow you?! I’ll continue to try, and, in the meantime, wish you a great day!
Hi, Phil! Thanks for the concern! I don’t know why! It happens to me too, regarding some other blogs. I think they are temporary bugs in WordPress itself, but in online forums they say it’s because of the number of blogs you follow. If you follow too many blogs it happens WordPress will prevent you from following some blogs from time to time because there are a reasonable number of blogs to follow, they say…
Thank you, D. After several attempts, I was finally able to follow you 🙂
Weeeeeeeee! Yeeeee! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Many thanks! 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
Thanks alot for sharing
Thank you for stopping by! 🙂
Very informative post on screen printing technology! Screen printing is one of my favorites among all printing techniques. Although screen printing has been used since the 18th century, the availability of inkjet printer transparency film makes it the best technology available today. The best thing about inkjet transparency film is that it is waterproof and creates a clean, and clear, high-quality print for any text and graphics. It is versatile and can be used for a variety of applications.
Thank you very much for stopping by! I loved your website, great equipment screen printing supplier. That inkjet printer transparency film seems an excellent product indeed. It is not suitable for halftone printing, but a perfect solution for opaque prints. Thanks!
👌👌
Thank you! ☺️ ☺️ ☺️
🙏🙏
Thank you!!!
☺️☺️
Worth sharing about print screen ????
Of course! It’s a beautiful printing technique ;).
Nice ????
Very interesting and didactic. Thank you so much for sharing knowledge and experience.
Deep thanks! These are pieces of content that still need improvement, but are now being updated from the original version. It’s always rewarding to read a comment from a true artist 😉 I always recommend your amazing work!
https://elilustradordebarcos.wordpress.com/
Oh, you are so kind. Thank you so much! Have a good creative day.