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Greensleeves
11-05-2010, 06:08 PM
Can i use ordinary matte printing paper for sublimation onto plates and mugs

Greensleeves
11-05-2010, 06:23 PM
My plate press loses alot of its 200 degrees in the cooking process and never gets back up to 180 again. i sit and watch this for 2 minutes and thirty seconds waiting for another plate to come out of the press faded and streaky in places. my supplier done the first plate of my pet dog and it came out perfect. i cant replicate this given the same recipe. He said it is normal for the press to slowely recover the heat during its working time of 2 minutes and 30 seconds. He also said that i can use ordinary matte paper like the one epson sell. I can only think its the paper and am still unsure. my plates are 10 inces wide and my press is only 15 centimeters working on the centre of the plate. Just one question now WHY ME GOD????????????.

On my knees at the moment as i have an order for 300 mugs but i cant afford to waste any more plates.

Greensleeves
11-05-2010, 06:51 PM
This is the result of my trials. Image 003 is the best result so far but i lifted the press off the paper on the plate until the temperature reached 200 again and then i pressed the plate for another minute and some

Andrew
11-05-2010, 07:12 PM
Slightly confused by a few things you mentioned so I might ask a few strange questions....... like what are the photos of? The paper it looks like and not the plate. It shouldn't have nothing to do with the paper if it is Epson. The only effect this might have is clarity and comes down to choice. It sounds like you have already answered your own question early on, the press didn't get back upto temp. You mentioned leaving the press get back upto temp by lifting it off the paper and assuming that means the plate, this isn't really the best way as you need the substrate (plate) to get upto temp to allow the sublimation process to take place. I would say as a rough guide that the temp needs to return to maximum for about 30 seconds. If this means that it takes 3 mins for the temp to get back up then 3min30sec would probably be okay for the pressing time. Trial and error will get the exact time that suits your press. 2min30 is a good time for a very good press and many take longer. Pressure needs to be firm as well for the plate just to give an even heat spread.

Try the press out for a longer time and make sure you pass the return to max temp as mentioned above and see if that helps. If not any further info on results would help.

Good luck,

Andrew

Greensleeves
11-05-2010, 07:22 PM
Slightly confused by a few things you mentioned so I might ask a few strange questions....... like what are the photos of? The paper it looks like and not the plate. It shouldn't have nothing to do with the paper if it is Epson. The only effect this might have is clarity and comes down to choice. It sounds like you have already answered your own question early on, the press didn't get back upto temp. You mentioned leaving the press get back upto temp by lifting it off the paper and assuming that means the plate, this isn't really the best way as you need the substrate (plate) to get upto temp to allow the sublimation process to take place. I would say as a rough guide that the temp needs to return to maximum for about 30 seconds. If this means that it takes 3 mins for the temp to get back up then 3min30sec would probably be okay for the pressing time. Trial and error will get the exact time that suits your press. 2min30 is a good time for a very good press and many take longer. Pressure needs to be firm as well for the plate just to give an even heat spread.

Try the press out for a longer time and make sure you pass the return to max temp as mentioned above and see if that helps. If not any further info on results would help.
Good luck,

Hi Andres.
the photos are of a mountain face and a lake from a distance. The paper i am using is Mirror Matte coat 128gsm. A4 210mm by 297mm 5760dpi. well this is what it says on the box. OK i will give it another go. I will let it get to max temperature and let cook for 30 seconds afterwards.


Andrew

Greensleeves
11-05-2010, 07:27 PM
I dont want to proceed until you say the paper is the correct one for the job.

Greensleeves
11-05-2010, 07:49 PM
OK done a plate in 3 minutes 30 seconds and it came out not too bad at all. I noticed the temperature of the press only made it back to 180 degrees but i was worried if i left it longer it would have burned the paper. but i am willing to let it go the full 4 minutes if it has to.
Thanks for your help.
Patrick

bms
11-05-2010, 07:55 PM
When we used to supply plates and plate presses we would recommend a press time of around 5-6 minutes - don't be put off for waiting longer. The paper might go brown but it won't burn unless the press gets a lot hotter than 180 degrees.

Andrew
11-05-2010, 08:23 PM
Yep, paper won't get affected by leaving it under for longer. Glass clocks are under the press for 7 minutes, all be it upside down. You need to ensure that the temp reaches the required level for about 30 seconds to allow enough time for the sublimation to fully take place.

Greensleeves
11-05-2010, 09:19 PM
I have increased the time to 4 minutes and i was just wondering if i feel that the press is just not pushing hard enough onto the plate, can i reduce the time it is cooking for? :D Also will my prints come out sharper on the plate like my prints on the paper if the pressure is increased?

Andrew
11-05-2010, 10:00 PM
You don't want to put to much pressure on as you could end up cracking the plate. Firm pressure is needed but finding exactly what "firm" is can be trial and error again. You will get the hang of it and feel the pressure exerting when you shut the press which is the same for a mug.

bms
11-05-2010, 10:40 PM
i was just wondering if i feel that the press is just not pushing hard enough onto the plate, can i reduce the time it is cooking for? Also will my prints come out sharper on the plate like my prints on the paper if the pressure is increased?

If you reduce the time then you are likely to get a faded image. Increasing the pressure will not necessarily improve the picture quality assuming you have enough pressure at the moment to ensure the paper is touching the face of the plate all over. You need to have enough pressure to ensure the paper is touching all over the face of the plate and enough time, at the correct temperature, to allow the inks to gas of the paper to transfer.

frizbee
11-05-2010, 11:11 PM
Using epson matt paper is fine, but if you were to try Truepix, you would see an improvement in colour.

For many years we used epson matt from Novachrome, then we found truepix and haev never gone back. The only thing we use Epson for now is unisub coasters, truepix for everything else.

David