Silk Screening Machine Information

Information to help you decide what you need and find the best deals available before purchasing a silk screening machine.

Thank you for visiting our website.  Here you will find suppliers of silk screening machine supplies and related products.  With a large variety of choices and manufacturers of silk screening machines (also known as presses) it is possible to find something to meet the needs of every budget.

Having the best silk screening machine possible to fit your needs is extremely important whether it be for your business or as a hobby.  The best possible press for you should be within your budget and provide you with quality results whether you are printing on fabric, paper, wood, metal or any other surface.

The best possible silk screening machine will work well in the space you have available.   

If you are limited on space, then you will more than likely need to invest in a table top silk screening machine.  This type of unit is usually rather small (about two feet by four feet) and can be operated by one person easily.  With a table top silk screening machine you have the ability to print multiple color work, as there are several presses available that offer four to six color presses.  They will usually come with one or two stations, allowing them to be operated by one or two people at one time.  This significantly improves your work speed.

If you have more space available and a larger budget, you may be interested in a larger silk screening machine.  A larger pro model manual press will give you more options as far as how many colors you can print without changing the screens, as well as how many people can operate the press simultaneously.  A large six color one station press like this will usually weigh about 250 pounds and will require a ten foot by ten foot work area.  You can expect to print up to 240 shirts per hour.

Large automated presses are ideal for the business owner that already has a large amount of business on a daily basis.  A silk screening machine like this can be a huge investment, but you are able to print up to 540 shirts in an hour with only one or two people operating it.  This is a very large press, so it needs a large workspace to operate. 

Along with a press you will need several other supplies for your silk screening machine.  These include:

·  Exposure Units - An exposure unit is what you use to burn your image into the photo emulsion on your screen mesh.  While there are alternatives such as using a UV light for exposure, a nice exposure unit can increase the quality of your screens by a lot.  Highly recommended. 

·  Spare Frames - You can purchase your frames (used to hold your screen mesh) in both wood and aluminum.  While wood frames are usually less expensive, aluminum screens are far more durable and will need to be replaced less often. 

·  Flash Dryer - If you are going to print on dark color, then a flash dryer is essential.  Even if you just use it for drying your garments after you've printed them, it's a much needed piece of equipment.  You can use the flash dryer to cure your inks after they have been applied to your substrate if you don't have a conveyer dryer.