# why use a expensive RIP?My cheap laser printer does it all



## gnilrac (May 5, 2009)

Hi there.
I've been reading a lot of posts concerning outputing halftones to film.
Nearly everybody recommends using a rip .
I thought i needed it too.
Here's the truth:
I bought 3 inkjet printers that couldn't output halftones good.
I bought a laser printer ,a lexmark of all things.
The printer does not come with any postscript loaded,nor do i have any RIP on my pc.
I can successfully print beautiful halftones without any other EXPENSIVE rip software,and my printer that i use costs 60 dollars.
Is there some scam going on that i am blissfully unaware of?
I have printed true CMYK ,sim process and spot color films from it and they all look great when printed onto t shirts.
So,why are we advising newbies and other askers to purchase a expensive rip or go through ghostscript,which i tried and got the same result?
I submit that you do not need a RIP.


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## jws1 (Nov 29, 2009)

gnilrac said:


> Hi there.
> I've been reading a lot of posts concerning outputing halftones to film.
> Nearly everybody recommends using a rip .
> I thought i needed it too.
> ...


Thank you for your honesty!!


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## mrvixx (Jan 13, 2009)

yes it works but people on here do not like laser printers. I have an old hp laserjet 4mv that prints beautiful 11x17 film with halftones. I also have an epson 1400 that also prints nice film. I use both of them. Yeah and alot of people on here say you must have a rip which is absolutley not true. problem with laser is that you may have shrinkage in the films and not all lasers can print large film.


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## PositiveDave (Dec 1, 2008)

If it works for you...I suspect that your laserprinter has a RIP on board, what model is it?


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## gnilrac (May 5, 2009)

I agree with you mrvixx.
Yet,every newbie asking the questions i used to got the sme response:Get a rip.
You DO NOT need a rip.
As for shrinkage of the film in laser printers,move away from vellum.
There are as cheap alternatives to it that hold a denser ,more opaque black dot film that is used on laser printers.I am using it.
When tight reg is critical,run your film through the lasr printer to preshrink,then print the positives you wish.
As i said,there are better alternatives to vellum that will rival,if not better the the output of an inkjet printer combined with a RIP.


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## gnilrac (May 5, 2009)

I am using lexmarkE120, NOT the e120n
If you want,i can send you the tech specs


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## PositiveDave (Dec 1, 2008)

It uses PCL - HPs competing standard to Postscript. It has a RIP.


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## TR Young (Dec 4, 2009)

gnilrac said:


> Hi there.
> I've been reading a lot of posts concerning outputing halftones to film.
> Nearly everybody recommends using a rip .
> I thought i needed it too.
> ...


What transfer papers are you using?


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## gnilrac (May 5, 2009)

As i stated,this is a LEXMARK budget printer.It does what you expect of a printer in its rangeand yet this for its price?
To quote from a site "PCL drivers do most of the rendering on the local workstation and the information is sent in essentially binary form to printer. Postscript drivers essentially send a page description to the printers where it is rendered. Since local workstations are generally MUCH faster than the printers, PCL printing is much faster than postscript and because it requires less printer memory some jobs may only print if sent using PCL drivers."
Then there is no need to purchase a RIP.
The cost of this printer and its capabilities,compared to other printers that boast about its postscript abilities ,not comparing the price of a RIP software package,far outweigh any cons.
Should this not be glaringly made obvious to others starting out as i did?
I for one know the expense spent,when starting out, on equipment,printers and software being high.
I would like to let the truth be known,you do NOT need a software rip.
Get this printer ,and shoot a simulated process print through it.
Take those possies,burn it onto a screen,and let me know.
One thing though,lol,i do use a color sep software to separate the possies!
But try any halftone through photoshop or corel,please let me know of your success.


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## PositiveDave (Dec 1, 2008)

PCL vs Postscript .: Support


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## gnilrac (May 5, 2009)

I read up on the link previously,and now i become directed to it.
Positive Dave,I have received many helpful replies from you,and hold you as a good reference.
With all due respect,do you not think this printer is a good option for the entrepeneur,considering the costs involved buying a rip and so called compatible expensive printers?
Agood rip costs something like 100 dollars,am i correct?
This printer does THAT and more,for less the price.
I'm starting to sound like a sales rep....
But i have to start a thread to :
"The Truth:You don't need a RIP to print halftones."
Pcl is not well documented anywhere,so our members should be exposed to it.


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## Leadfoot (Sep 10, 2009)

Thank you for this post gnilrac...as a home based to start screen printer I was not going to be able to get a RIP let alone even an Epson 1400 to start off. I am not going to invest in an expensive RIP if it is not necessary. I am willing to go a step or two extra to save that kind of money if at all possible. I am sure a RIP has its merit and it is probably a better option for larger shops, but for those of us who want to get started with a small budget, other options are nice to have and still be able to output quality prints.


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## mikelmorgan (Nov 1, 2008)

The most important thing in screen printing is the screen. If you can get a good screen with out using a rip, go for it. Myself I don't have time to run films through the printer to shrink them or spray them with some chemical to make the film more opaque. If your on a budget and have to do these things, than do what you have to do. When it comes time to invest in good quality equipment do just that. At some point it will be more cost effective to buy more expensive quality equipment so you can get consistent results every time. I have used lasers and ink jets for 15 years, 2 years ago I bought an Epson 7800. I was going through Epson 1800's every 4 months. The 7800 is a $3,000 printer that required a $1,000 rip. It prints perfect films and and has lasted over 2 years to date. It has paid for itself, in saved time and perfect films (that saves time in the screen room and set up time). Bottom line is do what you have to do to make you money.
Good Luck


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## vintageracer117 (Jul 18, 2005)

i went to lexmark web site and i dont see the e 120 i only see the e120n can you tell us where you found it at


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## Paul204 (Apr 21, 2007)

How many of you folks out there have invested in Image Setters? Never see much discussion around actual, professional film output here. They are a step up price-wise from inkjet systems and I'm wondering if they are a significant step up in quality.

Are they denser? Faster? Less maintenance? Ink cheaper? Is there even ink?


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

I'm currently using a second hand ECRM image setter (it must be about 20years old), it's an old machine but the image comes out crisp and the black is 100% opaque.

I've out put films on laserjet and inkjet printers with great results, however compared to the image setter there was a noticeable difference. 


The image setter I'm using is about the same speed as an inkjet printer.
The films produced are on clear acetate with 100% opaque black images giving the ideal film positive for exposing screens.


The image is definitely denser
There's no inks, however my machine does use chemical baths like in photography and there is maintenance involved.

I have used an OYO machine a few years ago while doing some freelance at another company. I really liked the OYO machine, very compact and produces great film positives. If i was looking to get a new image setter id be looking to get an OYO or something similar. 

If i still had my small print shop i'd still be using my HPlaserjet 4v/4mv, it fit my needs fine at the time. I mostly do licensed work now and need the sharp clarity and high detail with a dense black image that an image setter delivers.


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## PositiveDave (Dec 1, 2008)

Traditional imagesetters use silver film, like a B&W camera, which is exposed with a laser and then developed & fixed by chemicals.
They are VERY high quality devices capable of very high lpi, they were used for glossy magazines for example.
Not to decry t-shirt printers but screenprinting onto t-shirt material at 55lpi isn't the same as litho onto glossy paper stock, you don't need the same accuracy. Chemicals are getting more expensive to dispose of. The big litho printers have gone to Computer-to-Plate. The need for imagesetters has decreased and the per-metre cost rises as the chemicals go off even if they aren't being used.
The final t-shirt product will be indistinguishable whether the films are done on a high-end imagesetter or an inkjet printer. So most printers choose inkjet. It's a bit of a no-brainer.
You can pick up a cheap imagesetter on ebay, I have clients trading them in and requests for me to buy them most months. The maintenance can be expensive as well.


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## Spot_Worker (Oct 22, 2008)

gnilrac said:


> One thing though,lol,i do use a color sep software to separate the possies!


Well if the software is making a halftone that the printer is printing; then you are using a rip as it were. If you out put as default, to the printer, the printer will print a small dot of 55-65 LPI or so anyway(process printing). Making a 35 LPI is a little different. Yes, photoshop can make a dot look of your file.


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## gnilrac (May 5, 2009)

I think you are missing the point,Spot worker.No color separation software comes with a rip,the only one that comes close to offering that bargain is t seps,which simulates a rip.My point is that you do NOT need a rip,when using the cheap printer that i use.The e120 n model is basically the same,only difference being it has enhanced network connectivity.My whole goal is to let newbies know that you CAN print cmyk,simulated process,index possies from this printer.I do it,and i need to stress that i expose my screens on a home made exposure table.I have printed possies and compared them with possies done by an imagesetter at my workplace.The only difference is the imagesetter lays down a denser,black dot.Yet,i can expose my possies printed from my printer and shoot the screens on amy homemade exposure unit.Guess what?,every dot comes out perfectly!
The color sep software is not the magical undercover rip,because i have printed from photoshop and corel alone and i still get great results.
I hope that clarifies things.


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## Paul204 (Apr 21, 2007)

PositiveDave has already pointed out that your printer comes with a RIP. Without that printer you would be having a much harder time doing your output. The options that are available to your in your software are directly connected to the capabilities of your printer and many disappear when you don't have a printer that is PCL or PostScript compatible.


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## jessec (Dec 15, 2009)

what's the biggest size You can print on the lexmarkE120??


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## DOS-Custom (Jan 5, 2010)

mrvixx said:


> yes it works but people on here do not like laser printers. I have an old hp laserjet 4mv that prints beautiful 11x17 film with halftones. I also have an epson 1400 that also prints nice film. I use both of them. Yeah and alot of people on here say you must have a rip which is absolutley not true. problem with laser is that you may have shrinkage in the films and not all lasers can print large film.



is the hp laserjet 4mv discontinued?


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

DOS-Custom said:


> is the hp laserjet 4mv discontinued?


i believe it was discontinued. I purchased my HP 4v/4mv back in 2002, i'd be surprised if they haven't replaced it with a newer model/version by now.


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## mrvixx (Jan 13, 2009)

DOS-Custom said:


> is the hp laserjet 4mv discontinued?


Yes but you can get many rebuilt ones. check out ebay.  still a workhorse


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

very true, that thing is a workhorse! i never had any issues with it during the 9 years i used it, didn't break down once and always gave perfect registration. The only thing is monitoring the toner deposit. Once it starts getting light in some areas you need to shake up the cartridge to even out the toner and get ready to replace the cartridge in the near future.


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## DOS-Custom (Jan 5, 2010)

red514 said:


> i believe it was discontinued. I purchased my HP 4v/4mv back in 2002, i'd be surprised if they haven't replaced it with a newer model/version by now.



oh i see, do you know if the hp 5000n gives good halftone print outs?


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

I have not used that printer but from the specs it would appear to do the same as the 4mv. That printer does have PostScript2 so no need for extra rip software, should give great halftones with it's 1200x1200dpi


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## DOS-Custom (Jan 5, 2010)

red514 said:


> I have not used that printer but from the specs it would appear to do the same as the 4mv. That printer does have PostScript2 so no need for extra rip software, should give great halftones with it's 1200x1200dpi


thanks a bunch!


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## cameronempey (Nov 8, 2012)

I am so glad that I read this post. I was about to buy a Epson 1430 which I really didn't want to because the price but know im going to go buy a good $100 laser printer. Im just trying to learn screen printing on my own and I don't want to have to throw a lot of money out the window in the process thanks again for the post!!!!!!!!!!!


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## JohnBee (Nov 28, 2010)

i don't use RIP.... and.... FILM (or vellum) either.
Just regular bond paper.... honestly.


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## cameronempey (Nov 8, 2012)

JohnBee said:


> i don't use RIP.... and.... FILM (or vellum) either.
> Just regular bond paper.... honestly.[/QUOT
> 
> Great Ill give that a shot... and that works with the laser printer then right? Thanks


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

JohnBee said:


> i don't use RIP.... and.... FILM (or vellum) either.
> Just regular bond paper.... honestly.


you use bond paper to do halftone prints?

i could see bond paper working for simple blocky shapes (i still wouldn't recommend it), but fine detail... especially halftones, i didn't think was possible.
do you have pics of a print you've done using bond paper? what LPI was used for the halftones?
what's your exposure setup like and how long was the exposure?


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## Sulp (Dec 7, 2010)

gnilrac said:


> As i said,there are better alternatives to vellum that will rival,if not better the the output of an inkjet printer combined with a RIP.


Although I don't hang out here too often, I never heard of people saying that the only option to printing halftones was inkjet & rip. There are a ton of postscript laser printers that are able to generate decent halftones. I feel sorry for the people that either lost a job, or spent a ton of money due to misinformation. 

But I must disagree with your statement above. You cannot rival an inkjet dot with a laser printer. No way. Laser printers will only take you so far in this business. Eventually you would make the switch..I promise you. I use both. I have a really nice laser printer for printing 1-color, simple designs. And then I have an Epson 4900 for EVERYTHING else. Nothing compares to a inkjet dot..(except maybe DTS) But with that being said, you can produce decent, useable dots on a cheap laser printer. Just not ones that will rival or be better then injet.


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## Ripcord (Sep 2, 2006)

You can print halftone dots with any kind of printer without buying anything else. I do mine with Postscript files and Ghostscript/ Ghostview, which is a free download. I've done them with numerous different laser and inkjet printers, all with good results.

I've no doubt that the commercial RIP and separation software offer many features that I might take advantage of, but I like to make the adjustments on my own before I go to Postscript, so I've never felt like spending the money on these. When you're in business for yourself, it's best to save as much money as you can.


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## casperboy77 (May 20, 2009)

gnilrac said:


> I agree with you mrvixx.
> Yet,every newbie asking the questions i used to got the sme response:Get a rip.
> You DO NOT need a rip.
> As for shrinkage of the film in laser printers,move away from vellum.
> ...


I just wanted to comment on this thread. You are 100% you do NOT NEED a RIP. Does your Lexmark actually get films dark enough that light cannot pass through? Do you use a spray on your film afterwards to darken the toner?

I have a Epson Workforce 1100. I use Windows Gutenprint drivers. I output my films from CorelDraw, Illustratior, Photoshop, Gimp & Inkscape. My films can come out as dark as I want and you CANNOT see through the image when I print. My advice to anyone new out there: Download the free trial of AccuRIP and print a few films and look at them and hold them to the light. That will give you something to go by as long as AccuRIP worked properly and you have the right settings. I tried the whole Ghostscript/Gsview in the beginning but my films were too light. I never would have known my films were too light unless I had something to go by. So I am happy that I tried AccuRIP in the very beginning. So for me the free Gutenprint drivers and a few adjustments and and some file updates and I have never had a problem. I have printed hundreds of films, mostly 13" x 19" waterproof. I print halftones all the time. 

So I agree that you do not need a "RIP" (meaning an expensive commercial RIP program). Also while reading this thread someone else mentioned: "If it works for you..." If you call any screen printing supplier they are all going to tell you to buy a RIP. Ultimately, if you can print your films so that they are completely dark and you can get a good burn onto your screen then that is all that you need. Starting a business is hard enough, buying screen printing equipment is even harder. Then you get all setup and you find that you can't get a dark enough image and someone tells you that you need to spend $500.00 on RIP software that you download from the internet..... That about made me rip my hair out. Save your money and do research, it can be done without spending all of that money on RIP software. 

Lastly, sorry for this long post. This is one of the biggest mistakes and I made this same mistake. You do NOT want to get your equipment and everything that you need, shirts, ink, film, etc... and then start taking orders. The best thing to do is take your time to get setup and get everything tweaked.

Good Luck!


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## Sulp (Dec 7, 2010)

casperboy77 said:


> I just wanted to comment on this thread. You are 100% you do NOT NEED a RIP. Does your Lexmark actually get films dark enough that light cannot pass through? Do you use a spray on your film afterwards to darken the toner?
> 
> I have a Epson Workforce 1100. I use Windows Gutenprint drivers. I output my films from CorelDraw, Illustratior, Photoshop, Gimp & Inkscape. My films can come out as dark as I want and you CANNOT see through the image when I print. My advice to anyone new out there: Download the free trial of AccuRIP and print a few films and look at them and hold them to the light. That will give you something to go by as long as AccuRIP worked properly and you have the right settings. I tried the whole Ghostscript/Gsview in the beginning but my films were too light. I never would have known my films were too light unless I had something to go by. So I am happy that I tried AccuRIP in the very beginning. So for me the free Gutenprint drivers and a few adjustments and and some file updates and I have never had a problem. I have printed hundreds of films, mostly 13" x 19" waterproof. I print halftones all the time.
> 
> ...


Opacity of the black on ur film or vellum has nothing really to do with rip software.


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

Sulp said:


> Opacity of the black on ur film or vellum has nothing really to do with rip software.


Yes it does. Rips not only convert grayscale to halftones but they also instruct the printhead to either do multi pass or just use more ink. I do own Filmmaker DTP but haven't used it in a year. I can make it use so much ink it runs off the film.

I just convert to halftones with Corel and simple seps3 add on or photoshop. Then just convert all the black from 100% K to 100% CMYK so it print from every channel. I have all black dye ink in CISS epson 1400 which happens to produce the best halftones dots even compared to the larger Epson printers but has a 13" wide limit.


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## JohnBee (Nov 28, 2010)

cameronempey said:


> JohnBee said:
> 
> 
> > i don't use RIP.... and.... FILM (or vellum) either.
> ...


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

Inkjet will have much better results for halftones. Using bond paper may wor,k but will never work properly or any other semi opaque material. Emulsion cross links when exposed to UV. Using other then film you will have to expose much longer then using film. Undercutting and thread transport will occur to some degree. 

They may have been doing this in the 90's but this isn't the 90's and with all the technology advancements since then why mess around.


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## casperboy77 (May 20, 2009)

JohnBee said:


> cameronempey said:
> 
> 
> > yes, laser printed preferrably.... though inkjet print works as well.
> ...


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## Sulp (Dec 7, 2010)

sben763 said:


> Yes it does. Rips not only convert grayscale to halftones but they also instruct the printhead to either do multi pass or just use more ink. I do own Filmmaker DTP but haven't used it in a year. I can make it use so much ink it runs off the film.
> 
> I just convert to halftones with Corel and simple seps3 add on or photoshop. Then just convert all the black from 100% K to 100% CMYK so it print from every channel. I have all black dye ink in CISS epson 1400 which happens to produce the best halftones dots even compared to the larger Epson printers but has a 13" wide limit.


Yes, u can use rip software to adjust black levels, but it is not needed to print 100% black. I use an Epson 4900 with 11 black cartridges. IMO, it prints the best halftones of any printer I've used over the last 26 years. I don't have any experience with the 1400. But it's good to know it prints well.


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

Sulp said:


> Yes, u can use rip software to adjust black levels, but it is not needed to print 100% black. I use an Epson 4900 with 11 black cartridges. IMO, it prints the best halftones of any printer I've used over the last 26 years. I don't have any experience with the 1400. But it's good to know it prints well.


Never said you needed a rip to print 100% black, How are you printing from 11 channels, Even if you are using the 100% cmyk method you are only printing from 6, maybe 9 if the llk,mk,and lk slots are used not sure on the 4900 how those are used but on the 4800 I had to put a gray mask to get it to print from both black channels. in order to take full advantage of all channels you would have to make a green and orange mask that falls within the pantone spectrum the Epson used for those 2 channels in the print driver. 

The 4900 is a fine printer, for anything I can print 13x19 I use the 1400 as is blows away the 4800,4900 in quality due to the fact the are setup up for large format. They both use the smallest dot 3.5PL and the 1400 is 1.5PL this creates better gradients less dot gain and over better interlocking of the dots on simulated and CMYK prints.

A rip can also be a good teaching tool in regards to dot gain. It has tools to control this.


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## cameronempey (Nov 8, 2012)

Am I going crazy because I cant find bond paper at any of my local office sup stores is it called something else?  lol


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

cameronempey said:


> Am I going crazy because I cant find bond paper at any of my local office sup stores is it called something else?  lol


 bondpaper seems to be a general term for "a superior quality of strong durable white writing paper; originally made for printing documents"


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## cameronempey (Nov 8, 2012)

All the bond paper I've seen has a water mark won't that mess up my design


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

JohnBee said:


> cameronempey said:
> 
> 
> > yes, laser printed preferrably.... though inkjet print works as well.
> ...


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

cameronempey said:


> All the bond paper I've seen has a water mark won't that mess up my design


i would think so. i personally don't see how using any type of non transparent paper (or at least translucent) can be used to produce fine detail like a 55lpi halftone pattern.

i would not recommend using paper.


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## Sulp (Dec 7, 2010)

sben763 said:


> Never said you needed a rip to print 100% black, How are you printing from 11 channels, Even if you are using the 100% cmyk method you are only printing from 6, maybe 9 if the llk,mk,and lk slots are used not sure on the 4900 how those are used but on the 4800 I had to put a gray mask to get it to print from both black channels. in order to take full advantage of all channels you would have to make a green and orange mask that falls within the pantone spectrum the Epson used for those 2 channels in the print driver.
> 
> The 4900 is a fine printer, for anything I can print 13x19 I use the 1400 as is blows away the 4800,4900 in quality due to the fact the are setup up for large format. They both use the smallest dot 3.5PL and the 1400 is 1.5PL this creates better gradients less dot gain and over better interlocking of the dots on simulated and CMYK prints.
> 
> A rip can also be a good teaching tool in regards to dot gain. It has tools to control this.


It's the black max system with 11-cartrides configured as: O, G, C, LC, VM, VLM, Y, LK, LLK, PK or MK.


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## JohnBee (Nov 28, 2010)

sben763 said:


> Inkjet will have much better results for halftones. Using bond paper may wor,k but will never work properly or any other semi opaque material. Emulsion cross links when exposed to UV. Using other then film you will have to expose much longer then using film. Undercutting and thread transport will occur to some degree.
> 
> They may have been doing this in the 90's but this isn't the 90's and with all the technology advancements since then why mess around.


i believe laser printed is sharper than inkjet printed therefore laser printer yields a more sharper hafftone print (only drawback, it uses heat to fuse ink and so it shrinks a film little bit).

Emulsion cross link???? what are you talking about, man!  educate me on this.

My bondpaper technique..... takes 5 minutes to expose (i have 1000W metal halide DIY setup)

this is not the 90's...but hey, we are still using emulsion these days (which was used even before the 90s).

yes, i agree. if you already have the modern techniques (film and rip), don't mess around with bond-paper technique. what is $1 film cost VS. 5 cents bond-paper?.......nothing and no big deal.

BUT what if bondpaper works very well with your setup? Then you would not have to shell out $1000 bucks for RIP and Films to start with this trade. 

oh, well, that's why they call it trick-of-the-trade.


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## red514 (Jul 21, 2009)

JohnBee said:


> My bondpaper technique..... takes 5 minutes to expose (i have 1000W metal halide DIY setup)


what LPI do you use for the halftone pattern? what mesh count is used and what emulsion?


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

Sulp said:


> It's the black max system with 11-cartrides configured as: O, G, C, LC, VM, VLM, Y, LK, LLK, PK or MK.


I understand that but without a way to tell the printer to use those channels it will simply use black channels. So that being a RIP or manually putting into the image it wont print from the other channels


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

JohnBee said:


> i believe laser printed is sharper than inkjet printed therefore laser printer yields a more sharper hafftone print (only drawback, it uses heat to fuse ink and so it shrinks a film little bit).
> 
> Emulsion cross link???? what are you talking about, man!  educate me on this.
> 
> ...


Laser back in the 90's did have a better Dot but today that simply isn't true. I use a PC microscope and have tested this on just about every brand of laser printer vs the Epson piezo head but if you want send me a printed image and I will compare it and post results.

I am no where near a $1 a film even my 13X19 films are .70 if I buy the good ones. I would put a bond printed halftone image against a film printed image and lay money on which one would come out with the best results during exposure and washout

cross linking is how emulsion works the polymers crosslink forming a bond. the better the crosslink the better the image will be. SaatiCHEM - Emulsions Tech Q&A this link doesn't explain crosslinking but has some good info

I started out 7 years ago with a $99 Epson 1100 and a pack of films $76 13x19. No rip. 

I have a 1000w Metal halide unit, use photopolymer emulsion and expose screens in 30-90 sec depending on mesh and thickness of emulsion


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## JohnBee (Nov 28, 2010)

red514 said:


> what LPI do you use for the halftone pattern? what mesh count is used and what emulsion?


between 25LPI -45LPI (depending on the artwork requirement). i have not done higher than 50LPI.

Lower LPI i used 230 mesh..... higher LPI i use 305 mesh.

i use the hybrid emulsion from Ryonet (waterbased-plastisol emulsion).


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

Been exposing 45-65 LPI on 205. The football image was done at 65 LPI and all but 1 screen were 205. On a 300 I have done 85LPI. 272 mesh I use 65-75 LPI.


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## cameronempey (Nov 8, 2012)

JohnBee said:


> i believe laser printed is sharper than inkjet printed therefore laser printer yields a more sharper hafftone print (only drawback, it uses heat to fuse ink and so it shrinks a film little bit).
> 
> Emulsion cross link???? what are you talking about, man!  educate me on this.
> 
> ...



So the water mark doesn't affect the artwork? Or is your bond paper just plain white paper used in office copiers and such? I know my question is dumb but I'm confused lol


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## JohnBee (Nov 28, 2010)

cameronempey said:


> So the water mark doesn't affect the artwork? Or is your bond paper just plain white paper used in office copiers and such? I know my question is dumb but I'm confused lol


i don't have watermarks on my bond paper. i don't know why you have it on yours.

buy the ones that says 20lbs. / 92 bright (that means ORDINARY bond paper you can buy almost anywhere.....and yes, exactly same paper used in office copiers.)

you can use 24lbs too but it's a little thicker. i recommend 20lbs.....


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## cameronempey (Nov 8, 2012)

JohnBee said:


> i don't have watermarks on my bond paper. i don't know why you have it on yours.
> 
> buy the ones that says 20lbs. / 92 bright (that means ORDINARY bond paper you can buy almost anywhere.....and yes, exactly same paper used in office copiers.)
> 
> you can use 24lbs too but it's a little thicker. i recommend 20lbs.....


Thank u Thank u lol


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## JohnBee (Nov 28, 2010)

cameronempey said:


> Thank u Thank u lol


sent you a pm.


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