Originally published 11/16/2011
I can't stress enough the benefit of aluminum platens for screen printing, as we've not had much luck with wood in the past because of warping and heating issues. At Hi Voltage we will soon offer a full range of standard and specialty size aluminum platens. A few that we've made ourself include
toddler/babydoll tee platens, sleeve platens, and oversize platens, in addition to standard sizes. Another benefit of using aluminum platens is that at Hi Voltage we rarely use our huge oven, as we flash cure everything.
"But wait," you may be thinking, "why would you wait 30-40 seconds for each shirt to full-cure?" "AHA!" I'd respond, there are some tricks to full-curing with a flash. First, make sure the aluminum platens are heated up before you start printing. Next, before you're ready to cure it fully, make sure you pop the shirt off of the platen to allow it to heat faster. This way you can fully cure a shirt in about 10-15 seconds.
Do you want aluminum platens without the expensive price tag? As mentioned, pretty soon we'll be offering standard and specialty aluminum platens for all of your printing needs . . . without the high price. Inquire about availability or check back soon! We've been printing with these for years without any degradation, screw-loosening, etc. Mike tells me that, though I'm too young to understand, you can sit on these, Fonzie-style ("Yo Fonzie . . . 'Ayyyyyy").
I can't stress enough the benefit of aluminum platens for screen printing, as we've not had much luck with wood in the past because of warping and heating issues. At Hi Voltage we will soon offer a full range of standard and specialty size aluminum platens. A few that we've made ourself include
toddler/babydoll tee platens, sleeve platens, and oversize platens, in addition to standard sizes. Another benefit of using aluminum platens is that at Hi Voltage we rarely use our huge oven, as we flash cure everything.
"But wait," you may be thinking, "why would you wait 30-40 seconds for each shirt to full-cure?" "AHA!" I'd respond, there are some tricks to full-curing with a flash. First, make sure the aluminum platens are heated up before you start printing. Next, before you're ready to cure it fully, make sure you pop the shirt off of the platen to allow it to heat faster. This way you can fully cure a shirt in about 10-15 seconds.
Do you want aluminum platens without the expensive price tag? As mentioned, pretty soon we'll be offering standard and specialty aluminum platens for all of your printing needs . . . without the high price. Inquire about availability or check back soon! We've been printing with these for years without any degradation, screw-loosening, etc. Mike tells me that, though I'm too young to understand, you can sit on these, Fonzie-style ("Yo Fonzie . . . 'Ayyyyyy").