Screen printing is a wonder and a joy, and a frustration all at the same time.
This is a list of things that have gone wrong for me... recorded here so I (hopefully) don't repeat them.
This list will evolve forever.
September 2023
Hot pressed paper is smooth, cold pressed is textured
Softer squeegy rubber is better for textured paper
Be an officious cleaner it won't hurt
If you know you just got ink on your finger and it's probably on the squeegy handle - wipe it off straight away. Ink gets everywhere, just wipe it up asap.
Wash one thing in the wash-out trough, then take it out of the trough. Otherwise when you wash the next thing, the first thing will just get covered in watery ink. Take stuff out the trough and put it elsewhere.
Be realistic about how well you will be able to align things
Don't expect to be able to align layers with super exactitude. Getting it right will be more luck than a consistant outcome. Overlaying alignments — much more forgiving.
You won't have enough time
This is a good expectation to start with. Any pre-preparation you can do will be a win.
Prep screen the day before = win
Coat screen the day before = Win
Expose screen the day before = Win!
Wash out screen the day before = WIN!
Don't pull masking tape too tight
This is mainly for when taping down a transparency that you're going to use for alignment of prints. If you pull the masking tape super tight, when you release it (on the transparency and bed) it will contract, and your nice neat, tight tape hinge becomes a wrinkly, crinkly hinge... Tape is a bit elastic, it recoils. Kinda like this short.
Know where the top of your design is on your screen
Mainly to remember, if you have multiple layers on one screen, you are pulling sideways on the design and especially if you are printing patterns, which don't obviously have a top or bottom. When cleaning the same screen and taping off different areas, it can be easy to forget to check where top is
Filling gaps with exposure fluid is less permanent than you might want
If you have filled gaps or scratches with painted on exposure fluid, this will come with any screen wash, so will need to be reapplied if reusing the screen
Beware of emailing image files as attachments
Some email clients (I see you Mac Mail) automatically offer to resize your attached file. This can lead to designs arriving with printers unexpectedly resized.
