Screen printing on burned cd's

User avatar
andrew embassy
george martin
Posts: 1396
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2003 4:03 pm
Location: Seattle, WA
Contact:

Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by andrew embassy » Thu Feb 10, 2005 9:21 am

First off- does anybody here do this?

I'm thinking I'd like to screen print onto some burned cd's- but my friend who tried it had really bad luck with his ink- it was really poorly spread and it was totally a matte finish. Part of that is just mastering the craft, but I think the finish is probably more dependent on the ink- I'd like mine to have a gloss or semi-gloss finish. What kind of ink should I get?
HEY! Who forgot they bag?

Al_Huero
suffering 'studio suck'
Posts: 485
Joined: Thu Sep 25, 2003 9:58 am
Location: Vista
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by Al_Huero » Thu Feb 10, 2005 9:41 am

Not a clue. Consider having a disc manufacturer do it for and just ship you the blank CD's for you to burn.

User avatar
andyg666
re-cappin' neve
Posts: 669
Joined: Tue Jun 17, 2003 9:25 am
Location: Witchtown, MA
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by andyg666 » Thu Feb 10, 2005 10:58 am

al's right--that's the way to do it. you have to get 1,000 at least. have them printed before you burn them. i've seen great looking CDrs with screen printing. call play-it productions. 212.695.6530.

User avatar
andrew embassy
george martin
Posts: 1396
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2003 4:03 pm
Location: Seattle, WA
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by andrew embassy » Thu Feb 10, 2005 11:37 am

I want to make things custom, like different colors for different types of cd's and stuff. Also, different designs and stuff, so 1,000 is way too many.
HEY! Who forgot they bag?

User avatar
cassettefetish
steve albini likes it
Posts: 346
Joined: Tue Jan 13, 2004 9:59 pm

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by cassettefetish » Thu Feb 10, 2005 12:54 pm

I got an Epson printer for 99$ that uses inkjet printing to print on CD-R media. It does an amazing job, the ink is cheap(ish), the quality is GREAT and at times BRILLIANT... you really can't go wrong. Just keep them dry.

User avatar
andrew embassy
george martin
Posts: 1396
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2003 4:03 pm
Location: Seattle, WA
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by andrew embassy » Thu Feb 10, 2005 4:41 pm

Yeah, thanks but no thanks- I'm kind of set on doing it silk screen- I just want an ink that'll be glossy at the end of the day- Does anybody here do much silk screening?
HEY! Who forgot they bag?

User avatar
MichaelAlan
tinnitus
Posts: 1144
Joined: Thu Oct 07, 2004 9:21 am
Location: Passing under Sleep's dark and silent gate
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by MichaelAlan » Thu Feb 10, 2005 6:14 pm

I worked in a screen printing place, where my guitar player still works, and I would guess there is a whole different printing process for CD's than the one for shirts. How are you drying the ink on the CD's?
All energy flows according to the whims of the great magnet...

User avatar
andyg666
re-cappin' neve
Posts: 669
Joined: Tue Jun 17, 2003 9:25 am
Location: Witchtown, MA
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by andyg666 » Thu Feb 10, 2005 6:57 pm

unless you find an individual to do it for you, no company will do less than 500, and at the prices for 500, you might as well get 1000

User avatar
andrew embassy
george martin
Posts: 1396
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2003 4:03 pm
Location: Seattle, WA
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by andrew embassy » Thu Feb 10, 2005 10:08 pm

I've got the screen, the time, the patience, and the money- I just need to know the type of ink if anybody knows it. As for how we're drying it- I'm not sure- wouldn't that depend on the ink?
HEY! Who forgot they bag?

User avatar
andyg666
re-cappin' neve
Posts: 669
Joined: Tue Jun 17, 2003 9:25 am
Location: Witchtown, MA
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by andyg666 » Fri Feb 11, 2005 4:41 am

damned DIYers.... ;-)

best of luck to ya with it.

User avatar
MichaelAlan
tinnitus
Posts: 1144
Joined: Thu Oct 07, 2004 9:21 am
Location: Passing under Sleep's dark and silent gate
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by MichaelAlan » Fri Feb 11, 2005 9:24 am

andrew embassy wrote:I've got the screen, the time, the patience, and the money- I just need to know the type of ink if anybody knows it. As for how we're drying it- I'm not sure- wouldn't that depend on the ink?
Yes, I think...The reason I asked is because with shirt ink you have to flash dry it, which is over 700 degrees (no more CD) or slow-dry it in a heater at like 300 degrees. The shirt ink will take weeks to just air dry. Do you have a screen printing machine?


Man, our first CD, our guitar player made this sweet stencile thing that held 5 CD's at once. We just spray painted them and it looked pretty cool....

Mike
All energy flows according to the whims of the great magnet...

dougo
pushin' record
Posts: 272
Joined: Fri Feb 13, 2004 8:48 am
Location: Cardiff
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by dougo » Fri Feb 11, 2005 9:49 am

If I can recall from memory. Use a enamel ink. It is air drying. Usually 4hrs drying time. This is what a friend did at their silkscreen shop. We used to use enamel to silkscreen cardboard boxes. High gloss sheen. The project was for Angry Swede. They did the marketing for Atomic Snowboards.

Contact you local screeprint supplier, he'll give you more details.
Dougo
"To live on the land, one must learn from the sea." Jacques-Yves Cousteau
1910-1997

User avatar
andrew embassy
george martin
Posts: 1396
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2003 4:03 pm
Location: Seattle, WA
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by andrew embassy » Fri Feb 11, 2005 10:24 am

dougo wrote:If I can recall from memory. Use a enamel ink. It is air drying. Usually 4hrs drying time. This is what a friend did at their silkscreen shop. We used to use enamel to silkscreen cardboard boxes. High gloss sheen. The project was for Angry Swede. They did the marketing for Atomic Snowboards.

Contact you local screeprint supplier, he'll give you more details.
Dougo
Yes, this is what I'm after- That totally makes sense to use enamel; I'll ask at the place we get the ink if they have any.
HEY! Who forgot they bag?

User avatar
space_ryerson
steve albini likes it
Posts: 354
Joined: Mon Nov 17, 2003 2:02 pm
Location: Brooklyn
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by space_ryerson » Fri Feb 11, 2005 10:30 am

Try acrylic paint with a silk screening medium. There's a specific medium for silk-screening that sticks to plastic well. I used to use Liquitex from an art supply store for silk screening onto plexiglass. I'm sure there's someone in your local art store that knows which medium to use. Also, do not use an enamel if it is oil-based, since it may or may not dissolve the plactic layer at the top of the cd. The part that stores the digital info.

Acrylic paint in general sticks to plastic rather well, since it is a like bond, so I imagine this might work. Man, this takes me back to art school.

User avatar
I'm Painting Again
zen recordist
Posts: 7086
Joined: Wed May 07, 2003 2:15 am
Location: New York, New York
Contact:

Re: Screen printing on burned cd's

Post by I'm Painting Again » Fri Feb 11, 2005 10:34 am

UTFSF!! LOL!! heres a great post by our own boardmember Ryan_C to me a while back :
Alright Sky, I'm going to write this assuming you have absolutely no idea what you're doing. Of course, you may know some (if not most or all) of this, so I apologize in advance if you already do. Screen printing is something that takes a lot of effort, but isn't particularly difficult to do, and I think it behooves every band to have at least one person be fairly proficient at it.

First, depending on your design (and how much detail is in it) the mesh count of your screen is key. A low mesh count will make your prints look like shit, and everything will be very blocky. You'll also use more ink and it will go on thicker, as more ink is allowed to transfer. And a low mesh count + small text = bad times. If you just bought your silkscreen off the shelf at Dick Blick (my local example, though they are a nationwide chain so they may be your local example as well!) with the mesh already stretched, you may have problems. We learned that the hard way. We normally just buy frames and stretch them ourselves, and many times we've bought mesh from Dick Blick (they sell it in a bag, though I've heard it's been discontinued) and it's always been of sufficient mesh count. The last time we were in a hurry, though, and just bought some new screens pre-stretched off the shelf at Dick Blick, and the prints were UGLY. Really blocky, way too much ink got through and soaked the paper, it was a total disaster. I mention this because you said you already have the screen, and if it ends up looking bad, the mesh count could be why. I've been told that a mesh count of 110-195 tends to be great for most designs. The screens we used turned out to be like 74s or something.

I don't know if you have your screen already burned, but if not, it's pretty easy. We make our negatives on vellum paper printed off of a laser jet printer and use a fancy-pants lightbox with some fancy pants screen emulsion, which gives us more detail and cuts down on the time. For a simple one color design you don't have to go that route, though. You can get the Speedball Diazo screen emulsion kit at just about any art store. Look in the included instructions and follow them. It's pretty easy to use. The instructions are pretty clear, but i can add a few more pointers. First, put your design on a transparency. If you have a photocopier, that's great, otherwise take it to Kinko's and have them do it. Make sure you like the way it looks, because your finished product is going to look almost exactly the same. When I would do stuff off of an inkjet printer, I'd make a photocopy of it, and then copy that copy and so on a few times to soften up the edges before making the transparency, but I'm crazy like that. You'll also need a sheet of glass bigger than your design to hold it flat while you burn it. You can probably just take it out of a picture frame. Once the screen is burned in and ready to go, you'll probably have to tape off where the edges of the glass were. A nice clamping work light with the reflector around it is fantastic, just use the wattage bulb they recommend in the instructions (I think 150). And be careful, the emulsion stains. I turned the bottom of the shower in my dorm green in college from washing out screens in there. The transparency route is kind of down and dirty, but it's pretty easy and doesn't require much equipment (like a lightbox and the right weight vellum and a laserjet printer). Out of the probably two dozen screens I've made like this (with extremely shitty setups), I think I've only managed to fuck up one.

If it's just one color, it's pretty simple. Get whatever color ink you want to rock. Standard acrylic ink (Speedball is the easiest example and is very inexpensive) should work fine. You can make a custom color if you want. We use big disposable plastic cups and plastic spoons for mixing, though if we have old tupperware around that also works well. So pour some ink into the cup, and add some extender base to thin it down a bit. This will help it go on smooth (you don't want it to print all puffy, it looks kind of crappy and will be prone to flaking off) and help keep it from drying up in your screen. It also (as the name suggests) helps extend the amount of ink you have, sort of like a restaurant watering down your soda.

If your backing board is clean, you can probably just lay the cd down directly on it, but if you're feeling a little nervous about it (as there is a potential for scratching) a (very) thin, flat layer of foam (like they package stuff in) or a thin, soft towel (also flat!) would probably work. Make sure you tape it down (we use drafting tape for everything) so it doesn't move around. After this, line up the cd with where you want the design to be. If you're only doing one color, it shouldn't be too bad, though it can be a bit tricky so be patient. Make sure you have more cds than you actually need so you have some to practice with. Once you get it lined up the way you want it, tape off a tight square around the cd so you can quickly put the next one down without having to figure it out everytime. You may need to adjust it a little, and depending on how your screen is mounted (standard pin-hinges have a little more give in them compared to clamp hinges, which won't move at all on you), the positioning of your picture may be slightly different on every cd, but that just makes each one a unique piece of art!

Now it's time to make a print! Use your disposable plastic spoon to spoon some ink onto the screen. You won't need a ton of ink, just put it an inch or two above your design and make a line just a little bit wider than your image. Use your squeegee and pull it down while holding it at an angle, using both hands to ensure even pressure. You won't need to go all the way to the bottom of the screen, just past where your design ends (that way if you didn't tape off the gutters, you won't have ink squeezing through to the bottom). Kind of scoop up the extra ink at the end of your pull. Lift up your screen. Does it look right? If so, then awesome, congratulations! Take off the disc and it's on to the next one. If it looks uneven and some ink didn't print (you can normally tell this as you're doing it, though), don't touch it! Close the screen and do another pass across the bad area. You can normally tell right away if your design will require two passes, which isn't a big deal. Just try to not move the screen at all so it stays in registration. Normally, if you need two passes, you can add more ink and make it in one if you want to. Just be mindful of how thick it's going on the cd and add a little more extender if you need to. Also, you don't want the cd to stick to the bottom of the screen. That shit is bad news. A bit more extender will help with that as well.

We find it easiest to do this with three people. In your case, one person would set up the cd, one person would print it, and one person would take it off and set it aside to dry, making you a real-live assembly line! This is also helpful for adding more ink and getting the printer water to drink or whatever. It's nice because that way you can trade off who is printing, which is definitely the hardest job. If you have to do it by yourself, grab a boom mic stand and use that to hold up the screen off the board while you put cds on and take them off, that way ink doesn't get onto the board (and therefore on to the bottom of your discs!).

You may notice your print quality declining (particularly if you're doing hundreds of prints), sometimes severely over time. That means it's time to take a break. Thoroughly wash out your screen and let it stand to dry. If it's nice and warm and sunny out, put it outside in the sun and let nature do the rest. When it's dry you can get back to work.

Also, keep a roll of paper towels handy. They're good for putting inky things on, keeping your work area relatively clean, and if ink blobs up on the bottom of your screen, you can wipe it off with a paper towel.

This last part seems like common sense but I've seen it happen, even to us: make sure your cds are dry before stacking them! Lay them all out one by one on the floor or a table and give them enough time to dry. It shouldn't take too long (though humidity will obviously add to the time) but give yourself enough time and be patient about it.

I think that's most of the basics. I hope so at any rate, because after previewing this, it's extremely fucking long. The more you do it, the more comfortable you'll feel about it. Feel free to post again or PM me with any other questions, and let us know how it goes. Good luck!

Locked

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 12 guests