Other Paper Similar to Crane’s Lettra - 8.5 x 11 110# Discontinued

I just spoke with Crane’s paper today to ask when the Pearl White paper 110# in 8.5 x 11 sheets would be available and I was told that size has been discontinued. The larger sheets will be all that they have available and they run about $138 -249. The 8.5 x 11 boxes were only $44 a box - much more reasonable to spend at one time.

I LOVE Crane’s paper but the larger sheets are more than I would want to spend at once on paper.

Does anyone know of paper that is similar to Crane’s. I use Von Son Rubber Based Ink and have tried a few other papers like the paper from Paper Source.com and the ink takes forever to dry. With Crane’s it just soaks right in.

Anyway, just wondering if anyone had another source for 8.5 x 11 or similar Crane’s paper.

Thanks,
Brandi

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Call FasClampitt… the one I use is out of Garland, Texas: 972-487-4005

they stock Lettra (if that is what you are referring to) and should have the letter size plenty available. also, they are usually cheaper than Crane direct, and the customer service is excellent! i had a ream of 220 sent to me and it went to the wrong address, but i called them up and they sent me another ream at no cost! big thumbs up to them!

There are several papers that have a similar texture and feel, such as Canson’s Edition.

As far as Van Son rubber-based goes, it’s not the best ink for letterpress work. It works ok…. but it’s not the best. It’s drying properties are more geared toward offset lithography, not letterpress. (It’s also less light-fast than many other inks, which is why litho-posters fade so badly when exposed to sunlight. ) Oil based inks are a lot more consistent in their drying properties on a variety of stocks.

Brandi:

Although I have not tried it, you might check out the paper marketed by Manifesto Letterpress. It is supposedly quite similar to the Crane paper. See it on their website at:
http://shopmanifestopress.com/hofipa.html

They seem to have various sizes available and sell half sheets in 100 quantity. Maybe they would split those for you
to give you a smaller sheet size.

I’d have to agree with the Cat above regarding oil-based inks if you are experiencing drying problems on the paper stock you are using.

You can add drying agents to the rubber-based inks to accelerate drying and for surface drying.

We just did some work using Manifesto’s Holyoke Paper last weekend. Its a nice alternative to Lettra - a little smoother finish (which I like better) but the bone color isnt quite as white as the brightest Lettra.

Anyway, the people over there were great on the phone & provided a quick response - helping us out of a jam when our other paper supplier contacted us the day we expected a shipment to give us news that the sheet size (parent) we’d ordered was “out of stock - with an expected stock date of: unavalible”.

As far as ink, on this last project I tried out Pro-Line’s PPI. It printed well on the fluffy Holyoke paper. However the reason I found it attractive was that unlike rubber-base it will also dry on a coated stock but stay open on the press (unlike an oil-base ink). I’ve yet to really run it on a large variety of paper - I played with it a little on some coated stock & it so far it seems promising.

-Jason

I use Keldon paper in LA. You can buy however many parent sheets you need and have them cut down for a fee.

www.keldonpaper.com

And I concur with jason.tollefsen’s assessment on Pro-Line PPI; I’ve used it on the last couple of jobs and it printed beautifully on fuzzy cotton stock. Like him though, I’ve yet to try it on a large variety of stock.

Thanks for all of the tips on paper and ink. I already have A LOT of rubber based ink so I will need to use that until it runs out but then I might give oil based a try.

There are several papers here that might be great alternatives so thank you! I was really freaking out about the Crane’s situation!

Brandi

If you’re having problems finding 8 1/2x11 110# or 220# Crane’s Lettra, Keldon Paper stocks it. Please contact us at 323-584-7777.