Ink supplier, Pantone ink storage and ink use questions!
Hi guys,
I’m just about to buy my first press, so I’m looking for some inks. Figured I’d go for rubber for the open time, since it’s so hot where I live. Also figured I’d go for a Pantone set. That way I have a bunch of colours to use straight out the pot, but can also create colours as I need them. Shipping from the states costs $100 for anything where I live, so I can’t just order a pot of Pantone 2632 if I need it!
So has anyone used Letterpress.com inks? How to they compare to Van Son, for example? Any issues with them?
I’m looking at the 1lb tubs, which look to be a decent starter price:
http://www.letterpressink.com/product/letterpress-ink-pro-bundle/
Also 2 more questions:
What do you guys use for storing your mixed inks in? In the screen printing industry we have cheap quart plastic tubs with lids…. But we use a lot of ink, we tend to buy our Pantone bases in gallons! What do you use to store your Pantone mixes
Secondly, how do you calculate ink usage? Once again, screen printers have ink usage calculators, based on area, mesh size and quantityto give estimated weight or volume. How do you guys do it? How many impressions of a square inch would you get out of a pound or ounce of ink, for example? If I can avoid having a bunch of ink leftover from a custom mixed Pantone, that would be a good thing!
Many thanks,
Richie
Broadly speaking, ink is too cheap to measure - on smaller runs, the quantities used are so small that it’s insignificant compared to operator time.
There are proper tables for ink coverage for the use of Estimators. But they mostly make sense with longer runs in mind.
I’m minded to ask are there any professional printers Estimators left? And how about Order Clerks?