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Will your CET flatbed or any of your flatbed printer prints wipe off with alcohol?

Tom Dalton

Tom Dalton

New Member
Will your CET flatbed (or any brand printer flatbed prints) wipe off with alcohol?

We're getting a new CET installed today and went to wipe off a mark on a finished print with a rag with alcohol on it and noticed we could remove ink. It didn't just fall off, but it did come off. The harder we scrubbed, the more ink we could get off. Cyan came of the easiest, but all colors had some movement. Then I tested the sample CET had printed a few weeks before and it had the same results. Neither had been out in the sun for post print curing.

We could wipe our old Gerber CAT-UV prints with alcohol immediately after printing without issue. We found that wet-wipes didn't have the same issue on the CET prints. It is just alcohol or any solvent I'm guessing.

Any thoughts? Is this normal? Does it eventually cure 100%? We were printing on coro and we had our lamp intensity at 100%.

-Tom
 
S

synergy_jim

New Member
we uses 99% denatured to clean ink of some mistakes, but there are some substrates it will never come off of. FRP being one.

That being said, we usually soak the crap out of the piece and let it sit a while to soften the inks.
 
D

DIGIXTRA

Digixtra
Tom Dalton said:
Will your CET flatbed (or any brand printer flatbed prints) wipe off with alcohol?

We're getting a new CET installed today and went to wipe off a mark on a finished print with a rag with alcohol on it and noticed we could remove ink. It didn't just fall off, but it did come off. The harder we scrubbed, the more ink we could get off. Cyan came of the easiest, but all colors had some movement. Then I tested the sample CET had printed a few weeks before and it had the same results. Neither had been out in the sun for post print curing.

We could wipe our old Gerber CAT-UV prints with alcohol immediately after printing without issue. We found that wet-wipes didn't have the same issue on the CET prints. It is just alcohol or any solvent I'm guessing.

Any thoughts? Is this normal? Does it eventually cure 100%? We were printing on coro and we had our lamp intensity at 100%.

-Tom
Click to expand...
Yes it is normal.. specially when it is fresh off from printer. UV ink will continue and take time to cure completely.
 
Tom Dalton

Tom Dalton

New Member
Are there any ink additives that make the ink cure harder ...so they can't be wiped off with alcohol other solvents?

We frequently print one item that gets handled quite a bit (Like custom phone cases) and was wondering if this was a sign that perspiration and oils from handling will make that item lose its graphics.
 
Gino

Gino

Premium Subscriber
It's not drying time, but curing time. There is a difference. If you can't wait to wipe these things down, try a stronger UV lamp. Perhaps first stage adhesion curing is not taking place like it should, therefore every pass afterwards is not bonding, either. Adhesion has to do with the ink - lamp combination. Very little is left to air dry with these things.
 
artbot

artbot

New Member
i think CET ink might be the most solvent resistant uv ink i've come across. after fully post-cured, the ink stands up to MEK.
 
uvgerard

uvgerard

New Member
UV curing on corrugated plastic

As anyone on the forum can attest, printing on corrugated plastic is challenging.

Your problem may not be lack of curing rather ADHESION between ink and substrate.

Many companies are quick to place blame on the UV lamp. In most cases nothing could be further than the truth. For example, take the same ink operating at the same speed on a different substrate; if it cures, the issue lies outside the UV lamp.

UV output is determined by the amount of power per unit area. In other words the printer power supply regulates and limits UV output. If someone tells you they have a more powerful lamp of the same spectral output to fit your printer, run for the hills. Personally I would insist on American made quartz as UV transmission over time is far superior to Chinese quartz. Most inkjet printers use Chinese lamps using Chinese quartz. You can do better however I am prejudiced as TCS Technologies uses USA materials to fabricate our UV bulbs. Since your machine is new I believe this is not the root of your problem.

If you listen to most printing machine salesman they will go to great lengths to explain that their machine will print anything, do anything and cost nothing to operate. If you ask about printing on Coroplast or Correx, etc., they will tell you “piece of cake”. Well my experience is nothing could be further from the truth. Salesman will tell you UV curing is instantaneous process with immediate results. Truth is the ink feels dry but is actually pinned in place. Many inks have a post cure phenomenon that can take 24 to 36 hours to complete. Proper adhesion requires a through and complete cure. Ink that appears to be dry continues to cure for some time after printing, which allows for improved adhesion. For best results hold off on any rigorous until the sheet is fully cured.
 
Nicky Zhou

Nicky Zhou

PrintLinks
Yes, I have experienced some inks which can't be wash out by alcohol, even you put the whole print out into the alcohol, you use a wiper or something to clean the ink surface, you can not remove any ink from the substrates.

We also do some jobs for phone case and control panel, which requires to anti-alcohol, and we test this project with Sunchemical ink, Oce 256, Jetrix IUMS, Agfa, and other inks, all of the inks can be removed by alcohol. Only the IUKS ink works good.

So I think that problem, or maybe not a problem, is a normal thing for most of the UV printers. The point coming from the inks more

Tom Dalton said:
Are there any ink additives that make the ink cure harder ...so they can't be wiped off with alcohol other solvents?

We frequently print one item that gets handled quite a bit (Like custom phone cases) and was wondering if this was a sign that perspiration and oils from handling will make that item lose its graphics.
Click to expand...
 
L

lynnfeiner

New Member
subsurface printing on acrylic on flatbed printer

we are having a problem with the graphics lifting off the back of the acrylic once double face tape is applied. does anyone have a similar problem or a solution?
 
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