:QUOTE [quotetype:personal] Every letterpress impression is a physical record of pressure applied at a specific moment. That contact is what makes it valuable. :INFO What Modern Accessible Letterpress Is Traditional letterpress used cast metal type locked into a chase. Modern accessible letterpress uses photopolymer plates — polymer sheets that harden under UV light to create a relief printing surface from any design you can print on transparency film. A Boxcar Press polymer plate on a Vandercook proof press or a tabletop platen press (Kelsey, Craftsmen) produces professional impressions without a type collection. :COUNTER.half .918 Inch | :COUNTER.half 1 to 2 Points :PATH Expose a Photopolymer Plate Print transparency film, expose in a UV unit, wash, and dry. | :INFO Expose a Photopolymer Plate Print your design as solid black on transparency film from a laser printer (not inkjet — toner blocks UV more reliably). Place face down on the photopolymer plate in your UV exposure unit. Expose per the plate manufacturer's time (typically 3 to 5 minutes under a UV lamp). Wash in a plate-washing unit or by hand with a soft brush under running water. Dry and post-expose for hardness. :PATH Mount the Plate and Lock Up the Chase Mount the plate on a base block and lock into the press chase. | :INFO Mount the Plate and Lock Up the Chase Adhere the photopolymer plate to a polymer plate base of the correct height to bring the plate surface to type high (.918 inch). Most commercial bases use a repositionable adhesive. Place the base and plate in the press chase and lock with quoins. The plate must be completely immovable — any shift during printing produces double images. :PATH Ink the Press and Take Impression Pulls Roll ink onto the plate, run paper through, and adjust impression. | :INFO Ink the Press and Take Impression Pulls Apply a thin, even layer of oil-based or rubber-based letterpress ink to the ink disc. Roll the ink disc to work the ink to an even consistency. Feed a sheet of dampened or standard paper and take a pull. Examine the impression: ink coverage should be even and complete. Impression depth (the kiss or deboss into the paper) is adjusted by raising or lowering the platen. :CHECKLIST What You Need to Start [ ] Tabletop platen press (Kelsey Excelsior, FAG, or similar) [ ] Photopolymer plate and polymer plate base [ ] UV exposure unit or strong UV lamp [ ] Plate washing equipment [ ] Oil-based or rubber-based letterpress ink [ ] Brayer for ink distribution [ ] Cotton rag or dampened papers for impression :NOTE Ink Temperature Affects Tack Cold oil-based ink is stiff and tacky — it picks up paper fiber and prints unevenly. Warm it slightly by working it on the ink disc before printing. Humidity also matters: damp paper takes ink more readily and produces sharper impression. Keep ink temperature consistent between pulls for consistent results across a print run. :QUOTE [quotetype:personal] Each sheet is numbered by the hand that fed it in. Letterpress is never entirely mechanical. :LINK https://www.boxcarpress.com/beginner-letterpress-resources/ Boxcar Press — Beginner Letterpress Printing Resources