Cheapest Thermofax-Screenprinting "quick and dirty"

I suppose, you know the basics of screen-printing and/ or Thermofax-Screenprinting.If not, please take a peak to the many videos about at youtube.

Thermofax-Screenprinting is not new, but I suggest,  the way I've found out, is the cheapest and quickest of all.
Do you know "Risography"? It is a kind of digital thermofax-screen-printing. Also used from Gestetner as "CopyPrinter". !!!NEW (2022): Gestetner no longer produces "Masters". The replacement comes from Ricoh and is called "Priport Master". As with Gestetner, there are different units of measurement that all work equally well, they must be tailored to the required format!!!
And on your way throug the "bay", you shurly have seen the cheap Themofax-machines used as Tattoo-tools.
This are the both things I use for my thermofax-printing.
The Gestetner Copy-Master-Film is often seen for USD 15.–/ 100m x 0.23m. Now (2022), the Ricoh-Priport has about the double prize (or more), when bought from eBay. Prize in the office-shops are much higher. But still it is a quick & very cheap printing-technic.
The Tattoo-Thermofax-machine you can get for about USD 135.– (or equivalent, in Europe).

Now you' ve to calculate: 100m x 0.23m are about 300 Screens in A4! !!!I've just bought 2 rolls of Priport-Masters 320 mm, for about 50.- (incl. shipping to Switzerland). With this I'm able to print 1440 different motives in the size of a postcard, or about 650 different motives in the size of A4 (T-Shirts for exsample)!!!
I use this technic mainly for A5 / A6 = Postcards, that means 600 or more Screens for USD 15.-

The Thermofax-Machine is... made in China. The nice LEDs are only fake, but ist works in its simple way, and that is, what we wont for this little money.
There is a similar Machine with USB-Connectiv, but I've not used is up to now. It is only for Windows. I'm Mac-user.

Handling Thermofax quick and dirty:

1. Draw your image, or print it out in the size 1:1, only black and white.
You can use Photoshop to raster an imagine, you can use also 4C-Prints.
2. Prepare the color. For printing on paper, I use Acrylic CMYC-Colors + Black / and Lascaux-Retarter.
For printing on fabric (T-Shirts), use the colours you have.
3. Prepare the print-base. I use a glass/acryl-glass with marker for the right position of the paper.
Then I'm attaching the Riso/Copy-Master -Film directly on the glass.
4. Mount the Film on a carrier of A4-paper, as seen in the pic.
5. Copy the imagine with the Thermofax-machine on the Film.
6. Print and enjoy your art.
6a. For printing, I use a window squeegee, cutten to the right size.

Gestetners "Riso-Master-Film"

The Tattoo-Thermofax-Machine from China

The colours I use for the printing on paper.

Thermofaxing: the "CopyMaster-Film" mounted on an A4-Paper-Carrier obove, the original below (upside down).

Printing. Often I protect the very thin "CopyMaster-Film" with cover-tape.

Printing the 2nd color of a two-color-print.

Size A6: 2-color-Thermofax-Print. Screened with Photoshop.

(the same like above)

Size A6: 4-color-Thermofax-Screenprint.

The different angels of the screen-dots. Traditional Yellow = 0°, Cyan = 15°, Black = 45°, Magenta = 75°.

Now I'm curious about your work. Would be nice, if you mail it to me: info@ekk-art.ch

Happy printing
-ekk-

PS.: if you are from St.Gallen/Switzerland look here > Kurse in St.Gallen