How to Use Polyester Plates
Polyester, or pronto plate, lithography began as an inexpensive way to produce reproductions of items, such as business cards, pamphlets and posters. Polyester plating has gained popularity because it avoids the use of nitric acids used in other lithograph methods, making the process quicker and more straightforward. Although some polyester lithographs use nitric acid solutions during processing, it's used to a much lower degree. Polyester plating can reproduce hand-drawn painting and brush strokes so accurately that it is slowly becoming the go-to method for reproducing graphics.
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Things You'll Need
- Polyester plates
- Ink pens
- Markers
- Etching tool
- Fountain solution
- Ink
- Clean cloth
- Brayer
- Clean paper
- Sponge
- Water
- Citric Acid
- Gum arabic
- Wooden spoon
Instructions
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1
Measure for the size of your plate. If the image itself covers the entire polyester plate, you will find it difficult to work with when you have to ink it. So, leave a margin of 1 inch to 1.5 inches around all four sides of the plate. If the original image will be 8 by 14 inches, the plate should be 11 by 17 inches.
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Clean your plate. Using undiluted fountain solution, wipe your plate down thorougly with a clean rag on both sides. This process is called "zapping" and cleans off any excess grease or invisible fingerprints. After cleaning, rinse the plate and let it drip dry completely.
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3
Draw an image on your plate. Place a sheet of paper between your hand and the textured side of the plate to prevent oils from getting on the plate. Begin creating your original image. You can use ball-point pens, markers or do what is called scratch back. This creates white lines in the finished product by scratching into the plate with a sharp object.
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Ink your image. Apply a small amount of ink to your brayer and roll it out on a glass palette until the ink evenly covers the brayer. Lightly sponge the surface of the plate with a mixture of 12 ounces of water, 1 teaspoon of citric acid and an ounce of gum arabic. Roll your ink brayer over the plate and wipe with the sponge. Repeat five or six times.
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5
Print your image. Lightly mist your printing paper with water and let it sit for a few minutes, then blot it with clean paper. Place your printing paper, wet side down, on the plate and, with a wooden spoon, start from the center of the plate and press in a circular motion out to the edges until your print is complete.
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Tips & Warnings
If you're doing multi-color prints, clean the plate thoroughly between each stage.
For clean up, use linseed oil on your plates after you've cleaned off most of the ink.
A print can only be considered an edition if it is printed using the same type of paper.
References
- Photo Credit Photos.com/Photos.com/Getty Images
