Photopolymer Plate questions/hints
SO I switched from Mag plates to polymer plates, and I need some helpful hints.
Its really hard to reposition the plate on the base with the adhesive that they put on it. Is there any hints on how to make it easier to take off the plate and put back on etc?
After you have used a plate what do you do with the sticky stuff do you wash it off, if not how do you store it etc…
I will assume that you are using polymer produced by Boxcar Press or someone similar. The adhesive they use is indeed strong… but you don’t want to weaken it too much or you will risk the plate shifting on the base during print runs. That being said, if you find that the adhesive is just overpowering I would recommend sticking it to a lint-free piece of cloth or even your own clothes or apron. I have done this several times with plates that seemed impossibly sticky and it seems to work quite well. Keep in mind that it does shorten the useful life of the adhesive.
We have always stored our adhesive-backed polymer plates with the blue backing reapplied. Chances are pretty good that you can use the same adhesive for several runs before you need to remove and replace it. Just stick the backing back on once you are done and seal it inside a bag at roughly 55% humidity and it should last for quite some time.
Hope this helps,
Brad.