A Laser Printer for Lettra

What weight is the paper? Youll have no chance with a laser printer. Persist with hand forcing :-)

What model inkjet accepts the Lettra?

I have tried it on a Canon and an Epson with much difficulty. The end result is good, though.

We printed on Lettra using a Xerox Docucolor, with a bit of trial and error. Registraton was highly variable.

I can’t imagine it was very good for the machine.

I regularly print on a Xerox 560 color laser printer, but I print large sheets (11x15) and trim down. The registration is pretty good, too.
I do work at a digital print shop, so this is not a machine that most people would have access to (we rent it.) The Xerox is rated for up to 300 gsm.
Our previous Docucolor also printed very well on the Lettra. I’ve used it to print directions, thank you cards, and even invitation suites for brides on a budget- it looks fantastic!
-val-

yikes! A heretic! Bring out the bonfires!

(sorry… I couldn’t resist) ;)

My HP 750 prints on lettra just fine if you single feed it. BUT I shouldn’t tell you that, since by doing so I am aiding and abetting a heresy.

To redeem myself, I must point out that no inkjet or laser printer does a great job on lettra, since it does not impress the paper. The resulting image sits on top of the paper, and looks rather fuzzy. For inkjet, you really need a harder, smoother paper. Leave the lettra for letterpress.

I have to say, reproductions of watercolor paintings printed on Lettra look FANTASTIC- just like the originals :) I haven’t had problems with small text looking fuzzy, but I do agree that it looks much better when printed on a letterpress with a gentle impression!
I offer small prints of some of my paintings printed digitally on the Lettra and it allows me to broaden my shop a bit- but in the end I prefer good old fashioned cast iron.

Thanks all for all of your help :) Haha, yes, I am sure LetterpressLight will fill me in.

My Canon Pixma works well for an ink jet. I don’t have to force it, but I do tend to hand fee done at a time, from the back loading dock.

Our shop operates outside of the box pretty regularly, and although *letterpress is our first love*, we’ve experimented a fair amount digitally printing on letterpress stocks for basically the same reason as Dancing Pen. We’ve had success on the small Xerox Docucolor 240’s, as it has a straight path from the bypass tray, and handled texture fairly well. Registration leaves a little to be desired, but thats common on all digitals with heavy stock. We recently installed a monster Ricoh Pro 651EX, and this will feed anything (grain short) with good registration. The smoother the stock the better, so Lettra doesn’t work out as good as a smoother letterpress stock like Savoy etc. If you are looking for a small digital machine that will print well on any stock and texture, try the Xante. Quality is great, but I haven’t heard great things about its reliability and the speed of support. But if you aren’t on tight deadlines everyday, it should be fine.

Bill