Embossing counter

I know I asked this question before, I learned a little but not enough. We work with a Windmill and while I have been told it is not the best press for embossing it is all we have. We have a copper die with very fine detail and had a counter made by the die maker. It works amazing right up to the time my gripper clipped it. I built a rail of card stock to raise the gripper above the counter. My math was my failure 40pt chipboard rail with 60pt counter is not the best idea. So I have experimented with counter pour material and got to a point I can make a counter sort of. What I noticed is the vendor made counter has added shoulders to it like a muti level foil die which adds to its performance. Also on a poured counter how can I get create inside clearance between the die and the counter so I don’t tear the paper. I spoon some the mixture onto the bare die and with a rubber spatula press the compound into the die and then add more to create the rest of the counter. I am working on controlling my finished height but getting closer to a working product.

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Order a .030 counter from your diemaker. The .060 is for Kluge. Tape a piece of cover stock over the counter, for better detail, and add your ‘ramp’. The grippers can still damage it. Run your heat at 160. I got away from poured counters entirely, the thin counters worked really well.
If you are casting your own counter, add a piece of clear mylar over the counter while it sets up, or you’ll have a mess.

Thanks for the feed back. The only reason we wanted the poured counter was for a backup. We also felt for since single word note cards and such have a larger area we could make a good enough counter to work with. Since the vendor poured counter costs almost as much as the die we want to have all our options available. Do any of the embossing film products work well when placed over the counter to aid in protection. I see the note about putting card stock over the counter, but what other options are there to put over the counter to help protect it during use that might be thinner gage.

It seems we used a thin vinyl, but I don’t know where we got it. We mostly used a good 80# cover… it compresses quite a bit, so I don’t think the extra thickness is a problem.
Your ramp placed at the top of the platen is going to be your main defense against gripper damage. The cover stock isn’t just about protection, it actually helps bring out more detail in the die.
For a ramp, we used a .060 engravers board, like from Owosso Graphic Arts. We used 2 sided tape, Duplofol, to hold it in place. They have other products to place over the counter, but I didn’t use them. About 2” wide across the top is all you need.
It’s good you’re able to make your own counters-but the time you spend can cost you valuable production time. You can figure out if it’s worth it or not.

if you are going to persue embossing,get a “Fiberglass Brush”. things are indepensible for “Softening a die”
die makers are really good. but, “Buffing” a die will really help with cutting. you need to tell die maker what stock is going to be hit.
gosh there is so much to be said here

if you are going to persue embossing,get a “Fiberglass Brush”. things are indepensible for “Softening a die”
die makers are really good. but, “Buffing” a die will really help with cutting. you need to tell die maker what stock is going to be hit.
gosh there is so much to be said here

Eric has a good point; I’ve used magnesium dies for embossing because it has a rounded edge, the copper dies have edges that are 90 degrees more or less, and can cut. The magnesium die embosses a better image in my opinion.
I’ve used an ‘engravers’ rubber’ which is like an eraser you rub along the edges to soften them when needed. (I’ve never used the fiberglass brush.) When I’ve ordered the die too deep, I had a copper roll, .002, cut a sheet of that, tape it directly to the die, and it shallows it out. It’s called burnishing tinsel, and Cronite.com sells it. That can help with cutting or cracking, and give you a sharper image at the same time.

Thanks for the feedback. We did discover they made a 60pt counter, it should have been a 30pt counter which is part of the problem. They have a cover film and a new adhesive product we will try for the counters also. I do really like the vendor counter but I wont’ give up on making my own.

keep the craft of making your own counters. for the “middle of the night” fer 40 bucks, just buy them

agreed.

Thanks for all the feed back. It helps us learn what direction to go. I want to try more as we now have our feet wet. Our next goal is a foil and emboss.