Screen-printing bottles

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BackshoreJake

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I want a unique look to my bottles. I always loved the texture of a screen-printed bottle, and want to use this technique to make a great looking printed product. I have a screen-printer for shirts, but I'm not sure if I can use it for bottles. I've heard of cylindrical screen printers, but these can be pricey. Anyone have any ideas?
 
If you're only using 1 color, you could make a stencil & use a round, sponge type "brush" to apply the ink by simply rolling it over the stencil. If you do this, you'll need to either make a LOT of paper stencils or make 1 stencil out of a waterproof material. You might be able to get a rubber stamp & just roll/stamp your logo onto those bottles, just use an old dinner plate to roll out your ink & stamp away. Regards, GF.
 
I remember in school, there was a guy in one of my printmaking classes that screen printed some baseball bats. If I'm remembering right, he made a slightly "looser" screen (it was still fairly taut, but it had a little more give than normal) It was also fairly tall/narrow - that's the only semi-flat surface area he could print on. It came out looking decent, though.

I wonder if you could burn your image on a loose sheet of silk and then "stretch" it (probably not too much or the emulsion would crack) onto a curved frame.

Otherwise, you could just buy a pad printer if you've got $1500 lying around that you don't want to invest in beer.
 
I'm thinking, so far as cost is concerned, GF's rubber stamp idea might be your best bet. You can have them custom made for you, or you can get a piece of rubber at the craft store and carve your design in reverse with an exacto knife.
 
give a call to these guys. they'll be able to tell you how you might be able to do it.
silkscreeningsupplies at 800-314-6390. If they can't they should be able to direct you to someone that might.

it looks like it's called applied ceramic coating..
This place does it. http://ceramicdecoratingco.com/
but I haven't found anywhere how to DIY at home..
 
Most press setups Ive seen to print on round things put the round object horizontal on rollers. The screen is set to a slightly lower tension. It lowers down onto the object (along with squeegee) and slides across the object. This motion effectively turns the object on the rollers and prints (in the round). I'd also suggest sticking with one color. Keeping register is going to be a royal pain in the ass, esp with a stencil setup. I can also see what coy suggested working. That is providing the circumfrence of what you are printing is not too great. Otherwise you just won't have contact with the screen.

I kind of like the idea of a curved frame, but that poses all kinds of callenges in itself. I'm not sure how you would get an even coating of emulsion on either, unless you used capillary sheets, which are pretty expensive.

Oh yea, and my pet peeve - its NOT silk!!!!! Most screens are made of some sort of polyester, or blend of other materials. Most cheap screens you find at craft stores can even be cotton. I guess some people doing fine art reproduction might be using silk, but its pretty rare [/rant]
 
I used to silk screen when I was a sign painter way back when, and we screened a couple of large cylinders once. It's a pain in the ass, but nice when it works. We started with a very slightly loose screen. Load the screen with just enough ink, not the usual big amounts of extra that is typical. Flip the screen over, and roll the bottle over the loaded print area. We pushed the screen against a stop that would register the travel of the bottle parallel with the screen. This of course means you can only screen one color. And I would suggest using enamel ink because it is very slow drying. If you are doing a sizable quantity, absolutely get a second pair of hands. Once you figure out your system, it's amazing the rhythm you can get into. You screen shirts, you know what I mean.
 
Sorry to bring up old stuff, but Pepperford, you just made my night. I just came across this thread after days of googling and thinking about how to do this on a diy budget. Applying pressure to the bottle itself instead of a squeegee is a brilliant solution, and way easier than trying to make a cylindrical screen. I am sure that it takes quite a steady hand, but after a few it shouldn't be too bad.
 
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