Letterpress printing



Solmentes Press specializes in the printing of short-run ( from 25 to 500 copies) limited editon letterpress books and prints.
Letterpress printing
A fully-automatic Heidelberg KSBA cylinder press is used that has a maximum sheet size of 460 x 585 mm (18 x 23 ins), and printable area of 410 x 560 mm (17 x 21). We are currently looking for an iron hand press to compliment the Heidelberg.
Printing plates
We print mostly from photopolymer plates that are made for us by the Boxcar Press in Syracuse, New York. We use flexible clear plastic plates and double-sided adhesive tape to attach them to the proprietry bases for mounting on the press bed. The plates are generated from digital files. We also print linocuts and wood engravings from the original blocks.
Paper
Some papers are more suitable than others for letterpress printing. Generally softer papers give better results than hard, heavily sized papers. We have used the full range of mould made acid-free book and Ingres papers from the Zerkall mill in Germany for many years and found them to be reliable and consistent with our high quality demands. We carry large stocks of Zerkall book paper in a range of sizes. Also from Germany, Hahnemuhle offers a wide choice of papers including some attractice cover papers. Mowhawk paper is a good quality acid-free paper with an excellent pedigree and wide range of variants.
For cylinder machine printing it is desirable, though not essential to be able to print with the grain direction of the paper parallel with the cylinder axis.
Ink
A variety of black inks are used, both oil based and rubber based. Our preference for book work is a "warm" black, formulated for printing on uncoated paper. Couloured inks are mixed as needed and can be professionally mixed to match pantone colours. We delight in printing in colour and the challenge of close-register work, however we do not print photographs or other half-tone images.
The impression
The bite of the printing surface into the paper is what gives letterpress printing its unique quality and "feel". We do not print heavily at Solmentes Press and prefer a "kiss" impression — using just enough pressure and ink to transfer the image onto the paper without embossing.
Flat printed or folded?
The finished sheets can be supplied flat, or folded and collated as required
Why commission Solmentes Press
David Esslemont has been printing on Heidelberg cylinder presses for more than twenty years and his books have won several awards for the quality of printing.

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Letterpress printing