Acids must be handled sensibly. protective gloves, glasses and skin protection. Wear a chemical vapour mask to prevent inhalation of noxious fumes.
Ferric Chloride recommended for school use.

PLEASE NOTE: A dangerous goods & classification is allocated to both Ferric and Nitric Acid. Within Australia we are only able to send these products by TNT road express which incurs a dangerous goods surcharge. If you are wishing to order from outside of Australia there is generally a very expensive surcharge applicable. Please contact us if you are wishing to order any of these products and will provide you with a quote for freight.

New Lascaux range.

The products in this section offers acrylic based alternatives to the traditional bitumen based products.

Aquatinting is the process by which a tonal or textural surface is produced on a metal plate enabling fine tonal variations to an image.

Blankets are available in two grades. A pressed wool using high quality wool and the professional quality woven wool blanket. The woven blanket is perfect for producing dense blacks and fine aquatints and will last for years if well looked after. It is suggested that both blankets be hand washed gently using wool wash and warm water. Generally at least two blankets are used in printing and sometimes as many as four. The number and thicknesses will be determined by the plate. A general rule is the finer the plate the finer the blanket and the more deeply bitten the plate then the thicker the blankets. The heaviest blanket should be placed closest to the roller with the finer blanket closer to the paper.

Maintaining your equipment and materials is important studio practice. There are now many alternatives to the traditional turps clean up which are not only kinder on you but also on your tools and equipment.

Grounds are acid resistant materials used to protect the plate from the action of acid. Hard grounds are able to hold fine linear work without chipping or flaking, soft grounds remain pliable on the surface allowing greater fluidity in the drawing and also enables textured materials to be pressed into the surface to produce tonal and pattern variations. Both hard and soft grounds are available in liquid or solid form.

ImagOn Ultra now replaces the original Imagon, a UV sensitive polymer film which adheres to metal plates, is exposed to a light source and developed.
This is the most recent of the ever improving films developed and researched by Keith Howard. It can be applied with or without a printing press and no longer requires agitation during developing. Sharper exposed images and greater print yields can also be acheived. Exposure times may be faster than the old film, and there are some process changes. Information sheets are available free of charge and there is also an excellent video by Keith Howard complete with 24 page instruction booklet.
Please note: Imagon Ultra requires cool dry storage

Silk & Leather Dabbers, Inking Brush, Plastic Wipers, Tarlatan, Cheesecloth, Heavy Duty Inking Knife & Spatula

Ink modifiers are used to change the consistency and viscosity of ink, and for mixing up your own inks with dry pigments.

Etching inks consist of finely ground pigment dispersed in a burnt linseed oil based vehicle. Intensity of colour depends not only on the ratio of pigment to base, but also the nature of the pigment - for instance, ochres are earth-derived, heavy and opaque; quinacridones are organic pigments, lighter in mass weight and semitransparent. Etching inks can also be rolled out for viscosity printing. The question we are most often asked is, ‘How do you stop inks from forming a skin in the can’? Preventing air contact is a start - press plastic film to the surface and rub over some plate oil, or use anti-skinning spray.

Lazertran transfers images from a colour photcopier to a variety of surfaces including zinc & copper. Instruction sheet available.

Lyons Draw Tool, Safety Guillotine

Magnifiers

Preparing the plate ready to accept your image is an extremely important process and essential to a successful plate.

We supply18 gauge copper and zinc plates in standard and also with photo-sensitive coatings. Each plate has an acid resistant coating on one side and protective peel back plastic on the other. These plates are available in various sizes, and we are able to cut to a specific size if required. (A small charge may apply if a large quantity of cutting is necessary)

Make sure eyes, skin, respiratory system and hands are adequately protected from chemicals, vapours, dust and solvents.

Always wear gloves & a vapour mask when handling solvents. Prolonged exposure poses great health risks. Turps can be absorbed through the skin! The lower toxic solvents, natural organic & odourless are a better option, but are not harmless.

Tools used in intaglio printing range from very basic needles to the more elaborate mezzotint rockers and roulettes. The scraper and burnisher play very important roles in most intaglio processes and may be purchased as individual tools or as combination burnisher scrapers. Please note tools will require sharpening before your first use and we suggest a quick sharpen at the beginning of each use to avoid over blunting.