Facebook and Twitter
Colin Blanchard
  • Home
  • Recent Prints
  • Projects
  • Contact
  • About
    • Printing
    • Colin Blanchard
  • Blog

Blackbirds on the XCut XPress

2/17/2017

17 Comments

 
Picture
In my blog entry of 11th January I outlined my first experiences with the little XCut Xpress. As I said then I was keen to really test the little press’s ability to produce more complex work. What follows is a description of the making of a two block reduction linocut which was designed to require accurate register, evenness of pressure over its full width and maximum length and consistency across an edition.
 
I had already made one adaption, which was to make a longer print bed for it from a cut down commercial chopping board; giving me a bed of 600 x 220 x 13 mm.  This enabled me to plan a print area of about 40 x 15 cm whilst still having room for a supporting frame or ‘forme’, made of pieces of the same 4mm hardboard my lino is mounted on to, and allowing room to attach the Ternes Burton registration pins.
 
A picture paints a you know what, so I thought I'd describe the process in captioned pics:

I use commercial flooring lino - 'Marmoleum' - glued firmly to a backing board and sanded smooth and flat.

Picture
I stain the surface with acrylic ink so I can see where I'm carving - at least in the first stages. The two blocks planned for this print were cut exactly - and I mean exactly the same size.
Picture
A plan of sorts is of course vital: a basic 'map' outline composition plus some very careful listing of proposed printing orders and colours. These always change as I go along ..... like all the best laid plans!
Picture
I transferred the 'map' to the first of the two blocks using carbon paper.
Picture
Picture
Then the fun bit begins!
Picture
A very tight fitting 'forme' - made of the same 4mm board that the lino is glued to - is made up by taping pieces of it to the press bed.
Picture
The carved block to be printed then fits exactly in to the forme and the lino itself then sticks up just enough to be inked.
Picture
The paper - in this case, my usual beautiful 300gsm Somerset - is cut to size. I usually allow an extra 20% more than the hoped for edition size to allow for proof sheets and mistakes. In this case I doubled the amount. Good thing too as it turned out!
The Ternes Burton tabs are the attached to each sheet. (I will do another blog post on the use of these if anyone is interested) 
Picture
Picture
I use Caligo Safewash inks at the moment; nearly always with extender added. The yellow - being the palest - is planned to be the first colour down in the reduction.
Picture
And so the little XPress goes into action! A thin 'blanket' made from a piece of felt fabric is all it needs to take up any slight texture and detail on the block and help drive the paper and block evenly through the rollers. I also used a flip over thin paper mask to avoid any unnecessary ink getting on to the background of the image.
Picture
Picture
I found that this particular block was printing patchily in one area. This was remedied by some 'make ready' packing placed under the block to level the pressure and so ensure consistency (as long as I inked each print exactly the same!)  throughout the planned number of sheets.
Picture
Picture
Some of the block was cut away and the next colour (a transparent brown) printed. At this stage I should have realised that the XCut has quite a nip and  this long narrow piece of paper - despite the accuracy at the 'near end' of the TB pin system - was being slightly twisted out of register at the 'far end' on some prints!
Picture
At this stage I also took a  print in a dense black, placed the second block in to the forme and ran the wet black proof through the press; thus giving me an exact 'offset' in register image to carve the second set of colours when I reached that stage.
Picture
And so the normal reduction process on the first block continued: Cut away the paler brown....print the next darker brown.
Picture
The last colour on this block was a straight black. I printed this in two goes: a masked background for the main image, then I removed the main image entirely by peeling the lino off the support block altogether and printed the border - again masked to keep the background clean - separately. The little press did just struggle to print solid on the very corners of the border. I could have just tweaked the pressure down a bit, using the all important dial that this press has, but decided instead to just to use the old wooden spoon on some of the corners.
Picture
Picture
Having, by now, realised that just two TB pins on the short edge of this print were inadequate to avoid some sheets twisting out of register on the 'far' end; for the second block I decided to use a conventional card stop plus a little bit of tape on this furthest edge to maintain positional consistency.
Picture
The second reduction consisted of two tones of blue and a final brown; all very transparent. It should be noted too that when printing these transparent layers, very careful consideration has to be given to the amount of ink rolled out each time on the slab. For these I only added a very small amount every other print, to avoid over inking and maintain consistency of colour.
Picture
Picture
A footnote to this project. Having, through my own lack of foresight, ended up with a number of prints unacceptably out of register at one end; I decided to cut out the really very successful little hen bird at the other end and mount her on to separate small sheets to make additional little 'prints'.
Picture
Picture
Conclusion:
This XCut Xpress is a wonderfully useful, compact, well made bit of kit. Very limited in print size potential of course, (I'm harbouring a secret desire to make a super long bed and print a meter wide print) but after this, I'm looking forward even more to demonstrating what it plus a bit of flooring and some ink can do! 
17 Comments
Jackie
2/17/2017 02:52:16 pm

Thank you for the detailed description of your process. Lovely print.

Reply
Jacqui Jones
2/17/2017 03:15:56 pm

A super blog; sequencing all the stages is incredibly helpful to those of us just starting out. I bought the X cut myself after following your posts in Linocut Friends and am now planning to extend the base board.

Reply
Colin
2/18/2017 10:15:57 am

New FB group for you Jacqui!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1544918272204523/

Reply
Dave Castle
2/18/2017 05:10:34 am

I am very much enjoying your blog. I don't print but my wife does and I am interested in the process. I would be interested In what you have to say about the TB pin/tab system. Thank you.

Reply
Liz
4/6/2017 01:20:58 pm

I'm really interested in this machine but would like to know how to go about making an extended print bed. Any suggestions very welcome!

Reply
Colin
4/7/2017 01:29:56 am

Try this!
http://www.handprinted.co.uk/printmaking/relief-printmaking/Presses/xcut-xpress-printmakers-accessory-pack

Reply
liz
4/7/2017 05:33:20 am

Thanks Colin! I had seen this so it's nice to have it confirmed.

Reply
Carlene link
4/30/2017 12:51:32 pm

Fantastic post! I found your blog while researching the XCut XPress. I have been considering returning to lino-cut and your process and detail is so helpful! Love your artwork as well. This would make a fascinating book!

Reply
Hilary Warren
5/16/2017 06:54:07 pm

Could you describe more the process of registration with the TB pins and TB stripping tabs compared to just using cardboard tabs. Thanks.

I am learning a lot from the Facebook group on the XCut press - thanks for initiating that.

Reply
Marilyn J. Patton
5/27/2017 06:20:45 pm

I have made a few small 6" X 6" lino prints with mine only using a sheet of heavy drawing paper covering the paper I am printing on. I have noticed a little jump in the papers as I go from the height of the lino back to the height of the support but the print is so small it has not been affected. I read where others are using one of the other solid narrow plates that come with the press as the cover for the "print sandwich" rather than what I am doing. Have you had any experience with that type of process? Thanks - love your print!

Reply
Colin
8/4/2017 02:11:10 pm

Sorry not to have replied before Marilyn. Just catching up!
I don't like a 'hard' top to the sandwich for any sort of print on any roller press. I like to use a blanket of some sort. See my other blog post on this subject.

Reply
Mike Boursnell
8/3/2017 11:20:05 am

Hi Colin, Very nice blog about the Xcut. I think I will try one. I notice you said use use Extender with the Caligo Inks. Does that help ink transfer? I have tried using their Tack Reducer which helps a bit, but I still have trouble in flat areas of colour, even rubbing really hard with a wooden spoon. Mike

Reply
Colin
8/4/2017 02:22:15 pm

Impossible to say really Mike! But I doubt extender would make any difference- it's just ink with no pigment. I like the delicacy and control of colours it gives me. Your problems with spoon printing flat areas are not surprising; a press will definitely make a huge difference. But apart from the difficulty of getting even pressure with a spoon, it is more likely your paper thickness/surface texture combined with roller qualityand how the ink is applied.

Reply
Mike Boursnell
8/5/2017 01:52:48 am

OK, thanks. Maybe I should try some thinner or smoother paper. Do you have any recommendations? There seem to be so many different types!!

Faith link
4/24/2019 04:01:19 pm

I love your work Colin, really nice!

Reply
Meletha Everett
8/11/2020 02:30:06 pm

I 'm a watercolor and acrylic artist and have just started printmaking. Have done some simple wood cuts and lines. I have purchased the xcut xpress. I would like to purchase the long bed and felt blanket. Could you tell me where to purchase them and terms burton tabs? Thank you. Love your YouTube videos. Your work is absolutely gorgeous.

Reply
Marianne Ackerman link
12/17/2020 04:35:42 pm

Can you suggest where to buy an Xcut Xpress online? I'm having trouble sourcing one. I'm in New Zealand. Thank you very much. Marianna

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Impressed

    Thoughts of an artist, printmaker, countryman and incidental poet

    Archives

    July 2022
    March 2021
    May 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    July 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    August 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed