Build a 4 Color T-Shirt Printing Press

***12-31-09 NOTE: A few steps have changed on printingplans.com and will thus be different between here and there. For instance, the manufacturer of the Lazy Susans has changed their size, so the plans have been adjusted accordingly. At this point the plans have NOT been adjusted here.***

Due to the high cost of Four Color Printing Presses (for screen printed T-shirts), I decided if I wanted one of decent quality on my limited budget I'd have to make my own. But buying 4 pairs of standard clips for holding screens, or "jiffy hinges", was a big investment on its own (about $130!!!). So a friend and I created our own design and built this entire press for about the cost of those expensive hinges.

You can download a PDF of these plans at http://www.printingplans.com

Plan on a few days to finish the press as it is very involved. It is recommended to have a second person help out as several steps could use one person holding while the other person attaches.

A few notes before the main instructions: The sturdiness and precision of the press is important for the success of multi-color images, so its important to be as accurate as possible in your measurements. It is also recommended that you use wood glue at each joint in addition to screws so that the press is as stable as possible. You may also want to predrill holes before putting in the screws to avoid splitting of the wood (use a bit thats slightly smaller than the screw). This table is designed for a six foot tall person. To alter it for someone of a different height, adjust parts N and O accordingly.

Tools Youll Need:

Power Drill/Screwdriver
Wood and Metal Bits
Miter Saw
Table Saw or Circular Saw
Electric Sander
Workbench Vise or Drill Press
Yardstick/Measuring Tape
Pencil
Level
Square
Clamps
Wood Glue
Welding Glue (or tools/materials for welding)
Paper or Cardstock

Step 1 Lumber needed

In the diagram above youll find the dimensions of all the lumber youll need. (It looks like Instructables resizes the image to the point that it's hard to read the dimensions here. You can see all these images at higher resolution at http://printingplans.com ). The particle board can be another type of wood as long as it is 1/2 thick. The most important thing regarding the thickness of your wood is that the sum of the width of pieces B, F and the lazy susan turntable is equal to the sum of the thickness of pieces I and U. This will help align everything so your screens float just the perfect height above your shirts for off-contact printing. You should be able to cut all your 2 x 4 pieces out of six 8-foot lengths, so Id recommend buying seven to be safe. They should all be good, straight pieces, but it is especially important to find a perfectly straight piece for parts T and U.

Note: Part D is not listed in the instructions. It is a substitute for part K if you choose not to buy a 1 x 4 and would prefer to use your existing plywood.

Comments

[hugocontreras]

this is nice! I'm going to do it for my small adventure in printing t shirts, just one question, how do you center the image in the frame? I have some problems when I want to use more than 1 color :(

[Progfellow]

Try putting the top color on first, and print it on a test shirt. Then use that print to align the rest of the screens. It takes some practice, but works well once you've got it figured out.

[mugwedi1]

i want to build a 4colour 4station machine using steel can one help with a plan?

[Progfellow]

I haven't built one out of steel. It actually works really well with wood, so I haven't tried. Good luck!

[XaqFixx]

 Great press, great plans!  My wife was vending at a local art show (she designs, I print)  and got to talking to another screen printer, we both use this press, and are both making $$ with it.  

[Progfellow]

That's so cool to hear- thanks for letting me know!

[Devleigh]

Very nicely put together. I see this press is available in kit form. Would this be available for shipment to South Africa and if so ay what cost?

[Progfellow]

Thank you so much! I can't ship the full kit out of the country because it would cost around $350 for shipping alone, but I can ship all the hardware and then you can just find the lumber locally. You can see the costs here: http://www.printingplans.com/hardware.html

[French t0ast]

Sorry if you have already went over this, but the turntable, is it 7x7x1, or 6x6x3/4?
It seems like this instructable and your site say 2 different things

[Progfellow]

Hi- The company that made the 7" ones changed them to 6", so I've had to alter the plans accordingly. This instructable was made before the change.

[sidsideboard]

hi this looks very good, think I may have problems getting the hardware locally is there anywhere on line that will deliver to rep of Ireland thanks very much for the inspiration

[Progfellow]

Hello- yes, you can order the parts directly from www.printingplans.com to the Rep. of Ireland. You'll see a link on the right side of the page, or here's the direct link: http://www.printingplans.com/hardware.html

Thanks and best of luck!

[A good name]

Could I make one of these with just 1 arm?

[Progfellow]

You could, but I wouldn't recommend it. Mostly because you'd be doing a lot more than necessary. For instance, there'd be no reason to have the rotating top if you only have one arm. There are some plans for 1-color presses readily available on the net if you do a quick search.

[A good name]

Ah, I think I will do that... I'm not sure if I'd be able to get the money to do it though.

[tsilvetti]

Hey there , I just completed my press , question is what size screens should I use? And does anyone know a good site for buying the good mesh material ? Thanks!!

[Progfellow]

It was created with 20" x 24" in mind. Sorry, I haven't bought mesh online. Do you have the proper stretching equipment?

[tsilvetti]

Hey there , no I do not have the proper stretching equipment , as far as I know I would jut stretch it myself. I have bought mesh fabric from Hobby Lobby , what do you use and any advice on actually building the frames? Thanks

[Progfellow]

I haven't build any frames of my own so I can't give much advice. You may have some trouble getting the mesh tight enough and therefore have registration problems. However, if you are able to make a semi-deep groove in the center of the wood all along the back side of your screens, you can then use rope to push the screen into those grooves, and in so doing get a pretty tight screen.

[wompuscatgilly]

haha, nevermind. i just had to read a little bit:]

[wompuscatgilly]

how much would you say the entire press cost you??

[Progfellow]

About $150.

[lonerayven]

Big question. Maybe it's been answered before but exactly how many boards of what kind of wood and what size should I get to encompass all the wood cuts cheaply and easily? I mean someone who has had experience with this Instructable. Ex. like two N x N x N coated boards and 3 N x N x N presswood/plywood boards. Sorry I'm going out shopping for the stuff and unless I have to, maybe I can avoid the calculations before hand if some one else has. :-D If not, just tell me I'm lazy and I'll do it lol... Um also, an idea, if I wanted, could I corner cut those angled 2x4's on the frame and inset them to line up with the two vertical 2x4's and screw them into the inside of base and side of the frame? What are your thoughts on that. Or would the stability be shot? (Don't have much of a carpenter's logic) Oh and THANK YOU SO MUCH! This is going to help me get my printing ideas going!

[Progfellow]

Hi there. The only wood you need very much of are the 2 x 4's. I believe I mention on www.printingplans.com how many 8 foot lengths you'd need to cover it all. The rest of the wood you'd only need scraps if you can find them. Full sheets will be way more than enough. Not sure exactly what you mean about moving those 2 x 4's. Having them at an angle to create triangles is probably better for stability. Depends on what you mean, though. Triangles are always much stronger than only right angles. Best of luck!

[Amir]

Excellent answer, thanks so much. I'll send you guys a picture when it's done.

[Amir]

Guys, this is awesome. Hell, this is awesome squared. I love it. I've got my hands full with projects right now, but this one is coming up on my list. I'm trying to set up my attic as an art studio complete with home built screen printing press and my question is this... Can anyone tell me what the dimensions are of this thing when it's completed. I'm wondering if I'll be able to make it fit. Thanks, Amir

[Progfellow]

Hi Amir- thanks! As for the dimensions (in inches), the footprint is 23 x 40, but the platen arm hangs out an extra 10. Without any screens on it it is 44 inches tall. Add 20 x 24 screens all around and it's 65 inches tall and 49 inches wide from the top of one screen to another, but you'll need at least another 5 inches on each side to spin it around.

[Progfellow]

By the way, if anyone has gone to the hardware store in search of parts, I'd like to hear your experiences. Thanks...

[lmn]

I went out to buy all the hardware and it took me 2 hours. I got most of the stuff at Lowes, but with some of the other pieces I had to search at more specialized stores like Ace and other local stores. My total came out to be around $92 so if you think $95 is expensive for the parts think again.

[lmn]

$92.33 exactly

[lmn]

All in all, I spent about $170 on the whole unit but I bought some extra lumber and hardware. Without those costs it'd be about $150 which is much better than $400-600!

[Progfellow]

Thanks for sharing!

[truman7777]

thanks for the nice instructions. I built it with two plattens. Also built light exposure table and screen dryer cabnet along with a washout booth made from a garage sink with attached back and sides. I haven't used any of it yet, still gathering materials.

[Progfellow]

Sure, thanks! Wow, you really took this to the next level! By the way, I had to fix an error in the instructions. Previously I had the wrong springs written, so likely the arms on your press are really hard to pull down. You can see the instructions for the correct spring type now. Sorry about that! Michael

[truman7777]

Michael, I sent my springs back to you at your request. Any idea when the correct ones will arrive?

[Progfellow]

I've made a correction in the plans. The springs should be the following measurements: 5/8" width, 3.25" total length, .072" wire width. This is the kind of spring originally used on the press. For some reason the wrong spring was listed in the plans. My apologies to anyone who has tried building this with the wrong spring!

[dwade725]

I'm just starting a t-shirt making business/hobby. This looks like the perfect machine for me to start off with. I don't mean to be a pain, but I really am unfamiliar with the entire creative process when dealing with t-shirts. Is there any advice/step by step instructions you could give me? Thanks for posting such an incredible product.

[Progfellow]

HI there, did I ever respond to you? I thought I had but now I'm not so sure! Please let me know and I can get back to you with a better response. Thanks! Michael

[Brettany]

Im not sure if I will get a reply or not because this is an older post. But I was just wondering if anyone has built this, and how it works? Dont you usually need heat for printing? How do you incorperate that? Or do you use paint? Just want to get a little more info because my hubby and I are wanting to try this out! If you could please write me back with any information that would be great! (You can e-mail me because im not sure if I will remember to look back at this... or how long it will take for someone to reply - [e-mail]) Thank you!

[Progfellow]

Hi Brettany, you don't need heat for printing, but for curing, which is the process of drying the ink on the shirt. I do mine one at a time in my oven at 375 degrees for about 1 minutes (your oven may vary). I use a laser thermometer to make sure to get a reading between 300 and 320 degrees on the ink. I'll go ahead and email this to you as well...