VIP Art and Printing Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Can I e-mail my art to Vulcan?: A. Small files (5mb or less) can be e-mailed to art@vip.ebsco.com. To submit larger files, please use our ftp site, [link to ftp site or ftp instructions].
Q. What is a screen tint or halftone?: A. It is a way of creating many shades of color while printing one ink color. This is achieved by breaking down artwork into dots varying in size. The term “screen tint” is generally used in reference to solid and graduated percentages of color and the word “halftone” is generally used in reference to grayscale images such as photographs.
Q. What line screen does Vulcan use for screen-printing?: A. Our standard line screen is 65 lpi (lines per inch). For printing that have small areas of halftones with fine detail, we may choose to go to a higher line screen in order to hold detail.
Q. What line screen does Vulcan use for offset/litho printed products?: A. 150 lpi.
Q. For screen-printing what screen percentages does Vulcan recommend for solid tints and gradients?: A. We recommend solid tints to fall between 15% and 85%. We recommend gradients to fall between 5% and 95%.
Q. Why does Vulcan recommend against screen-printing large panels of screen tints?: A. In the process of screen-printing, specs and flaws in printing large panels are easily visible. In some cases we recommend printing an additional lighter shade of the same color as a solid.
Q. What is a bleed?: A. A bleed is when artwork or printing falls off the edge of the finished product. In the case of binders, artwork through the spine hinges is also considered a bleed. A bleed requires printing on oversize material and then trimming, welding or wrapping afterwards.
Q. How much bleed do I need?: A. 5/16” for vinyl binders, 5/8” for casemade turned edge products, and 1/8” for paper prints. Refer to product templates for specifications.
Q. Can my artwork bleed if I’m foil stamping?: A. Yes and No, depending on the product. Yes, we can bleed foil on paper and casemade/turned edge products. No, we cannot bleed foil off vinyl products.
Q. Can my artwork bleed on vinyl products if I’m printing with metallic inks?: A. Yes, but on large bleeds there may be need for an additional printing of a clear coat to prevent ink chipping or rubbing off.
Q. What is s a rivet?: A. Rivets are used to fasten the ring mechanism to the binder. Standard rivets are 5/16” in diameter. Depending on the type of binder, rivets are normally mounted on the spine or back cover and rivets can be hidden or exposed on the outside. If rivets are exposed, keep artwork at least 1/4” away from rivets to avoid rivets interfering with or overlapping printing.
Q. What is a trap?: A. When colors overlap or adjoin, the more opaque color must overlap the less opaque color to allow for movement on printing press equipment. Hence, the more opaque color traps the less opaque color. For standard offset printing on paper, required trap is about .03 pt. For screen printing on vinyl, required trap is a minimum of .9 pt.
Q. Do I have to set traps in my electronic file?: A. No, you don’t have to set traps, we will check your files and adjust to meet our requirements.
Q. What is a “choke and spread”?: A. When screen-printing a light color on a dark base material, white ink can be layed down first and light color overprinted. Using this method, we can produce a clean bright color on darker substrates. The white is made thinner (choked) and the lighter color is made slightly fatter (spread) to ensure proper registration on press. In so doing there will be a slightly darker outline all around artwork where light ink prints on darker base material. Not all artwork can be printed using this method. Artwork must be approved by our art department prior to production.
Q. What is an appliqué and can any artwork be reproduced using this method?: A. An appliqué is a method of decorating on vinyl products. A special die is made in the shape of supplied artwork that is a combination cutting and sealing die. Using this die, a piece of vinyl is heat-sealed onto a base vinyl. The die seals the shape of the artwork onto the base vinyl and then the excess surrounding vinyl is then removed leaving the shape of the artwork. Not all artwork can be reproduced using this method. It depends on detail and how complicated the art is. Artwork must be approved by our art department prior to production.
Q. Are there any types of art to avoid when foil stamping?: A. Very bold type or artwork: because of pressure needed to transfer foil, there is a lot of gain when foil stamping. If type is very bold, letters tend to run together and small openings in type may plug. Solid areas: solid areas exceeding 3 square inches should be avoided because of difficulty getting a consistent foil coverage. Small type: type smaller that 12 point are potential problems especially bold type. Reverse type: when reversing type in foil stamping, avoid roman typefaces and type must be open and bold in order to prevent plugging.
Q. What are the two types of inks we use?: A. UV (ultraviolet) and Conventional.
Q. What type of ink does Vulcan use the most?: A. UV inks. UV inks are more efficient in production.
Q. Which ink is more efficient in production and why?: A. UV inks are more efficient. The main reason is UV inks do not dry in the screens. This allows the press operator to continue running without stopping to clean ink out of screens.
Q. What are the major differences in UV and Conventional Inks?: A. Conventional inks can dry with heat or air-dry, UV inks will only dry when exposed to ultraviolet light. Conventional inks are generally more opaque than UV inks.
Q. What type of ink is used for larger production runs?: A. UV.
Q. Can you use conventional inks for large production runs?: A. Yes, but requires special quote and may be cost prohibitive due to slow production time.
Q. What type of ink is used for screen-printing screen-tints or halftones?: A. Only UV inks are used. Because the ink does not dry in the screen, the printing is more consistent and production is more efficient.
Q. Since UV inks are not as opaque, how can I get a bright red on a black binder?: A. You can do a choke and spread.
Q. What’s a choke and spread?: A. When screen-printing a light color on a dark base material, white ink can be layed down first and light color overprinted. Using this method, we can produce a clean bright color on darker substrates. The white is made thinner (choked) and the lighter color is made slightly fatter (spread) to ensure proper registration on press. In so doing there will be a slightly darker outline all around artwork where light ink prints on darker base material. Not all artwork can be printed using this method. Artwork must be approved by our art department prior to production.
Q. Can the Ultra-tech (Spider) screening machines run conventional ink?: A. No. The Ultra-techs have UV ink dryers only, no heat dryers.
Q. What is considered heavy coverage when screen-printing on binders?: A. When 50% or more is covered with ink.
Q. What is the maximum number of colors the Ultra-tech screen-printing machine can print at one time?: A. 4
Q. Will I see a proof of my artwork prior to production?: A. Yes. Vulcan offers a digital email proof, a paper fax proof or a full size laser. For 4 color process orders, we provide an actual size color match proof after digital proof is approved. These proofs are provided at no additional cost. We also provide color smears (known as ink draw-downs in the printing industry) at no additional cost.
Q. Are there any other proofs available?: A. We offer pre-production proofs that represent actual finished products. They require a special quote.
Q. Is it possible to 4-color process print on vinyl and other materials?: A. Yes, it is possible to have photographic style process printing on vinyl and other materials.
Q. Will Vulcan supply me with a layout template?: A. Stock product templates are available online in eps and pdf format. In addition, Vulcan will supply templates for custom products.

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VIP Art and Printing Frequently Asked Questions