Murakami Pre-stretched Screens

Screen mesh technology has come a long way from the 12xx multilament mesh days. For those too young to know what 12xx means; this was a typical mesh made of multiple threads that screen printers used before monolament polyester mesh was developed.

• Mono lament Polyester mesh has significant advantages in clean up and image dehazing but when it was first introduced the elongation of the thread was enough to render a screen useless on a tight registration print. Then along came low elongation monolament mesh and screen printing explored tight dot on dot registration and no trap overlap in the art. Recently Murakami introduced Smartmesh that improved not only elongation, but accumulated elongation that occurs when repeated print strokes can cause momentary elongation as the screen warms up to the print process. Murakami Smartmesh also developed balanced warp and weft threads so the screen stretches proportionally in both warp and weft during printing. The combination of better balanced threads in Smartmesh results in higher retained tensions that prolong the printable life cycle of the screen while providing better prints and production yields.

Higher retained tension from Murakami Smartmesh reduces the amount of labor needed on retensionable screens to keep them at working tensions, but the real benefit is apparent on stretch and glue frames where higher retained tensions yield a longer work life on a less expensive frame. However, the quality of the frame and the stretch method are often overlooked when purchasing stretch and glue frames or stretching them yourself. In the following sections we will explore why Murakami’s Pre Stretched Frames offer exceptional print quality and production value that overcomes some of the issues in stretching mesh yourself. Click here to continue reading the article: Pre Stretched Screens

For more information and specifications on using Murakami Screen Mesh in production please contact our Technical Support Representatives available Monday through Friday 8am to 5pm PST at: (323) 980-0662