My press takes forever to wash up, and it keeps getting glazed and contaminated no matter what solvent we use for a washup. What can we do to fix this problem?
A.: A badly worn or misadjusted washup blade will cause a slow washup as will rollers worn smooth from age. As a washup blade wears, the back side of it rounds off and tightening it only makes matters worse as it bends the tip of it farther away from the oscillating roller it is attempting to scrape clean. When rollers become too old and hard, their stripe becomes too narrow and they skid no matter how tight they are adjusted. If the surfaces are worn smooth, a friction glaze will be present and they will act like squeegees and actually prevent solvent from being carried to the washup blade or cleanup mat. If the ink system washes up extremely slow, solvent tends to evaporate and leave residues behind, resulting in a press that seems clean, but quickly contaminates clean colors. You may even experience significant roller stripping.
