Crestline Roller Maintenance?

[robbg439]

I have crestline units on all my presses. They work great when they work, but miserably when the rollers are in less than good condition. I'm wondering if there is anything that can be done to maintain the rollers in working condition for longer.

Right now I use Varn California wash for all my wash-up (blanket, ink and water rollers). I noticed that the crestline documentation suggests a weekly scrubdown with 50/50 hot water and ammonia, so I've been doing that from time to time. I also occasionally wash the crestline rollers down with Varn Triple Threat deglazer, but that stuff is a bear to fully wash off the rollers that aren't removable, and any tiny amount of residue seems to wreak havoc on ink receptivity.

Is there any other best practices to keep these rollers young?

 

[Alois Senefelder]

I Despair !!!!

I Despair !!!!

Gentlemen,


A PDF which I hope you will find of interest and value.


Regards, Alois

 

[robbg439]

I do despair! How did you know?

Thanks Alois

 

[RGPW17100]

The worse thing you can do is leave them under pressure. I always took the meter roller off the units I was not using. Even so I was lucky to get a year out of them.

 

[NPS]

Those roller need replacing from time to time, The rubber just gets worn out by preasure and chemicals just like any other press roller. Some fountain solutions are better for Crestlines and Kompac than others.
What press, plate, fount solution and ink are you using.

 

[robbg439]

I run a hamada 1 color duplicator (611 ECD) and a ryobi 3302. 95% of the plates are poly imaged on a HP5100, 5% are metal. Ink is mostly zipset no-skin. Fountain solution is a duplicator fount (latitude dpm) with an alcohol substitute (Anchor ARS-X).

Thanks

 

[Alois Senefelder]

A Warning !

A Warning !

Gentlemen,


DO NOT use IPA when cleaning any compliant rollers (Rubber)



Regards, Alois

 

[Alois Senefelder]

mmmm

mmmm

Hello alibryan,


"You pay your money and make your choice"


Having some knowledge and experience of Lithographic Printing,

I'm well aware of the merits of IPA in Alcohol Enriched F.S. and the pitfall.

Salient Points-

IPA is known for its deleterious effects on synthetic rubber compounds.

(A) It hardens Buna N rubber (B) It leaches out the Plasticizers ( C) Also an Ink Diluent.




Regards, Alois

 

[Alois Senefelder]

Danger is everywhere !

Danger is everywhere !

Hello fellow Lithographers,

Top 10 Hazardous Household Chemicals

Air Freshners, Ammonia, Bleach, Carpet Shampoo, Dishwasher Detergents, Drain Cleaners, Furniture Polish,

Mold & Mildew Cleaners, Oven Cleaners, Antibacterial Cleaners, Laundry Products, Toilet Bowl Cleaners.

"AD INFINITUM"

Regards, Alois

 

[robbg439]

OK! so maybe eliminating alcohol from the fountain solution will allow my fountain rollers to last longer. I will experiment with this with my new set of rollers and see what happens. I got a little less than a year out of my current rollers, and they failed suddenly and catastrophically. I do regularly add IPA to my fount.

 

[Alois Senefelder]

IPA - Alcohol

IPA - Alcohol

Hello fellow Lithographers and alibryan


A PDF I have posted before !!!! Fundamentals about IPA in F.S.



Regards, Alois

 

[NPS]

Using Alcohol in fountain solutions is no problem. Using Alcohol sub is no problem. How they work on a given damp system and/or plate and/ or type of sub is different. Alcohol sub was introduced to reduce VOC's. In some areas the authorities have decided for you that you can not use alcohol anymore. So lets go back to helping out Robbg439, what brand of rollers did you have and what brand are you considering buying now. There are differences and some manufactures don't make some of the rollers in the system.

 

[robbg439]

They are original Crestline parts, manufactured by Pamarco according to the box they come in.

 

[inky]

To each their own but remember, internet advice is always opinion, some of it is based on fact, some of it based on interpretation of fact, and some of it is just wrong. I am not saying I am right and someone else is wrong, only that it is up to the individual to decide what they want to believe.

Years of personal experience successfully cleaning rubber rollers aside, consider this:

IPA is a known, proven, and preferred additive to litho water systems and was used as such for years. Even though it has been outlawed, that doesn't mean it's no longer any good and in fact, is probably still the best wetting agent available for fountain solutions. And if it can be used safely in fountain solutions, it may be safe to say that it doesn't harm rubber rollers, at least not in the way that some people believe.

Something else to consider; Rubber Rejuvenator will swell and distort rubber and eventually ruin it IF left on there too long. However, nothing cleans rubber quite the way that it does. Would I use it on Water Fountain rollers? No, but it cleans Blankets like nobody's business. It doesn't harm them or swell them beyond recognition unless used incorrectly. The point is; everything has its' purpose and even when something works well, sometimes if it's used incorrectly, it can actually harm something rather than help it.

In my experience, Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA) works wonders on Water Fountain rollers and it also evaporates very quickly, leaving no residue. I believe it to be more effective than MRC. MRC, by the way has been discontinued by some manufacturers/distributors as it has been found (by them) to harm the rubber of the rollers it was designed to clean. That's right, Metering Roller Cleaner (MRC) is believed by some manufacturers/distributors to actually harm metering rollers! I'm not saying that it isn't true, but if you have ever used MRC before and for long periods of time, you know that it works very well and wouldn't want to use anything else.

Small offset is very different to Web offset, I've had web & large offset printers unable to run a duplicator over the years. I have found staying away from harsh chemicals gives the best results, I agree with the first PDF from Alois, God knows what the last one's relevance is.

 

[Lukew]

Funny argument... the sales maintenance brochure for westland rollers lototec dampening rollers which are designed for ipa alcohol free printing, says best cleaning method for this particular roller is ipa alcohol & water... bit ironic

 

[Alois Senefelder]

My reply

My reply

Gentlemen,

A PDF - with a question for you to answer



Regards, Alois

 

[Tomtech]

Wow! You have gotten a lot of advice. Some of it is good and some worthless. I have never had a problem by following the Manufactures recommendations. The hot water solution is to remove the water soluble stuff that seems to get absorbed into rubber rollers and cannot be dissolved by press wash even water-miscible washes.

tomtech

 

[Lukew]

Alois.
You missed my point.
I was not saying that he should use IPA alcohol for his particular roller.
I was simply implying that the westland lototec roller is recommended to be cleaned with IPA and water which is a little ironic as most who purchase this particular roller covering has done so to rid the factory of IPA alcohol.
Westland lototec roller maintenance
http://www.westland.eu/download/files/de-en-fr-flyer-lototec-werodamp_lt-maintenance.pdf

I may not have a PDF library as you seem to have but I do know the impact IPA alcohol has on regular roller coverings.

Happy printing all...

 

[Tomtech]

Ladies and Gentlemen,
In 40 years as a technician for AB Dick Company, I have seen most of the problems you have on your offset duplicators. As for rollers and roller maintenance, I would follow the roller manufacture's directions and or the press manufacture's directions, but aside from that, the years have taught me a few things:

For best results, Keep your rollers free from ink glaze and paper glaze, roller/blanket wash for ink and warm water for paper glaze. I do not recommend leaving ink in the press overnight. Strong Fast drying solvents should be avoided as they will attack the plasticizes in the rollers causing premature ageing. Water miscible wash contains emulsifiers to allow the solvent to mix with the water. This is only removed from the rollers by completing the clean-up using water. It may otherwise contaminate the ink system.
The AB Dick Super Aquamatic system requires special attention since it is imperative that the rubber pan roller and the stainless ductor roller remain ink free. Clean with plate cleaner and AB Dick blue etch or the equivalent. Blue etch is mostly a glycerin solution mixed with isopropyl alcohol. Keep these two rollers coated with a good coating of etch for overnight. For longer periods coat with plate gum. The gum can be removed with warm water before your next run. If they get ink on them, you can remove it with alcohol on a towel or cotton pad. The glycerin absorbed into the rubber roller is the primary secret to keeping the system running properly. Four ounces of a good universal fountain solution and six to eight ounces of alcohol and water to fill a quart fountain bottle will usually work well. I prefer alcohol to alcohol substitute.
Rollers compact as they age. The solvents, inks and pressures applied to them cause them to compact sometimes more in the center causing them to look as though they are swollen on the ends although I have seen the opposite. For best results, deglaze using deglazing solvent on a towel and scrub using even strokes that go from end to end to keep application even.
Roller maintenance is key to roller life. I tell people that rubber rollers should last from one to three years depending on how you treat them. When you need new ones, change all at the same time and you will realize how easy printing is once more.

tomtech

 

[lichaapress]

Use a three step system to clean the rubber roller surface

1. Use a water miscible wash (solvent mixed with water) to remove both the solvent-soluble and water-soluble particles that are near the top of the deposit layer. This leaves the insoluble particles.
2. Use a non-grit roller paste to remove the insoluble particles. Be sure to use a paste that is designed and tested for the type of rollers you have. Never use a paste with grit, for this will damage the rubber.
3. With the layer of insoluble particles removed, most of the remaining soluble particles will be exposed and can be washed out with a second water-miscible rinse.
Find out more here: http://www.tradrollers.com/index.php/technical-support/rollers-maintenance

Important Notice:
- For Strong dirt, you should use volatile, residueless cleaners.
- In order to preserve the surface structure of the roller, cleaners containing ester or ketone, and especially methyl acetate or acetone, must not, under any circumstances, be used.