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Selecting a Brayer for Relief Printing

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The typical brayer
used in woodblock and linocut printing is roller used to spread ink out onto an
inking plate and then to apply the ink onto the woodblock. The design, roller
widths and materials used for a brayer can vary greatly from one model to
another. The outer covering of rolling cylinder, for example, can be made of
any number of a variety of materials, including rubber, polyurethane, foam and
even leather.

The materials used for the rolling cylinder can vary in hardness. The
hardness of the material is measured as its durometer. The hardness or
durometer of brayers used for woodblock and linocut printing typically ranges
from a soft material at about 20 or 25, to a hard surface of 60.
Soft brayers are often used for inking woodblock, because the more
pliable material can conform to the grain or textured surface of the wood. If the
durometer of the brayer is too soft, some of the fine lines in the woodblock can
fill in with ink, resulting in a loss of detail. 

Some artists, on the other
hand, want the grain of the wood to be revealed in the print and select a
harder brayer.   In printing
linocuts a hard brayer is also preferred, because the linoleum is a smooth and uniform
surface (compared to woodcuts), which promotes complete coverage in the inking
process.

The choice of brayer should be based on a number of factors. The criteria for selecting a brayer includes: 
  1. the viscosity of the ink used, 
  2. the fineness of the cuts in the wood, 
  3. the
    surface condition of the woodblock (texture and evenness of the wood), and 
  4. the
    aesthetic judgment of the printer. 

An excellent source of tools and materials for relief carving is:

McClain’s Printmaking Supplies
15685 SW 116th Avenue PMB 202
King City, OR 97224-2695
www.imcclains.com
800.832.4264 
International: 00.1.503.641.3555

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About Jim Hingst: After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.

Hingst began his career 42 years ago in the graphic arts field creating and producing advertising and promotional materials for a large test equipment manufacturer.  Working for offset printers, large format screen printers, vinyl film manufacturers, and application tape companies, his experience included estimating, production planning, purchasing and production art, as well as sales and marketing. In his capacity as a salesman, Hingst was recognized with numerous sales achievement awards.

Drawing on his experience in production and as graphics installation subcontractor, Hingst provided the industry with practical advice, publishing more than 150 articles for  publications, such as  Signs Canada, SignCraft,  Signs of the Times, Screen Printing, Sign and Digital Graphics and  Sign Builder Illustrated. He also posted more than 400 stories on his blog (hingstssignpost.blogspot.com). In 2007 Hingst’s book, Vinyl Sign Techniques, was published.  Vinyl Sign Techniques is available at sign supply distributors and at Amazon. 

Slides of Jim’s Artwork

© 2017 Jim Hingst

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