Yudu Personal Screen Printer First Impressions

Friday, April 15th, 2011

I’ve always wanted to try screen printing, but my major problem was space. I really don’t have a place to store and dry screens the traditional way. I fell in love with Yudu, hearing about it on various craft forums. The major draw for me was the drying rack inside the machine.

I purchased the machine from Michaels during a sale. Normally, it costs $399 CAD but it was on for $129, one day only. I purchased it on the spot.

The box does not say what is included in the kit, so I didn’t buy any extras. I didn’t want to be stuck with duplicate accessories at full price. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with much: it includes one emulsion sheet, one transparency, one bottle of ink…basically, if you make a mistake, you’re kind of screwed until you can get back to the craft store and get more supplies. Which is what happened to me. I definitely recommend buying an additional emulsion sheet and remover at least, because adhering the emulsion is the hardest part of the Yudu process.

I like the Yudu a lot, but my review is probably going to sound pretty negative. There are many improvements that could be made.

The Machine

The Yudu machine is huge. HUGE. I was expecting it to be somewhat large, as it had to be big enough to hold the screen, but it seriously takes up some major real estate. It’s approximately 26″x17″x8″. There was no way that it was going to fit on my craft desk. I had to clear off a wide, low bookcase in the bedroom to fit it and place it sideways. Even then, I can’t keep it there because I can’t open the dryer door. I have to move the machine onto the floor every time I use it. This is no issue if you have a lot of space, but my apartment is crammed. I wish the dryer door was width-wise instead of length-wise and that the buttons were on the long side of the machine.

The Instructions

The instructions leave much to be desired. First, the DVD. I figured this would be the best way to go because I could play the instructions and pause it with the remote as I did each step. I would not recommend this. You really need to supplement it with the instruction manual. In addition, you want to supplement the instruction manual with the FAQs on the website. Really, I think that having to search for everything is poor. A really well executed instruction manual should be all you need, and the DVD should have the same instructions as the manual.

The Emulsion Sheets

The emulsion sheets are slightly smaller than the screens. You need to tape over the unused portion of the screen. Is this badly designed, or is there a reason for this? I’m not sure. I’ve read a lot of blogs online that suggest using liquid emulsion for a more cost-efficient screen.

You really need to get your screen wet for the emulsion sheet to adhere properly. In the DVD, the instructor doesn’t look like she sprays that towel very much. You can always squeegee off excess water. It was too late for me to pull off the emulsion sheet on my first try, so I tried to dab it on the back with water like she shows on the DVD. This resulted in my emulsion pulling through the screen (slightly green wet paper towel).

After adhering the emulsion steps, be sure that your emulsion is completely dry. If it’s not dry, the clear plastic film will not come off easily and the emulsion may crackle. Just put it back in the dryer for a few more cycles. When you wash out the emulsion, it needs to be completely dry or else when you rub it with the sponge it was peel off.

The following photo is very embarrassing…but hey, why not share my disaster with the internet?

This is what happens when A) you don’t get your screen wet enough causing the emulsion not to adhere to the screen so you rub the back with a wet towel, and B) what happens when you try to pull the plastic off too soon. Haha, learn from me!

I didn’t buy any emulsion remover so I just figured I’d go with it. I knew it was a lost cause until I got more supplies, but oh well.

The Transparencies

The Yudu transparencies have a nice coating which makes your prints super-black. I needed a bigger design so I pieced together two regular 3M transparencies.

You can put multiple designs on one screen, then cover up unwanted designs with clear tape while you are inking them. Works great!

The Ink

The kit only came with one bottle of black ink. It seemed to work well, but I’m looking into other screen printing inks because the Yudu brand seems far too expensive to stock up on.

What Is Not Included

Two features of the Yudu which are not included are the emulsion remover and the registration guide. The emulsion remover lets you reuse your screen by taking off the layer of emulsion. I can understand why they don’t include it because you might not need to reuse your screen since the kit doesn’t even come with a second emulsion film sheet. The registration guide, however, seems pretty basic. It’s a clear grid that’s placed on the glass to help you line up your design. It seems like this could have easily just be printed on the glass to start with, and it is a silly additional expense.

Overall

I think there are aspects of the machine that could have been done better. Mostly, I think the instructions are to blame for many issues I had with my first screen printing experience.

Considering how badly I screwed up my screen, the ampersand turned out pretty cool looking despite the unintentional vintage vibe.

Yesterday, I picked up some additional supplies: more emulsion sheets, emulsion remover, and three coloured inks. My screw ups taught me a lot about what not to do, so I’m fairly confident that it’ll be better next time. I’m so excited to try out the Yudu again tomorrow on my day off! Wish me luck – I think I’ll need it!

Posted in Blog | No Comments »