Articles .....
Soy Ink
Soy based printer's ink is what I and many other stamp makers use to index our maple blocks (handles). It is jet black, holds tons of detail and never fades. Clean-up is easy with any vegetable oil.
Soon I will write a complete article on using soy ink, but for now just a quick paragraph because so many people ask me where to find it. Unfortunately, the art materials industry has not yet discovered the wonders of vegetable based ink for printmaking (I'm sure they'll catch on some day - I've even contact Staedtler Mars about it). As far as I know, there are only two ways to get your hands on soy ink. One is to get out your credit card and call up Great Western Ink in Portland, Oregon (800-735-3381) (they don't seem to have a web site) and ask for hi-tech dense black T-14. It comes in a one pound tin which is more than you will ever need, it's expensive and there is shipping to boot, so you really have to want it.
The second way to get soy ink is something I have done on several occasions when I needed a small amount of color ink, other than black. I went to my local print shop and asked them for "leftovers". I don't know if all printers do this, but mine keeps a shelf full of little Dixie cups full of leftover ink, each one labeled with a Pantone number so they know exactly what color it is. How did I find out about this? Went to an open house at the print shop one day, and spied the shelf with the Dixie cups. If you do this, make sure to ask your printer if they use soy ink!
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Ink Plate
A regular piece of glass will do just fine, but this is what I use. The design is inspired by the old fashioned printing presses, with a circular plate for the ink that spins (on a lazy susan). The plate is 1/4 inch thick glass cut into a 6 inch circle. The circle spins as you brayer the ink onto it, for a very even coating. The limited size (6 inches) makes it easy to control the amount of ink you are using (very important) and also makes for a smaller clean-up area.
Corner Jig
This is a must for getting the index straight on the block, and for re-doing it if you get a partial or light print. The top left corner is 1/4 inch high, and serves to help stabilize the rubber stamp as you brayer the sticky ink onto it. The bottom right corner is 1-1/2 inches high. After inking the stamp, slide it into this corner. Then take a new block and press it face down (not face up as shown), keeping it tight into the corner. Larger stamps will need lots of pressure, so once you have pressed it in the corner, the two will stick together and you can move them to a more convenient area to apply greater pressure. With very large stamps, I actually put them into a small lever press and quish the heck out of 'em.
