Fome : Table Top Etching Press (3620) : 180mm : Without Felt Mat

Well-engineered portable presses from Italy with solid steel rollers and a 3mm thick metal bed.

Raising the top roller is for relief printing only; you will not be able to print anything but thinner intaglio plates on this press, optimally up to 1mm metal with a decent bevel as described in the instruction booklet that comes with the press. These presses work perfectly with thinner 0.8mm plates like our economy zinc or transparent printing plates. The Fome presses are excellent for line etching, drypoint, monoprint, and relief.

It must be stressed that these small presses will not print with the same pressure as a larger, heavier studio press, and in fact, putting too much pressure on the presses can damage them. If you have designed your prints or experimented with your plates, inks, or paper using a large, heavy press, you cannot expect the Fome press to reproduce the same results. It is better to adapt your prints to the capability of the press. They work better with less slippery materials, metal, softer drypoint plastic and dampened paper and less packing so that the bottom roller can engage more evenly and effectively with the underside of the press bed.

The manufacturer recommends attaching this press to a table so you can get enough leverage for the proper printing function.

Specifications

Weight: 6kg
Length: 25cm
Width: 23.5cm
Height: 17cm
Width of roller: 18cm
Diameter of lower roller: 3.5cm
Diameter of upper roller: 3.5cm
Metal plate: 18.6 x 32 x 0.3cm
Maximum board or lino thickness: 1.7cm

Accompanying Fome Felt Mat available here. This is necessary to print plates successfully.

Read our series of blog posts about setting up and using the Fome School Etching Press.

Other Fome Presses available here.