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• Flexo and Gravure Printing
• Gravure Coating
• Knife Coating

MATERIAL & EDGE SELECTION for GRAVURE & FLEXO PRINTING

MATERIAL SELECTION

SQCP600, SQCV600 and SQCB600 Carbon Steel Doctor Blade

• Fine structure combines micro particle wear with durability/flexibility
• Operates in all ink environments - corrosion issue can arise in water based conditions, relevant to length of print run/blade clean down
• Polished (P600) or Blue (B600)? Basically the steel properties are the same, blue is from heat treatment oxidising the surface and performance should be the same – some users report better performance/wear from our blue material, which is often selected for narrow web
• Combine with SQCG620 where print run requirement varies and for difficult colours

SQCG620 Longlife Doctor Blade (Gold Doctor Blade)

• Superior structure material
• All ink environments – corrosion issue can arise in water based conditions
• Copes well with difficult colours
• Long print runs – 5 x plus - saving valuable downtime
• Combine with SQC 600 range where print run requirement varies and difficult colours

SQCSS400 Stainless Doctor Blade

• The structure of our material enables durabilty/flexibility to match SQC 600 range
• Use where corrosion is identified as a problem
• More expensive than carbon steel but justified for avoiding blade corrosion damage to cylinder/roller and streaks in print

PY350 and PY500 Polyester Doctor Blade

• Durable material – perhaps not for all environments
• Corrosion not a problem
• Wear debris less likely to cause damage, although abrasion can still occur
• Can be used as a retainer blade/containment blade combined with steel doctor

EDGE SELECTION

	Square / Rounded edge Full gauge contact may provide longer life – broader area of blade taking the wipeload and more resistant to flexing On the negative side a broader area increases contact friction – drag affect may reduce fineness of wipe A good choice for flexo, perhaps a limitation for gravure
	Bevelled edge Fine contact edge improves “tightness” of metering hence quality of wipe/print Excellent for flexo, perhaps a limitation for gravure More resistant to flex than stepped (lamella) Bevelled edge SQCG620 is an ideal choice of longer runs/difficult colours
	Stepped (Lamella) edge Area of fine contact remains the same through wear hence consistent wipe/print Excellent for gravure Chosen by some for flexo, however the flexo doctoring angle leaves the fine gauge open to flexing under pressure. This can be a problem.

NOTE - SELECTING CORRECT DOCTORING ANGLE OF THE BLADE IS AN ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENT