Doctor Blades Are Important But, Don’t Forget The End Seal

Your doctor blade and end seal are an important part of your ink metering system. Most printers would agree that the effectiveness of your doctor blade is critical to your print quality and ultimately your success with your customers. The efficiency and longevity of the doctor blade and the containment blade ultimately lead to more run time between blade changes. Often times a doctor blade that costs more but lasts longer can be more cost effective in the long run. Simply put, printers get paid to put ink on paper. Less downtime to change blades, means more ink on paper which in turn, means more profit to the printer. Working with your APR to address your specific situation can help to improve your efficiencies.

Often lost in doctor blade discussions, is the end seal. The end seal is just as important as the doctor blades in the metering system. The end seal, when functioning properly seals ink into the chamber. Seals that leak prematurely can cause a host of problems that lead to print defects and unnecessary downtime. There are many materials to select from but, be sure to consider the ink system, solvent blends, blade types, anilox rolls, and chamber configurations when making choices of what material to sample.

Equally important to the material is insuring a proper fit to the chamber. Accurate measurements, OEM drawings, anilox OD's are all important to insure a proper fit. The idea is to “marry” the proper end seal to the doctor blade for your best results.

High quality, accurate, and consistent end seals are critical, to minimize ink leaking, optimize blade life, and achieve smooth ink lay-down. APR's end seals are made with the highest quality materials, produced on state of the art equipment by specialists with the technical expertise to insure reliable, customized results for each unique situation. When it’s time to improve your efficiencies on press, APR’s Technical Solutions Group can help guide you through the process to select the proper doctor blade and end seal for your specific situation.

If you want to learn more about this subject, please feel free to reach out to us by calling 1-800-445-4017, or by e-mail at: [email protected].

All Printing Resources has formed our Technical Solutions Group (TSG) to encompass our full range of expertise in all critical areas of the flexo process. This team is made up of industry professionals dedicated to being up-to-date on new technologies along with best practices. They are armed with the latest in diagnostic tools, and are experienced in problem-solving that can achieve sustainable results. The TSG have walked in your shoes, and have felt your pain.