Silkscreening -without clearcoat?

[bobbletrox]

I already powdercoat my pedals, but I was thinkin' of silkscreening the labels...without adding a clearcoat over the top.  Will the silkscreened label still be pretty durable?

[ErikMiller]

Depends on what ink you use.

I use Nazdar 59000 and it's very rugged. You probably can't use t-shirt ink or the stuff that comes with the Speedball kit.

[runmikeyrun]

yeah, i'll second that comment.  Stay away from speedball and water based inks if you're not going to clear coat it, but a good solvent based ink will be pretty durable.  Nazdar makes some kind of heavy duty one (i forget the number) that, when cured, resists 50 double wipes with MEK (a pretty strong solvent) without any damage.  That would be about the end all be all for printing i would think.

[bobbletrox]

Thanks!  I'll have to keep that in mind.  I guess the labels on Boss and EH pedals are all screened on with no further protection.

[troubledtom]

when i was a kid . i use to screen appliance covers and we never clear coated them.
       - tom