Citi Industrial Chemicals Inc.

Our Quick guide to Picking the Right Ink for Your Job

On what substrate (type of surface) will you be marking: porous or nonporous?

On porous surfaces like paper, cardboard, wood or cloth, your ink will dry by absorption or penetration.
On nonporous surfaces like metal, plastic, glass or waxed cardboard, your ink will dry hard, forming a deposit which sticks to the surface.

What type of mark will you need: opaque or translucent?

Dye ink:

transparent to semi-opaque mark
fair sunlight resistance
excellent contrast on light-colored surfaces
excellent feed-through in felt-tip markers and pens
in general, shaking is not required before use.

Pigmented ink:

opaque mark
excellent sunlight resistance
can be used on dark surfaces
excellent water resistance, with no spreading
in general, shaking is required before use.

What applicator (marking tool) will you be using?

stamp pad
stencil roller
roto or flexo coder
brush
dip

How do you wish to specify your specialty color?

At McLaren, we are pleased to prepare inks to your exact color specification. Decide how meticulous you need to be.  You can set some jobs up easily, by giving us your PMS (Pantone Matching System) number.  But we are happy to meet your tricky color-matching requirements, too, working from your wet sample

What is the right drying time?

The faster the ink is required to dry, the more ink will dry on the marking equipment, and the more your equipment will have to be cleaned and re-inked.  So consider using a slower drying ink, especially if you are able to speed up the drying with heat or forced air, or if you are able to use an atomized spray applicator.

... and be careful if your job calls for more than one ink!

Different types of inks should never be used on the same piece of marking equipment without through cleaning.  If you are using a stamp, put in a new uninked pad when you change the ink type.

J.M. McLaren & Sons Ink Company Ltd.
1306 Britannia Rd. East
Mississauga Ontario
CANADA L4W 1C8

Tel: (905) 696-8746
Fax: (905) 696-8752
E-mail

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