When I use water-based inks, I begin by using a
freshly cleaned sheet of plexiglass, around 16x20 to
roll out the ink. Next, I squeeze out a 6-inch line
of ink near the bottom, then roll out the ink with a
good rubber brayer. Using this type of ink combines a
sense of sight as well as sound, because the ink
begins to change once rolling begins. First, it sort
of stretches out in long lines of texture, and as you
roll it further, it begins to tighten up as well as
sound "tacky". When the sound becomes quite loud and
the texture of the ink becomes small, the ink is ready
to print with.
Once a couple of kids use the first batch of ink, keep
it moist by adding only small amounts of fresh ink at
a time. This keeps the ink going properly as well as
preventing it from building up too thick, which will
cause it to become a sticky, gooey mess. If that
happens, your only solution is to wash it off and
start over. Keep one plexi sheet for each work
station, as well as a spare if things go badly, and
monitor how much ink gets added, and you should be
able to get through a printing session without too
many technical problems.
