I’ve got an etching press !!

So, this week we purchased this little beauty !

Etching PressIt’s a Polymetaal A2 etching press. We’ve had our eyes open for an etching press for a while now and when this one became available we snapped it up. It’s pre-owned and has been lovingly looked after and it came with the blankets and the stand so we’re all set. We are going to specialise in etching on aluminium, simply because we have a ready supply of aluminium offcuts, so our first job this week is to investigate safe, non-toxic, etching options. Our initial browsing is pointing towards copper sulphate crystals in solution with table salt as the etching medium and Lascaux acrylic products for the ground and plate backing resist. So next – what ink ?! The options so far seem to be Akua water based intaglio inks; Caligo Safe Wash; or Charbonnel / LeFranc which are oil based but water miscible. Lets see if we can get any free samples for testing …..! Check back here for our findings.