What is RISO printing?
Risograph aka RISO printing is a high-speed, photocopier meets mimeograph printing system, named after the manufacturer, Riso Kagaku Corp. This piece of machinery was produced for high volume copying and printing back in mid 80s. It can duplicate prints from the built in scanning bed, but also has the ability to be used as network printer, which is very appealing to designers and illustrators when producing editions or self-published comics, zines and books.
How does it work?
RISO printing uses master sheets to transfer the ink from the drum onto the passing paper according to the design that has been scanned in or entered digitally. The artwork is transferred onto the master sheet by a series of heated spots on a thermal plate which burn away the artwork shape leaving voids in the master. The master sheet wraps around the ink drum so that the coloured ink can be pushed through these voids onto the paper that passes through at a high speed.
Every print using this master will be the same colour. If you require a colour change, you will have to remove the interchangeable ink drum, replace it with your desired colour and create a new master to wrap around that drum.
Why use RISO?
This method of printing is a more affordable option when compared to other reproduction processes like screen printing or offset lithography, yet you can achieve similar aesthetics and beautiful colour overlays. You can pass a sheet of paper through as many times as you like to build up different colour layers.
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