HOT FOIL STAMPING

Hi. My name is Hope. I am wishing to invest in a hot foil stamp for small projects. I currently have a C&P Pilot Tabletop and do some silkscreen work. I’d love to play with hot foil! I used to work for a photographer that would use a hot foil stamp for her copyright logo on the photographs. 

Would the process be of the same? This is something I would get plates made for frequently. I have no idea where to start, but would love any feedback from some hot foil stampers!!

HAPPY PRINTING.

hey there. i use a Kingsley Hot Foil Machine. i havent had any special dies made but use existing typefaces and ornaments. i love it. it’s addicting. you can see more info about it here.

i havent any first hand experience with turning my letterpress into a hotfoil machine, but i believe you have to buy something that can heat the chase area or platen. there is something called cold foil as well.

OHHH that’s a lovely hot foil machine! So you just use regular set type? I absolutely love the way it turns out on paper!! I wonder if you can get dies made for this type of machine. 

Thanks for your response. I’ll be looking into a Kingsley. I’ve heard the name before. Hopefully I can find what I’m looking for! 

You can use regular type, but it does wear the face down. I use ludlow or linotype and cast a few slugs to change them out when they get worn, and save my foundry type for printing. You can get dies made, they just can’t be mounted to wood…you need solid metal. They are really fun and can turn out nice work as you can see from Renata’s link. You can’t use cold foil on a letterpress.

yes, you can use regular type. i’ve been using the Kingsley for about 2 years with no real concern on wear with the typefaces i own. i do use fresh type. i bought several from belltype. there is nothing like fresh type. so crisp and accurate. however, i also use old ebay purchased typefaces too. it just depends on your project. plus, you don’t leave type in a hot machine when not using it etc etc. Most type is 18 point body. you can use anything as long as it is cast on 18 pt body. for example, i have some 10 pt typeface on 18 pt and so forth. as well as just a lot of 18 pt. there is also a 12 pt type holder. Kingsley has lots and lots of accessories. it was an amazing company. if you check that facebook link i gave you, there are a lot of snaps of some of the more popular type holders.

you can have magnesium or brass dies made that slip into a special typeholder Kingsley made. i haven’t yet. but it was very popular back in the day to have your company logo made and use a Kingsley 72 pt type holder to print with.

i’ve been researching Kingsley since i bought my machine. it’s super interesting. they owned one of the biggest type foundrys in the states. it was the beginning and end for both companies.

ps. wait until you see all the amazing foil colors out there!

hi camille… who do you use to make your slugs? do they have a lot of typefaces to choose from? reasonably priced? 

hey hope! how timely is this? came up on eBay today. these people can make dies for 72 pt type holders. i am going to have a couple made.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kingsley-Machine-72-Point-108-Point-Custom-Dies-Made-to-Order-/281142229403?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item417561f99b

OHHH this makes me happy. I looked at the facebook page you sent me at least 100 times. =))

I have a small collection of type but would love to invest in some fresh type! I can imagine how nice it is to not have to change out random letterpress because the “o” is smushed or something!

Do you know if the magnesium or brass dies are inexpensive? …such as getting a plate made with boxcar press for letterpress? I’ll have to do some research! 

I can’t wait to get started! Thanks for your help.

OH WOW. I love how things just work out when they’re supposed to! 

That’s a good idea to designate type for both letterpress and foil stamping. I would imagine putting any wood mount into a hot foil press would not be smart. ^_^

I LOVE the medium and think it’s absolutely beautiful. I’ve read a bit about foil and letterpress and it appears to be a lot of labor when investing in a hot foil stamp such as the Kingsley seems worth it in the end.

Thanks for your reply!

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