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Phone
519-650-9015
1-877-717-1716
Fax
519-653-5902
1-866-653-5902
Email
info@tstrubberstamp.ca
T.S.T. Rubber Stamp
is an accredited
The makers of Corel Draw®
and other fine products.
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Frequently Asked
Questions & Answers from T.S.T.
Rubber Stamp.ca
- What is a
"self inking" stamp?
- What is a
"pre-inked" stamp?
- What is a
"High-Yield" or "flash"
stamp?
- What is a "woodmount"
or traditional hand stamp?
- How do you re-ink a self
inking stamp?
- I'm trying to stamp on glossy
paper, and it is not drying. My information smears and makes a mess.
Can you help?
- Can special
typestyles, logos or even signatures be put on a stamp?
- Who is Colop?
- Who is Trodat?
- Who is T.S.T. Rubber Stamp?
- What is the warranty on these
stamps?
- Rubber
stamps, aren't they all the same?
- What is the name of our
Shipping Department Supervisor?
Question - What is a
"Self Inking" stamp?
A self inking stamp is a one where the inkpad is built right in.
The pad can be easily re-inked or changed when the image starts to get faint.
The die plate sits on the inkpad and when the top is pushed down, the die plate
"flips" around to make contact with the paper. A self inking stamp will
usually travel about 3/4" to 1" when pushed down. These are the stamps we
recommend for the majority of your needs because of their longevity and
flexibility. The colour of the ink in the stamp can be changed and any
updates to the imprint information can be done easily.
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Question - What is a "Pre-inked" stamp?
A pre-inked stamp is where the die is made from a material that has
the ink actually embedded into the die plate during the manufacturing process.
Heat and pressure are applied to seal the ink into the printing surface.
The easiest way to tell if you have a pre-inked stamp is to check the printing
surface. If it resembles fuzzy carved felt, then you have a pre-ink.
When pressed pre-inkers only travel about 1/8" to make contact with the paper.
Manufacturers claim that they are re-inkable, however it is difficult.
Since the die plate is sealed at its creation, you can not recreate the heat and
pressure necessary to get a full load of ink back in. If re-inking is
attempted, we are quite sure that you will not be satisfied with the result.
These kinds of stamps are usually higher priced then self-inking stamps.
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Question - What is a "High-Yield" or "Flash" stamp?
A flash stamp is similar to a pre-inked stamp with one major
difference. When you turn over the flash stamp, you will notice that the
stamp appears to have a thin film of plastic on the bottom where the ink seeps
through to make the impression. It will travel about the same distance as
the pre-inked stamp however it can be re-inked because it is not made with heat
and pressure. These stamps use an internal ink pad that sits just behind
the membrane and holds the ink. Flash stamps can be made in larger sizes
than self inking stamps since they do not require the space to "flip" the die
plate, but they are generally more expensive.
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Question - What is a "Woodmount" or
"Traditional Hand Stamp"?
Woodmounts are the old faithfuls of the stamp industry and are
sometimes referred to simply as "rubber stamps". A separate ink pad is
required with these. The main advantage of the hand stamp is that
virtually any size can be made. With self inkers, pre-inks and flash
stamps we must make your information conform to the size of the stamp.
With woodmounts we can make the stamp conform to the size of your information.
If you need a stamp to be exactly 3-7/8" long x 1/8" high and no bigger or
smaller, then a woodmount is the stamp for you. Many times, because of
specialty inks, a pre-ink or self inking stamp will not work. These inks
can do damage to the mechanisms of self inkers and are not recommended in this
application. But woodmounts work great!
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Question - How do you re-ink a self inking stamp?
We recommend that you do this at the end of the work day. This
will give the new ink time to settle for a few hours, eliminating the risk of
having a blotchy image from too much ink sitting on the surface of the pad.
Re-inking a self inker is quite easy. Once you have done it once you'll be
a pro! Here's a few easy steps to follow.
- Compress the stamp about 1/8". This will move
the die plate off of the ink pad so that it won't drag across the ink pad
when you are removing it.
- From either side, push the ink pad out and lay it
down next to the stamp. You will probably notice that you inkpad has
developed a "memory" of what the information on your die plate looks like.
Try to keep the pad oriented in the same direction that you took it out.
- Using proper water-based ink (PLEASE don't use quick
drying ink in your self inkers!) wet the pad. We sell bottles of ink
that come with an eye-dropper style tip to make it easier to use. We
don't recommend using a roller ball ink bottle on these little pads.
You will end up with ink up to your elbow. Save the roller ball bottle
for those ink pads that you use with your woodmounts.
- Allow the pad to sit out overnight, or at least for a
few hours, if you can. It will not dry up in that time. This is
to allow the ink to fully saturate, settle and spread evenly throughout the
whole ink pad.
- Depress the top of the stamp again. If you look
through the hole where the ink pad is going to go you will see how the die
plate moves out of the way and gives you a clear path to reinsert the ink
pad. Try to put the ink pad back in the way you took it out so that
the hills and valleys of the ink pad match up with the hills and valleys of
the die plate. If you haven't matched them up you will know right
away. When you print with your stamp, the image will have parts
missing. To fix this, just take the ink pad back out, turn it around
180° and put it back in again.
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Question - I'm trying to stamp on glossy paper, and it is not drying. My
information smears and makes a mess. Can you help?
Yes we can! The reason why the ink is not drying is because
most stamps are made with a water-based ink. Glossy papers, photographs
and similar stocks are coated with a kind of shellac that seals the paper making
it non-porous. It is similar to trying to write on a piece of glass with a
regular felt marker. It will never dry. You could come back to that
nice shiny catalogue in 6 months and still be able to rub off your imprint.
Here's the fix. We have specially formulated inks that are meant to be
used on those pesky shiny surfaces. The big difference is that they use an
alcohol type substance instead of water for a thinner and pigments instead of
dies. What this means is that, when you stamp your catalogue the alcohol
part evaporates away and the pigment (colour) part dries up and sticks to the
surface. And they don't rub off! There are hundreds of specialty
inks available. They range from food safe inks all the way up to a
two-part epoxy that can only be removed by a grinder!
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Question - Can special typestyles,
logos or even signatures be put on a stamp?
Absolutely! We can put just about anything on a stamp, short of
a photograph. You logo or image has to be a clean, black and white piece.
No shade of grey. If in doubt, call us or email your artwork to us and we
will tell you whether or not it can be used.
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Question - Who is Colop?
Colop was founded over 25 years ago in Wels, Austria and offers
one of the largest lines of stamps and accessories, suitable for just about any
application. Colop is quickly becoming a major player in the marking
industry.
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Question - Who is Trodat?
Trodat was founded in Austria over 50 years ago and is the largest
stamp manufacturer in the world. They have sold over 150 million self
inking stamps worldwide and are the most widely recognized.
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Question - Who is T.S.T. Rubber Stamp?
T.S.T. Rubber Stamp is the best company to seek out for all of your
marking needs. They provide high quality stamps, excellent service and
fair prices. Established in 1996 they have enjoyed continued growth every
year. They are the best company to work for and have really great
employees! Everybody loves T.S.T. Have we said that they are great?
Oh, by the way, WE are T.S.T.!
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Question - What is the warranty on these stamps?
At T.S.T. Rubber Stamp we warranty all Colop and Trodat stamps for
life. See our warranty page below for more detailed information.
Naturally things like abuse or overuse (ie. using a small plastic stamp hundreds
of times a day where a heavy duty metal stamp is called for) are not covered.
Simply send the product back to us, with an explanation, and we will do
everything we can to make it right.
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Question - Rubber stamps, aren't they
all the same?
Not at all! Saying that would be the same as saying all cars
are the same, or all running shoes are the same. We have all at one point
bought some really cheap shoes, only to find out that within a few months they
fall apart and need to be replaced again. if we had bought a quality pair
of shoes in the first place, we would have them for years and they wouldn't need
replacing every few months. We offer high quality items at a fair price so
that you don't have to go stamp shopping every few months. Good quality
lasts a lot longer that a cheap price!
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Question - What is the name of our Shipping Department Supervisor?
Ginger! She has a Masters Degree in
Pub-lick Relations and loves long walks along the river. She also serves
on our board of directors and heads up the complaints de-bark-ment!
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Always
remember ..... at T.S.T. Rubber Stamp, your satisfaction is our main concern.
We stand behind our products and service 100%. If you are happy with us,
we'd love to hear about it. If you have a problem with us, we'd also like
to hear about it. Let us know how we can make your experience with our
company even better.
Call us at 519-650-9015 or toll free at 1-877-717-1716.
Or send us an email at
info@tstrubberstamp.ca
Thank you for allowing us to work with you!
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