The Ibeslab@ Cuflex flexo doctor blade is distinguished by its good ink cutting accuracy and wear resistance. The doctor blade is the element that removes excess ink from the rotogravure rollers and flexo anilox rollers.
They are generally made of steel, with different degrees of hardness, microstructured and with various treatments, such as hardening, stainless steel or chemical coating. For other applications and printers they are also made of different plastics such as polyester, nylon or polyethylene.
With the different types of steel we have available and the appropriate blade geometry, it is possible to configure the balance of quality and durability that we need for our flexo or hollow printing unit.
The point of contact with the cylinder can have different shapes: straight, bevelled or lamella, with different shapes and angles. This sharper shape ensures greater precision in cutting the ink and reduces the contact area with the anilox, preventing wear.
The thickness of the doctor blade and the design of the blade is key to avoid spitting problems in the print, that is why we provide personalised advice to meet every need.
There are many sizes (from 5 to 100 mm.) and thicknesses (from 0.10 to 0.50 mm.) available with the dimensions prescribed by machine manufacturers such as Comexi, Windmoller (W&H), Giave, Schiavi, Bobst (Rotomec, Fischer, F&K), Omet, Nilpeter, Sicosa, Uteco, Gallus, Carint, Gidue, Rotatek, etc.
The best profile for an anchor would be a bevel profile rather than a bevel or straight edge.
For very long runs we supply ceramic coated doctor blades, but there are shorter run jobs where a carbon steel doctor blade works well and the cost is much lower.
Yes, for short runs and varnish jobs they are sometimes used. They wear faster and therefore there can be a loss of definition if we work with colours. Steel doctor blades tend to give better definition and cost-effectiveness with this type of UV inks.
A high quality coated steel doctor blade offers high wear resistance and allows good print quality to be maintained throughout the print run.
A round edge is another option when definition is not required.