The screen printing market has an abundance of screen printing presses. All these presses have different features, abilities, and prices. You want to make sure you're getting the right press for your goals and your customers' needs. How do you even begin to choose?
First, you pick a trusted brand. If you're looking at a Riley Hopkins press, you're in the right place. With more than 30 years of experience in the printing press industry and a professional reputation to match, Riley Hopkins makes some of the highest quality and most economical screen print presses a person can buy. The beloved press line is known worldwide for having top-tier features, fast adjustment, and cutting edge looks.
Even the Riley Hopkins line has several different presses to choose from. Which one is right for you? Let's take a look at each press's capabilities and who would benefit the most from each press.
RILEY HOPKINS 150 PRESS
Hobbyists. Artists. Etsy shop owners. Students. Side hustlers. The Riley Hopkins 150 Press is for beginners. It's for people looking to dive into the screen printing industry without paying an arm and a leg to get in.
With the choices of a 4 Color 1 Station and 1 Color 1 Station, the presses are made out of hot rolled steel and aircraft grade aluminum. The 150 has even more durability due to its strong springs and the screen clamps, locking screens in so you don't have to worry about misplacing the registration.
The press is also fantastic for artists, side hustlers, and Etsy shop owners due to its ability to interchange platens. Print on sleeves, neck labels, youth apparel, and more. The opportunity to change platens gives new printers more flexibility to enhance and expand their offerings.
The 150 is also great for shops that need a live printing press. The press is lightweight yet more durable than a DIY press, so it's easy to bring to events while achieving optimal print results.
Whether you're a teacher wanting to teach students the craft or you own a business and need printed merch, the Riley Hopkins 150 Press is the right one for you because of its durability, flexibility, and affordability.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 150 PRESS
RILEY HOPKINS 250 PRESS
The Riley Hopkins 250 Press is for the printer who is just starting out, but is ready to make screen printing their full-time gig. It’s for the printer who has been vigorously researching how to screen print, learning to hone in his or her skills. The press is for the printer who is creative, prepared to make their visions a reality. The printer who is working out of their garage, spare room, or basement, the 250 will fulfill production needs without taking up a ton of space. Printers that are ready to get serious about printing and need something affordable to get started will benefit from the Riley Hopkins 250 Press.
Coming in different sizes like the 4 Color 1 Station, 4 Color 2 Station, 4 Color 4 Station, 6 Color 2 Station, and 6 Color 4 Station, the 250 has a ton of great features every printer will want to have. Locking levers, standard XY micro registration, all-black powder-coat finish, off-contact control, tilted micros — the list never ends.
Riley Hopkins have been a workhorse for thousands of printers. One of the biggest perks of both the 250 and 150 is their adaptability. When you grow and need a larger press like a 300 or even an automatic press, the 250 and 150 will still be of use to you. Save them for smaller orders, tag printing, overflow jobs, live printing events, one-color prints, and more. The Riley Hopkins 250 Press will be there for you, from the beginning to the end.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 250 PRESS
RILEY HOPKINS 300 PRESS
Welcome to the big boy presses. The Riley Hopkins 300 Press is for printers whose businesses are booming. Large orders and multi-colored jobs keep rolling in. Your current press cannot keep up with customers' demands. Your once side gig has turned into a full-blown, around-the-clock job.
Why is the 300 good for large production shops? Its speed, precision, and consistency are a game changer.
Features like an anti-flip registration plate, an XY-micro, and a Z-micro have created faster setup times for printers. The anti-flip registration plate keeps the screen in the same tilt and off-contact location for final registration. Locking levers make it easy to set registration and the XY-micro creates more precise adjustments. Off-contact is streamlined with the the Z-micros.
Plus, you have the option to add on side clamps or a laser guiding system to further enhance and speed up your time spend on registration.
Not only is off-contact and registration quicker and better, the lockdown mechanism is powerful. The 300 comes with two-point roller gates, which strengthen the holding power on the printhead when it's down. Latching screens down with the roller gates reduces the amount of adjustments needed. You'll make even less adjustments since the screen clamps have a larger surface area.
Printers can choose between a 4 Color 4 Station, 6 Color 4 Station, 6 Color 6 Station, or 8 Color 6 Station.
Can you now see how the Riley 300 brings speed, precision, and consistency in a print shop? The littlest things make the biggest difference in your shop, business, and craft. If you're finding yourself spending a ton of time on dialing in your prints for the mountain of orders you have sitting on your desk, it's time to upgrade to the Riley Hopkins 300 Press.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 300 PRESS
RILEY HOPKINS 350 PRESS
Formerly known as the Riley 500 Press, the Riley Hopkins 350 Press has all the same beneficial features as the 300, but with one major difference.
The platens are interchangeable between the 350 and a ROQ automatic press. No need to have a million different platens in your shop, which saves space. Using the same mechanism on a ROQ press, the pallets clip into the arm, which makes positioning simple. The 350 comes in 4 Color 4 Station, 6 Color 4 Station, 6 Color 6 Station, and 8 Color 6 Station.
If you know for a fact that your shop will be going automatic soon, the 350 will be the press for you. With all the superb features of the 300 like two-point roller bearings, locking levers, and micros, the Riley Hopkins 350 Press will be an excellent addition to streamline workflow between your automatic press and manual press.
LEARN WHEN TO GO AUTOMATIC
If you're still wondering which press is best for you or your shop, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We're here to help. Call us at 1-800-314-6390 or email onlinesales@ryonet.com. You can also chat with us on the website or message us on social media.
