A scoop coater is an aluminum trough with a straight coating lip used to apply liquid photo emulsion to a screen printing screen. You fill it with emulsion, hold it against the mesh, tilt it until the emulsion touches the screen and pull it upward in one pass to leave an even layer. The Nortech NOR-SC at Buckets of Ink has two lips, a sharp edge and a round edge, so one tool handles every mesh count.

Choose a coater 1 to 2 inches narrower than the inside dimension of the frame in the direction you coat. A 20 x 24 or 20 x 28 inch aluminum frame has about 17.5 inches inside across the short side, so use a 16 inch coater. A 23 x 31 frame takes an 18 inch coater. Hat, pocket and small hobby frames use 6 to 12 inch coaters. Buckets of Ink stocks 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 18 and 20 inch.

The sharp edge leaves a thin, flat emulsion layer and is used on 180 mesh and finer for halftones, fine line and small text. The round edge deposits more emulsion and is used on 60 to 160 mesh where the larger openings need a thicker stencil for opaque underbases, athletic, puff and glitter inks.

For 180 mesh and finer, one coat on the print side and one on the squeegee side with the sharp edge. For 110 to 160 mesh, two coats on the print side and one on the squeegee side with the round edge. For 60 to 86 mesh and high-density inks, two over two. Dry flat, print side down, between extra coats.

Coat the print side (the outside, the side that touches the shirt) first, then the squeegee side. Finishing on the squeegee side pushes emulsion through to the print side, where the stencil needs to be thickest, and the screen dries print side down so the emulsion settles there.

At Buckets of Ink the Nortech NOR-SC dual-edge aluminum scoop coater starts at $10 for the 6 inch width; wider sizes step up from there and the exact price for each width shows when you select the size on the product page. Shipping is included on orders over $250.

Yes for anything beyond occasional use. Extruded T6 aluminum keeps a dead-straight lip, which is what prevents streaks and thick bands; plastic coaters warp and nick. Aluminum also cleans faster and does not hold old emulsion in scratches.

Pour unused emulsion back into the container through a filter, then rinse the trough and both lips with water right away. Wipe the lips with a soft microfiber pad, never a blade or abrasive, and dry it before snapping on the dust cover. Dried emulsion on the lip causes lines in the next coat.

Any liquid photo emulsion coats with a scoop coater. Buckets of Ink stocks Ulano QX-5 and Chromaline ChromaBlue for fine mesh and halftones, Ulano Orange, Chromaline PC 701 and CCI TX-Blue for plastisol on coarse mesh, Ulano 925WR-P for water-based and discharge, and Ulano Trifecta and CCI VPR Red for shops that run every ink.

You can spread emulsion with a squeegee or a card, but the layer will be uneven and the stencil will pinhole and break down early. A scoop coater lays a uniform film in one pass and is the single cheapest upgrade to stencil quality in a screen printing shop.

Buckets of Ink at 906 S Priest Dr #101 in Tempe, Arizona stocks the Nortech scoop coater in all seven widths with Ulano, Chromaline and CCI emulsion for walk-in pickup Monday to Friday 7:30 AM to 4:00 PM, and ships nationwide. Call 480-229-7806.