Flong
Encyclopedia
Flong is a term used in relief printing
(also called a stereo mould), which refers to an intermediate step in making of a stereo plate typically used in a rotary press though not exclusively. The process was called Stereotyping.
Invented in Lyon
in 1829 by the French
printer Claude Genoux, a flong was a papier-mâché
mould made with the aid of heat and pressure of a set form of type, which was then be placed in a casting box and a thin replica of the original (metal) type (and illustrations) would be cast against it all in one piece; a limited number of duplicate casts could be made from one flong. The back shaved stereo plate would be attached to a press cylinder or honeycomb base and allow the original un-damaged type to be distributed or recycled and the stereotypes could be stored for repeat editions in much less space than standing forms.
A further improvement to the technique was made in 1893, when the dry flong replaced the wet flong. More recently, flongs have been made of phenolic resin boards (perhaps also plastic and rubber) and are still used in places to cast rubber stamp sheets instead of type metal stereos, the last commercial use is certain types of rubber relief printing mats (sheets) for flexo printing. They remained widely in use until the invention of offset lithography
in the late 19th century led to rotary presses being mostly replaced by the new technology.
A process called electrotyping
produced a similar result using electrodeposition of copper (usually) to form a plate replica of the printing forme.
The word is derived from the French flan; or the Latin word "flana".
Printing
Printing is a process for reproducing text and image, typically with ink on paper using a printing press. It is often carried out as a large-scale industrial process, and is an essential part of publishing and transaction printing....
(also called a stereo mould), which refers to an intermediate step in making of a stereo plate typically used in a rotary press though not exclusively. The process was called Stereotyping.
Invented in Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
in 1829 by the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
printer Claude Genoux, a flong was a papier-mâché
Papier-mâché
Papier-mâché , alternatively, paper-mache, is a composite material consisting of paper pieces or pulp, sometimes reinforced with textiles, bound with an adhesive, such as glue, starch, or wallpaper paste....
mould made with the aid of heat and pressure of a set form of type, which was then be placed in a casting box and a thin replica of the original (metal) type (and illustrations) would be cast against it all in one piece; a limited number of duplicate casts could be made from one flong. The back shaved stereo plate would be attached to a press cylinder or honeycomb base and allow the original un-damaged type to be distributed or recycled and the stereotypes could be stored for repeat editions in much less space than standing forms.
A further improvement to the technique was made in 1893, when the dry flong replaced the wet flong. More recently, flongs have been made of phenolic resin boards (perhaps also plastic and rubber) and are still used in places to cast rubber stamp sheets instead of type metal stereos, the last commercial use is certain types of rubber relief printing mats (sheets) for flexo printing. They remained widely in use until the invention of offset lithography
Lithography
Lithography is a method for printing using a stone or a metal plate with a completely smooth surface...
in the late 19th century led to rotary presses being mostly replaced by the new technology.
A process called electrotyping
Electrotyping
Electrotyping is a chemical method for forming metal parts that exactly reproduce a model. The method was invented by Moritz von Jacobi in Russia in 1838, and was immediately adopted for applications in printing and several other fields...
produced a similar result using electrodeposition of copper (usually) to form a plate replica of the printing forme.
The word is derived from the French flan; or the Latin word "flana".