Prefer soft or hard brayer?

[morningmuse]

Hi there! I'm new here, excited to get back into my block printing, which I haven't had much of a chance to do since my kiddos were born.

Anyway, I was just wondering, for lino carving, do you prefer a hard or soft brayer and why?

I'm not really sure which I prefer. It seems like the soft brayer gets ink more into the small etchings, so it would be better for bigger plates where the gouges don't show. Whereas the hard brayer would be better for plates where the gouges are closer to the surface. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

[boundstaffpress]

I prefer to use a soft brayer and not press very hard. I find that a soft brayer picks up ink better. Hard rollers also are not very forgiving if you have any irregularities in the flatness of your block.

[bridog]

I echo Boundstaff's (Justin) comments. Soft rubber tends to pick up and transfer both oil and water soluble inks better than a hard rubber or acrylic roller.

[Printmakerguy]

I like 'em soft- And BIG diameter... They do seem to pick up ink much better. Larger diameters hold a LOT of ink, too.