Pigment is added to the oil before grinding to the appropriate consistency for the required printmaking technique.
Also known as boiled or burnt linseed oil, referring to their traditional method of modification, today they are created in a heated high pressure vessel. The process adds viscosity and tack to the linseed oil in increasing degrees, ranging from weak to strong as heating time is increased. You can soften and loosen an ink by adding weak, thinner oil and increase tack and viscosity by adding stronger, thicker oil.
Plate oils should be added to inks sparingly, as the detail of a print may be lost if the ink becomes too fluid. Gamblin Burnt Plate Oil Number 000 is a light oil with a lower tack and is the primary oil binder for Gamblin relief inks.
