Matte UV-ink for offset

[Davino]

Greetings all,

I'm an editor and book designer working with a Latvian printer, Livonia Print, on a high-end art book under development for several years with high production values and a lengthy scholarly text. We seek a matte black UV ink for offset press, intended just for body text (not for the photos or graphics) that suits their Heidelberg press with UV LED drying.

We're using a premium coated paper stock, "Arctic Volume White," which is lightly coated and has low-glare properties. We're currently having problems with the glossy glare of UV-cured ink for the text. The text should have no glare at all to aid readability for a difficult, scholarly text.

Seeking experience and advice here on sourcing and using a matte UV ink in deep black that is deal for text (applied separately as a spot color in our case, as the photos are intended to be in the glossier CMYK UV ink the printer prefers, which adds a pleasing saturation to the images) and which will work with the printer's press and within their workflow.

Many aspects to the design of the book were intended to be optimized for high readability, removing impediments to digesting a difficult and long text. The UV gloss, though attractive for the many images, is clearly not ideal for a scholarly text intended for close analysis and study, presenting an impediment to readers forced to deal with glare. Applying a matte varnish across the entire work would upset the tactile properties that we selected the specific stock, among dozens of options, for, as well as introduce yellowing over time, so that route is unappealing..

Please see the attached a spec sheet for the chosen paper stock and a photo of the glare issue we're currently having with their UV-cured normal ink (left side of photo). Can anyone assist with matte black UV ink advice that meets our requirements?

All responses appreciated.

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

Hi Davino,

Most ink companies offer a matte black ink for LED UV curing. They just add a matting agent that roughens the top surface to diffuse/scatter light reflection. Should be a simple solution, especially if the black text is a spot/special color.

In your photo, it looks like the gloss black ink has an "orange peel" texture. It's hard to see in the photo, without it being physically in my hand to tilt.
At the micro surface, specular light is being reflected at all angles, like a diamond.
So if the reader tilts the book page, they still see gloss in all directions.
The Inkjet proof allow liquid ink to absorption into the fibers so has lower gloss.
UV ink instantly cures and the application texture is "frozen".
Allowing more time or distance between applying the ink and curing the ink will allow the ink to flow and level flatter. It will increase the gloss but only in one direction. So if the reader tilts the book page, they can eliminate/minimize the gloss of the ink.
Is your printer using interstation/deck curing (dry trap) or only curing at the delivery end of the press (wet trap)?
I wonder if you can still use the same gloss black ink but delay the curing to later by not dry trapping but wet trap?

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

I just reviewed the technical specs of your paper, Arctic Volume White.
I'm surprised they didn't list the paper gloss value, and the measurement geometry angle used (TAPPI 75').

If in your R&D testing (press proofing), you had a large solid area of black ink (to fill the aperture of a gloss meter), you could objectively/qualitatively measure the black ink gloss with: gloss ink, with wet/dry trap, and with matte ink.
The ink company could do a lab proof to measure gloss but it wouldn't show any "orange peel" texture since the proof is made manually by hand and cured several seconds later.

 

[Davino]

Hi @SteveSuffRIT - the reply is greatly appreciated. As the designer and researcher (this is a lengthy architectural monograph), this juncture comes at the end of 4.5 years of full commitment to every detail, and this end-of-line technical hurdle needs a solution such as you recommend. The printer, Livonia Print in Latvia, has been reasonably attentive to our needs but seems reluctant now to step outside their conventional workflow.

I can confirm that when you tilt the page, the glare can be eliminated. But I do not want to encumber the reader with that; the text should be free from all ink-induced glare with no added sheen beyond the very mild one of the stock. The photo I shared is at the most gratuitous angle to show the worst case, and yes, the orange peel is there. Our 240 architectural photos look spectacular with this process, but not the text. I should also note that we're paying 2700 EUR extra for a gray spot ink for the footnote/sidenote annotations, so this is a 5C process. I've selected this as the annotations are a small point size and required another color to help distinguish them as editorial notes but in the further interest of readability, a solid gray spot ink was chosen over a less sharp halftoned black-ink-as-gray. I also moved the entire print production out of Taiwan to the Latvia because the the Taiwanese printers showed great reluctance to work with Arctic Volume White (as needed UV curing is uncommon there).

The Latvian printer has emphasized that all inks (CMYK gloss + matte spots) must work with the same fountain solution chemistry. He cited this as a potential blocker. They've also said Livonia has experienced "picking, holes, defects on sheets" with non-standard UV inks in the past, making them cautious. Their Heidelberg press is an 8-color press, LED UV (not mercury), doing spot work as separate passes.

• Would matte UV inks from have fountain solution compatibility issues with standard gloss UV inks? (They might be using inks from Epple or INX/SAKATA)
• Would matte formulations cause "picking, holes, defects" or are those issues unrelated to matte vs. gloss finish?
• Is matte UV black truly standard inventory from these suppliers, or would it require custom ordering?

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

Hi Davino,

Wow, based on the photos, the "orange peel" texture is extreme!
You mention 8-c perfector press will be a separate 2nd pass just for the spot text, that's expensive.
Is there any critical tight register fit of text to 4/c art/graphics?

• Would matte UV inks from have fountain solution compatibility issues with standard gloss UV inks? (They might be using inks from Epple or INX/SAKATA)
• No, same fountain solution should work with both inks, gloss or dull/matte/flat.
• Would matte formulations cause "picking, holes, defects" or are those issues unrelated to matte vs. gloss finish?
• No, there are unrelated, picking, fisheyes, donuts, hickeys defects are related to ink tack. Request ink tack of matte to be the same as gloss. You may want to test paper with a "Dennison Wax Pick" test for its surface bond strength. Melt a special wax candle on paper, let it cool, pull it off. Paper fiber should not be pulled off.
• Is matte UV black truly standard inventory from these suppliers, or would it require custom ordering?
• It sounds like you are specifying the text black ink to be a custom Pantone PMS spot color. This will cost more and take a few days to mix.

 

[Davino]

"You mention 8-c perfector press will be a separate 2nd pass just for the spot text, that's expensive."
I believe this is due to duplex printing. The 2nd pass then is necessary.

"Is there any critical tight register fit of text to 4/c art/graphics?"
The tightest areas are all at least 4.5mm apart (between text and graphics). Is that considered problematically close? There are no instances of overlapping text and images in the same zone.

"It sounds like you are specifying the text black ink to be a custom Pantone PMS spot color. This will cost more and take a few days to mix."
Couldn't the matte body text be printed together along with the Pantone grey spot color, both formulated for matte finish, in the 2nd pass, somewhat reducing cost? I don't know if that makes the matte black body text necessarily a "spot" color but the principle is the same: glossier CMYK for photos is duplex printed on the 1st pass, 2nd pass is for matte black body text and a matte gray ink (Pantone) for annotations.

I'm at a loss to fully understand the validity or rationale to the printer's seeming resistance to helping to fulfill this (to us) reasonable design requirement: non-glare text is vastly preferable for a lengthy, complex scholarly text intended for study, unencumbered by glare.

Your responses are very valuable, providing the insight we need. It may be too much info, but here is the last full response from the printer:


"Dear Davino,

first of all, my apologies for the delayed response. I spend most of my working day on the production floor together with our press operators, so I don’t always have the opportunity to respond to emails as quickly as I would like.

At the moment, I’m not able to give a fully objective answer regarding matte UV ink formulations, as this topic falls more within the responsibility of our Offset Department Manager, who is currently on holiday until Monday.

Based on past experience, however, I can share that we have tested UV inks from several manufacturers over the years, and unfortunately not all UV inks behave in the same way in production. We have encountered various issues, including ink picking from the paper surface, which in some cases resulted in random holes or defects appearing on printed sheets.

Additionally, not all ink formulations are certified for stable production use. Factors such as how the ink is manufactured, its viscosity, transparency, and lay-down characteristics are critical. Equally important is how inks interact and overprint in CMYK image areas, where color stability and consistency are essential.

Each additive also reacts differently with the fountain solution. In high-volume production, we therefore adhere strictly to standardized, validated workflows that have been approved in cooperation with Heidelberg specialists and ink and chemical suppliers. This is necessary in order to maintain consistent quality in line with Fogra standards.

We do also operate conventional offset presses. However, it’s important to note that when printing this type of job with conventional inks on lightly coated paper such as Arctic Volume White, we cannot reliably guarantee that the paper will remain free from smearing during post-press processes. In fact, I noticed smearing issues very clearly in the sample you sent. Arctic Volume White is a stock on which conventional offset inks dry very slowly, and this can lead to marking and set-off during finishing. For this reason, I would strongly recommend using a UV LED press for this project.

As mentioned previously, because we operate 8-color presses, duplex printing is limited to CMYK + CMYK (4+4). Since this job includes an additional spot color, there is no alternative but to print one side of the sheet first using five printing units and then print the reverse side in a second pass. If offset varnish were added, a total of six units would be required.

Ghosting has been observed primarily when printing coated papers single-sided with conventional inks. This is related to the different absorption rates of ink and fountain solution during printing. With UV presses, this issue has not been observed in our production environment.

Regarding yellowing and curing specifics, I unfortunately do not have laboratory data available. Similarly, I’m unable to specify the exact wavelength or power output of the LED UV curing system, as this information would need to come directly from Heidelberg technicians. What I can say is that curing parameters are optimized for ink stability and adhesion, rather than as a precise control mechanism for selectively reducing surface gloss on specific elements such as body text.

I hope this helps clarify the production realities behind these decisions. I appreciate your patience and your thorough approach, and I’m very happy to continue the discussion once we align on a technically stable direction.

Kind regards,
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
· Prepress Specialist
· Color Management Consultant
· UGRA PSO Certified Expert (Process Standard Offset)"

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

Hi Davino,

The term duplex and perfect are similar. Duplex refers to digital prtg and perfect refers to traditional prtg, sheetfed offset litho. Duplex means to print on both sides in the same single pass. Since they only have a 8-c press, they can only do 4/4 on the first pass. Any additional colors, dull black text or spot Pantone PMS gray text need an extra pass.

The 4.5mm distance between process and spot is call floating or loose register. Tight or hairline register (0.004") is for fitting the 4/c process images or overlap (trapping) with spot colors. I ask because there is a slight potential for misregister between the first and second press if there is any sheet bouncing or paper distortion. Their equipment list doesn't specifically say if the LED UV press is perfecting, as denoted with the letter "P" with their other press specs. If the LED UV press is not perfecting, consider print all 6/c (CMYK, dull K type, spot gray type) in one pass, then back it up. The amount of passes and cost should be the same but the advantage is you get to "see" the final finished result per side.

"Spot" color has many names. While process includes CMYK, you have 2 different black (K) inks, the normal/regular for process and special matte K for the text. If you didn't have the extreme "orange-peel" effect in the normal black ink, you wouldn't need this special matte black ink.
You mention a matte gray ink for annotations. Could you accept that being screened with the matte black ink to some percentage (~40%) to look lighter. If you're using a fine line screen ruling, 200 lpi, and normal 11pt point size type face/font, you probably wont' see any rough edge effect (sawtooth, stairstep, jaggy).

I understand and agree with the printers position on changing things without doing any R&D testing. You just don't know what might happen.
------------------------------------
I agree with most of the printer reply comments, they are technically correct.

Paper pick is surface coating rupture and can cause hickey, fisheyes, donuts defects. A lower ink tack can prevent this.

This "ghosting" is referred to gas ghosting so it's not confused with mechanical ghosting, also called starvation or rerolling. Since UV inks are 100% solids and contain no Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) solvents and cure instantly, there is no possibility of gas ghosting.

UV is under 400 nanometers (nm) wavelength. UV is further subdivided by UVA 375nm, UVB 285nm UVC 265nm.
LED has the advantage over Mercury (Hg) bulbs in that there is no heat or ozone gas produced.

FOGRA/UGRA PSO Certified Expert (Process Standard Offset) is a very good global certification.

If the printer is close enough, do a press check (sign-off) on every form.
How many pages is the book? 106 cm = 41 inches, so a 25x38" press sheet, so 16 pages (8.5x11", A4) per form?
Ask if they save their QC samples, perhaps 1 every 1K shts.

 

[Davino]

Hi Steve,
That's a wealth of info/clarification here and I won't try to distract you much further. I think we have enough to go forward with a plan for their print specialist and Offset Operations Manager, a proposal at least, that addresses our aims. It's clear that matte ink formulations exist and should be available for their press and their fountain solutions (I've written Heidelberg, MA-Inks, and a few other specific ink suppliers in addition to your replies). The approach of 4/4 on pass one, then pass two with matte black for body text and either the Pantone gray (Cool 9C mixed 75% with 25% Cool 10C, ideally in matte) for sidenotes, sounds best as far as I can tell, as this is similar to what they've done for our 5-ink scatter proof. Otherwise, if they can do it all in one pass with a "P" press, that's an option, and it seems the costs should be the same/similar.

Their lpi is 175. In our scatter proof, I did test process black for grey at ranges from 20% to 70% on sidenote text to see the results were and decide if it's ok. We've given ourselves over to years of historical research for the portions that appear in the gray sidenotes, which are at 8.4 pt, and appreciate the difference to solid gray - the halftoning is surely ok for shorter, less critical texts, or larger point sizes.

The fact that two passes are needed regardless of which scenario, seems to lend value to the major extra cost of the spot ink, as some of the labor and setup there overlaps.

The orange peel that seems so gratuitous in the photos isn't too bad when handling the sheets - it's severe at one particular angle under a light source. Find for photos (it looks deliberate, a fine granular texture within nicely saturated images) but that angle glare won't do for our text.

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

In these new photos the orange peel almost looks like a "reticulation" special effect texture.
Good Luck with your project.

 

[Davino]

The printer has said the orange peel effect observed is actually the paper stock itself, though I don't see that fine reticulation-like appearance on the unprinted surface itself – perhaps he's correct and that surface character is only visible when inked?

I'm having a difficult time bringing them to use a matte formulation for the text – I've received offers from MA Inks in Spain and another Chinese matte UV ink producer to discuss their matte formulations for this press with the printer, but I'm sensing their ambivalence and I know they may need to operate with their established supply contacts. I don't wish to insult their expertise, but as the designer, it's clear what needs to be resolved (text glare), even when I'm not as versed in the technical end.

How would others tactfully handle this?

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

Hi Davino,

The photos you posted show NO orange peel texture on the virgin unprinted paper!
If it is paper caused, ask them to proof some gloss varnish or water based aqueous (AQ) coating on the paper to see the result. It won't be there either.

 

[Davino]

Thank you Steve. Do you also believe that glare issue would be resolved by a matte ink or a matting agent added to their existing ink, despite the orange peel effect?

Here's a response I've just received from the printer:

"Our company policy is to use Japanese-made TOYO inks for the UV printing press. This was established many years ago, and there were serious reasons for it. We have received a response regarding UV matte inks, and the answer is as follows:

'TOYO did indeed have matte inks many years ago, but due to low demand, their production was discontinued, as nowadays customers mostly request glossy print results.'

Because of this, we cannot offer printing with matte UV ink, and I doubt that we can consider trying inks from an unknown supplier."

I've reached out to TOYO Ink directly now, across its European, Japanese, and US offices to inquire. I find it strange that designers, publishers, and printers would not recognize a need to cut text glare in publications like this. It surely has a solution.

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

Hi Davino,

Toyo is a reputable ink.
I understand the printer being reluctant to try, test, R&D experiment on a live production job where something can go wrong. Perhaps you could offer to pay for another press proof for further testing, I think you already have based on the photos.

The basic issue here is you don't want glossy black type/text because of the glare strain on the readers eyes. This is true for both ink and paper.

Based on the photos you have shown, this unwanted gloss is due to an orange peel texture pattern making the ink look glossy from specular reflection off the many angled facets, like a diamond. No matter the viewing angle, there is always a specular glare.

Does the printer agree this orange peel texture is present and not normal? Forget about the cause for now.

If they think it is paper related, ask to see samples on different matte finish papers without the orange peel.
Previously I suggested they lab proof gloss varnish and coating on your paper to see if it produces an orange peel texture. You could also try some other matte finish papers to see if they also have the same problem.

Orange peel texture is caused by curing immediately after application. One way to resolve is allow more dwell time/distance between application and curing with LED UV. This will allow the top ink surface to level out and flatten. Yes, it will make it more glossy but only at one, single viewing angle, not all angles.

Do they have inter-station-deck LED UV curing? Are they printing KCMY sequence/order/rotation?
If yes, then perhaps turning the K ink light off will allow for more dwell time?

We should think of the special black text ink as being a custom spot color.
Certainly, it can be formulated to be dull/matte/flat.
Another option ($) is to print a matte/dull/flat varnish over the text only. A potential issue is misregistration fit. So this should be done in the same pass and with a slightly spread/fatter plate.

A side note, UV often has an associated aroma, smell, odor, despite being 100% solid and having no Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) to evaporate. You may ask if any of their customers have complained about this before. Conventional oil-based inks also give off a faint/slight odor as they are drying but most people are familiar with that smell.

Good luck!

 

[alibryan]

If it’s a 5 color or more press with a UV coater, have you considered knocking back the gloss areas (text, and anything else) you want dulled with a spot strike-thru dull varnish in the last unit? You’d obviously have to then flood coat the rest of the sheet with UV coating but it’s a simple enough process and the contrasting results are remarkable.

 

[Davino]

If it’s a 5 color or more press with a UV coater, have you considered knocking back the gloss areas (text, and anything else) you want dulled with a spot strike-thru dull varnish in the last unit? You’d obviously have to then flood coat the rest of the sheet with UV coating but it’s a simple enough process and the contrasting results are remarkable.

Greatly appreciate these responses.

The Latvian printer has a Heidelberg Speedmaster XL 106-8 LED and am XL 106-4 LED. I had dismissed applying a matte varnish earlier, inferring this meant applying it to the entire sheet, as:

1. We wish to preserve the natural texture, feel, and non-yellow appearance of the lightly coated Arctic Volume White (AVW) stock, and

2. We're very pleased with the how the images look currently, with their saturation and sheen, and do not wish to dull or alter their finish.

I presumed, incorrectly it seems, that a spot varnish to the text meant hitting the entire text block, including areas in between the letterforms and in between lines of text. But a "spot strike-thru" would hit only the actual letterforms and nothing in between them, yes?

And as we're keen to preserve the texture, look, and feel of AVW stock, why is it recommended to flood coat the rest of the sheet? I moved the print job out of Taiwan as their printers refused to work with AVW unless treating it with an aqueous coating, disrupting the stock's feel and look.

Is it going to be better to pursue a matte ink for text only (which the printer resists) or go with of a spot strike-thru varnish if it works as described, affecting no surrounding text block areas and instead specifically dulling just the printed letterforms?

Intent as we are on preserving the feel, texture, and look of the paper for many good reasons, there is one disadvantage I see – it's more vulnerable to damage and stains.

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

Hi Davino,

Glad to see "Alibryan" from USA also responded.
Achieving a simultaneous gloss and dull varnish effect is normally done with 2 separate plates, one for gloss, another one for dull. To fit them together prepress applies a slight (~0.004") overlap or trapping to accommodate any possible misregistration. One plate would be exactly the same width (size) as the image/text and the other would be slightly under (choked) or over (spread) sized. The overlapping intersection creates a trap stroke. For clear varnishes, you would not see the trap stroke. For colored inks, you might see it.
A strike-through (thru) technique avoids the need for prepress trapping since the differing gloss effects are done chemically (surface tension) with the overall/flood instead of mechanically. This avoids any misregister or undesirable trapping overlap outlines.

Did the Taiwan printer give a specific reason why they wanted to flood aqueous coat (AQ)? Was it because they did not have UV capability?

 

[Davino]

Hi Davino,

Glad to see "Alibryan" from USA also responded.
Achieving a simultaneous gloss and dull varnish effect is normally done with 2 separate plates, one for gloss, another one for dull. To fit them together prepress applies a slight (~0.004") overlap or trapping to accommodate any possible misregistration. One plate would be exactly the same width (size) as the image/text and the other would be slightly under (choked) or over (spread) sized. The overlapping intersection creates a trap stroke. For clear varnishes, you would not see the trap stroke. For colored inks, you might see it.
A strike-through (thru) technique avoids the need for prepress trapping since the differing gloss effects are done chemically (surface tension) with the overall/flood instead of mechanically. This avoids any misregister or undesirable trapping overlap outlines.

Did the Taiwan printer give a specific reason why they wanted to flood aqueous coat (AQ)? Was it because they did not have UV capability?

The Taiwan printer did not have UV setups for their Kamori printers. They were very concerned about smudging and marks and would only take the job if I signed a contract accepting a 35% failure rate. Thus, after spending months evaluating stocks, and finally choosing AVW (in the end, it was either AVW or Sappi Mango Matt) for all its inherent properties which I did not want to alter with an plasticky coating, I moved the job to Latvia.

Thank you for the technical breakdowns. I need to clarify what I'm actually trying to accomplish, since both alibryan's suggestion and your explanation seem to assume full-sheet coating (correct me if I'm wrong), which isn't my goal, and/or I don't yet follow why full-sheet coating is being mentioned.

I'm not trying to achieve a simultaneous gloss/dull effect across different regions of the sheet. I'm asking whether either matte UV ink or strike-through dull varnish can be applied selectively to only the text letterforms themselves—body text and gray Pantone annotations—while leaving the surrounding white paper (margins, space between lines, space between letters) completely untreated. The photos keep their sheen from the UV ink (an inevitable outcome of non-matte UV ink) on Arctic Volume White, unchanged.

My concern with strike-through: you mention "done chemically (surface tension) with the overall/flood instead of mechanically." Does the strike-through method require an "overall/flood" varnish coating across the entire sheet for proper curing? If so, that defeats the purpose—I'd be changing the character of the paper throughout the document.

Can strike-through be applied selectively to just the letterforms, or is the "overall/flood" a technical necessity of the process? If flood coating is required, then matte UV ink applied selectively to text is probably the simpler path, though the printer has shown resistance there.

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

Strike-thru was an alternative option from a different responder and I was only elaborating on how it works.

YES, matte UV varnish can be applied ONLY to the letters and not the bare paper.

 

[Davino]

The comment about using a flood UV coating (after the spot strike-thru matte varnish) made something click for me.

I've been puzzled for weeks about why our Arctic Volume White 130g – chosen specifically for its low-sheen, relatively natural finish and text readability – feels and looks completely different on the scatter proof. Even the unprinted white areas have a surface character I don't recognize from my AVW samples.

The printer confirmed they used AVW and explained that UV LED ink curing creates surface sheen to the ink. That made sense for the printed areas but it didn't explain why the entire sheet - including virgin white areas - feels different after printing.

When I asked earlier if varnish was applied, they said no. But I never specifically asked about aqueous coating (AQ) or UV coating, especially since I moved the entire job out of Taiwan, where I'm based, when the non-UV printers insisted on AQ, altering the characteristics of the paper that were the basis for why the stock was chosen to begin with. I presumed the new printer with a UV setup wouldn't add it, especially without declaring it. And when I expressed concern over the seemingly different feel of the stock in the scatter proof – so different I suspected an accidental mix-up of stocks – this would seem an appropriate time to mention any reason for it.

[Update – here's their response, just received: "There was no aqueous coating applied to the paper. It was standard printing on white paper."]

I'm now asking them whether anything else, a UV coating, or other surface treatment was applied beyond UV inks.

[Update – response: "There is no UV coating on the paper surface."]

Obviously this doesn't address whether the UV process itself alters the stock or some other possible explanation. Much effort was invested beforehand in thinking about and evaluating surface textures for this volume, to avoid glare on text and celebrate the feel, the touchpoints. It seems the industry leans toward resisting this, in favor (to a degree) of shiny, slightly plasticky surfaces.

 

[SteveSuffRIT]

On a sheetfed printing press, mechanical fingers on the impression/back cylinder called "grippers" pull the paper through the press. Their closed bite or margin is about 3/8-1/2". In this area, nothing can be printed nor bleed off the edge. A careful visual inspection between this area and the rest of the sheet would indicate the presence of any overall/flood varnish or coating. In the case of a matte coating on matte paper, a visual contrast may be difficult to see easily. Using a water based marker (not solvent), you should see an absorption difference between virgin paper in the gripper margin (soaks in) and the flood coating (slight beading) which acts as a sealer.
The Taiwan printer has no UV capability so uses AQ coating to prevent delivery and drying defects (set-off, blocking) and quick 2nd pass backup if they have no perfector. The current printer does not need any type of coating or varnish because UV (Hg or LED) cures (dries) instantly upon exposure to UV radiation (light).

A matte black text/type ink is the best solution.
A matte varnish over the text/type is an option but needs to be in exact register fit, so should run in the same pass and be slightly spread fatter.
The root cause problem is the frozen multi-facet/angled orange peel texture from UV instantly curing.