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Paper types can be classified using a number of differing criteria, but most papers used in the printing industry fall into two classifications: groundwood and freesheet.
- Groundwood
Paper stocks are classified as groundwood when they contain more than 10% of their pulp produced from a mechanical process that grinds wood into pulp. The cellulose in the wood is the major ingredient of the pulp, but because all of the wood is used, other ingredients such as lignin and resins become part of the pulp as well. The lignin is what causes groundwood stocks to yellow quickly and become brittle, so they are good choices for non-permanent printed items such as newspapers. In addition to this, the wood grinding process produces a pulp with very short fibers so the resulting paper has a low tear strength. Groundwood stocks are less bright and less permanent than paper produced from chemical pulp. Chemical fibers are added to many groundwood stocks to give them added strength.
- Freesheet
Freesheet refers to paper that is free of pulp produced from a mechanical grinding process. Chemicals, rather than grinding, are used to reduce the pulp to fibers. Wood chips are cooked in chemical baths which remove the undesirable ingredients such as lignin and resins. Most of the cellulose remains, resulting in fibers that are longer, stronger, and cleaner which produces paper that is brighter and much more permanent than groundwood stocks.
Both groundwood and freesheet paper types can be separated into uncoated and coated stock subcategories.
- Uncoated Stocks
Uncoated stock is paper that has no coated pigment applied to reduce the absorbency or increase the smoothness. The uncoated finishes can be described as vellum, antique, wove, or smooth.
- Coated Stocks
A coated stock has a surface coating that has been applied to make the surface more receptive for the reproduction of text and images in order to achieve sharper detail and improved color density. By adding a coated clay pigment, the objective of coating the stock is to improve the smoothness and reduce the absorbency. Coated paper finishes can be categorized as matte, dull, cast, gloss, and high gloss. The coating can be on both sides of the stock (coated two sides, "C2S") or on one side only (coated one side, "C1S"). Coatings added to groundwood papers give them a greater degree of permanency and the natural tendency for goundwood papers to yellow is reduced.
From the classifications and subcategories, paper stocks are then separated into types, such as offset, bond, cover, index, and vellum bristol. |
Uncoated - Commercial Printing Papers
|
Type of Paper |
Popular Colors |
Popular Weights |
Uses |
|
Offset |
White, Ivory, Cream |
50, 60, 70,
80, 100 lb. |
Business Forms, Flyers, Books, Mailers |
|
Vellum Bristol |
White and Color |
57, 67,
100, 120 lb. |
Mailers, Posters, Advertising |
|
Ledger |
White, Buff, Greentint |
24, 28,
32, 36 lb. |
Business Forms, File Tabs, Records, Etc. |
|
Cover |
White and Color |
50, 60, 65, 80, 90, 100, 130 lb. |
Booklet Covers, Mailers, Menus, Posters |
|
Index |
White and Colors |
90, 100, 140, 170, 200 lb. |
Record Cards, Tab Folders, Booklets |
|
Tag |
White & Manila |
100, 125,
150 lb. |
Business Forms, Work Tags, Covers, Posters |
|
Railroad Board |
White and Colors |
4, 6, 8 Ply |
Covers, Posters |
|
Reply Card |
White |
75 lb. |
Reply Mail, Mailers |
|
Forms Bond |
White, Canary, Pink, Green, Gold, Blue, Buff, Gray |
15, 20, 24 lb. |
Business Forms (invoices, statements) Stationery, Flyers - an all purpose paper |
|
Laser Bon |
White |
20, 24 lb. |
Laser printed Forms, Mailers, Stationery |
|
OCR Bond |
White |
20, 24 lb. |
Scannable Documents |
|
MICR Bond |
White |
24 lb. |
Checks, Numbered Documents |
|
Safety Bond |
White, Canary, Pink, Green, Blue, Gray |
24 lb. |
Checks |
|
Carbonless CB |
White, Canary, Pink, Green, Gold, Blue |
15, 20,
24, 33 lb. |
Business Forms (invoices, statements, Hospital Forms, etc.) |
|
Carbonless CFB |
White, Canary, Pink, Green, Gold, Blue |
12.5, 14, 17 lb. |
Business Forms (invoices, statements, Hospital Forms, etc.) |
|
Carbonless CF |
White, Canary, Pink, Green, Gold, Blue |
15, 20, 27,
33, 105 lb. |
Business Forms (invoices, statements, Hospital Forms, etc.) |
|
Newsprint |
White |
30, 33 lb. |
Newspapers |
|
Kraft |
White, Tan, Gray |
20, 28, 30,
35, 40, 50,
57, 60, 70 lb. |
Packaging, Shipping, Envelopes |
Coated - Commercial Printing Papers
|
Type of Paper |
Popular Colors |
Popular Weights |
Uses |
|
Offset |
Bright White |
50, 60, 70,
80, 90, 100 lb. |
Brochures, Folders, Magazines |
|
Cover |
Bright White |
60, 80, 100 lb. |
Covers, Advertising, Calendars |
Fine Papers
|
Type |
Popular Colors |
Popular Weights |
Uses |
|
Text |
White and Colors |
60, 70, 80 lb. |
Booklets, Annual Reports, Books, High Quality Applications |
|
Cover |
White and Colors |
50, 60, 65, 80, 90, 100, 130 lb. |
Booklet Covers,
Menus, Posters |
|
Writing |
White, Natural White, Ivory |
20, 24 lb. |
Stationery |
|
25% & 100%
Cotton Bond |
White |
20, 24 lb. |
Stationery, Deeds,
Legal Documents |
|
No. 1 Bond
Watermarked |
White |
20, 24 lb. |
Stationery, Deeds,
Legal Documents |
Specialty Papers
|
Type of Paper |
Popular Colors |
Popular Weights |
Uses |
|
Dry Gum Label |
White |
20 lb. |
Labels |
|
Pressure
Sensitive Label |
White, Colors, Fluorescent |
50, 60 lb. |
Labels and Stickers |
|
Digital Imaging |
White and
Bright White |
20, 24, 28, 32, 50, 60, and 70 lb. |
Brochures, Newsletters, Reports, Manuals, Magazines,
Folders, Cards |
Office and Consumer Papers
|
Type of Paper |
Popular Colors |
Popular Weights |
Uses |
|
Laser Bond |
White |
20, 24 lb. |
Laser printed Forms
and Stationery |
|
Xerographic |
White |
20, 24 lb. |
Copiers and Printers |
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