Discuss the various aspects of heat press technology. Transfer paper, inks, plastisol transfers, vinyl cutters, printers, commercial usage, durability, suppliers, etc.
When I started out, I was buying the aftermarket cartridges of dye-ink off of Ebay. Super cheap - 22.00 for 8 cartridges. (I have a Epson 1280 and a Epson 1270). There was the occasional comment on bleeding, but I didn't care for the price. Now I use some aftermarket pigment ink in a CIS and haven't had any problems or complaints with bleeding. Don't know the brand name of the ink though, but when I run out, I'm gonna switch to a 'namebrand' pigment ink for my 1280.
I continue to use the cheap dye ink for the 1270, but it's only used for printing regular documents, not transfers. Can't beat the less than 3.00/cartridge price.
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"It's difficult to heat press straight when you're hungover"
Look through badalou's posts for a full lesson on Epson inks. The newer printers with Durabrite and Ultrachrome ink systems are pigment inks. The other printers OEM inks are mostly dye based. Dye inks are not as colorfast through washing.
Many of the commercial tee shirt producers are using continuous or bulk ink systems with a pigment based ink. Search for MagicMix to get info on one of the common ones. Coastal Business also offers a pigment based ink and a bulk delivery system.
Everyone has their favorites. My opinion is that the MagicMix inks with Coastal's Everlast paper provides very good results.
I could really use some imput.I recently asked about my epson durabrite ink turning my grey and black colors to a greenish/yellow when I heat a design .The majority said change settings on ink to yellow-15 cyan+5 magenta+5 but it still came out with a greenish tint.I called epson and they said i need to be using the epson heat transfer paper so my question is do you think, there just trying to get me to purchase there paper or is it possible that could be the problem by the way there transfer paper is 13.50 for 10 sheets .I just lost a job because of the ink problem.PLEASE HELP
Lesiure, I had a very similar problem recently while switching to Pigment ink.
Yes, I believe Epson just wants you to buy their product. In addition, 1.35 for a 8.5 X 11 sheet of paper sounds a bit high to me. I get the 100 packs of 11X17 Ironall paper for about 1.50/sheet after shipping - twice as much paper for .15 more a sheet.
I have noticed that colors do print out different on different types of paper. As stated earlier in this post, I'm using some generic offbrand pigment inks. I had to do hours of tests to finally get a print out that was close to the original, but I'm still not 100%.
I have a Epson 1280 and my settings (under 'Properties' and 'Advanced') are Brightness +5, Contrast +7, Saturation +22, Cyan -22, Magenta -24, Yellow -22. Unfortunately, with these settings, I have to print something out, let it dry for 5-10 minutes, then print it again on the same page. It prints dull the first time but, if lined up correctly, turns out great the second time. This is just a temporary fix until I can either figure out the correct settings or just start from scratch and buy a new CIS with a customer support that actually answers e-mailed questions.
Ryan
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"It's difficult to heat press straight when you're hungover"
Ryan I was using the jetflex paper from imprintables which is suppose to be there ironall do you think i should try your settings if i'm using epson ink.The only colors that came out bad are the grey and black.Thanks
Quote:
Originally Posted by Peanutz
Lesiure, I had a very similar problem recently while switching to Pigment ink.
Yes, I believe Epson just wants you to buy their product. In addition, 1.35 for a 8.5 X 11 sheet of paper sounds a bit high to me. I get the 100 packs of 11X17 Ironall paper for about 1.50/sheet after shipping - twice as much paper for .15 more a sheet.
I have noticed that colors do print out different on different types of paper. As stated earlier in this post, I'm using some generic offbrand pigment inks. I had to do hours of tests to finally get a print out that was close to the original, but I'm still not 100%.
I have a Epson 1280 and my settings (under 'Properties' and 'Advanced') are Brightness +5, Contrast +7, Saturation +22, Cyan -22, Magenta -24, Yellow -22. Unfortunately, with these settings, I have to print something out, let it dry for 5-10 minutes, then print it again on the same page. It prints dull the first time but, if lined up correctly, turns out great the second time. This is just a temporary fix until I can either figure out the correct settings or just start from scratch and buy a new CIS with a customer support that actually answers e-mailed questions.
Leisure, can't hurt to try these settings. You'll probably have to fine tune them. I've only been in this business for just over a year and I'm still trying to figure out some of the small details myself. In fact, I'm embarrased about some of my methods. I don't know why some of my processes work, I just know the end result.
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"It's difficult to heat press straight when you're hungover"
Well that makes you a veteran to me I've only been trying heat press for a couple of months I own an embroidery business thats my comfort zone.I let a customer talk me into the press so i could do there RV Resorts. One of her customers ask me to do t's for them as give aways and the print came out BAD and I lost the job 100pcs plus order, kind of hurt my feelings even though I gave it my best shot. I have 6 test shirts and Days of time working on the design.I guess you can't win them all but I sure hate losing out to bad ink print.Thanks for all the advice
Brenda
Quote:
Originally Posted by Peanutz
Leisure, can't hurt to try these settings. You'll probably have to fine tune them. I've only been in this business for just over a year and I'm still trying to figure out some of the small details myself. In fact, I'm embarrased about some of my methods. I don't know why some of my processes work, I just know the end result.
I've messed up my share of orders. They don't always turn out how they look in your head. It can be really frustrating, but don't give up.
The really nice thing about this business is that people are always gonna need shirts for one reason or another. There are sports year round that need shirts and you could have a business that does nothing but local softball, basketball, dodgeball, baseball etc orders and make a lot of money and be happy. High Schools, local clubs, gas stations, flea markets, other businesses, Ebay, family reunions...the posibilites are endless. In fact, the only business I can think of that wouldn't need t-shirts would be a strip club (but I guess the bouncers would need 'security' shirts).
Yes, feel bad when you lose a customer, but there will be many, many more and don't beat yourself up.
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"It's difficult to heat press straight when you're hungover"
I've messed up my share of orders. They don't always turn out how they look in your head. It can be really frustrating, but don't give up.
The really nice thing about this business is that people are always gonna need shirts for one reason or another. There are sports year round that need shirts and you could have a business that does nothing but local softball, basketball, dodgeball, baseball etc orders and make a lot of money and be happy. High Schools, local clubs, gas stations, flea markets, other businesses, Ebay, family reunions...the posibilites are endless. In fact, the only business I can think of that wouldn't need t-shirts would be a strip club (but I guess the bouncers would need 'security' shirts).
Yes, feel bad when you lose a customer, but there will be many, many more and don't beat yourself up.
You can often find the OKI lasers on sale for $399 or less. By the time you buy a bulk ink system and an Epson printer you'll be at $250. Operating costs aren't that different, but you will have to deal with bulk ink for the inkjet. We gave up on the OEM Epson inks for the reasons mentioned in this thread.
We use both in our shop. The Ironall type paper with a bulk, pigment ink systems gives us the best color. The laser is very esy to use and gives us good feel and durability. The colors are a little more difficult to adjust on photos using the laser.
transfer inks 
Heat Transfer Paper Price List
