Discuss the various aspects of heat press technology. Transfer paper, inks, plastisol transfers, vinyl cutters, printers, commercial usage, durability, suppliers, etc.
Hey everyone, First post. Can anyone explain to me what the plastisol transfers are all about and maybe where I can purchase some? I just need a good way to print on darks and I was hoping maybe this might be the solution.
I am trying to do White text on Black/dark shirts. I know its hard to do with heat transfers but I would like to find a good way. I know about opaques as well, and it may not be an option with text is what I hear. Thanks!
A screenprinter can print your design onto a transfer paper using plastisol inks. The screen printer flash cures the plastisol inks and later you can tranfer these prints onto your shirts using a heat press. It's a good way to go if your using print on demand method. Also have you thought about using vinyl tranfers? You can print on all color shirts and it's a great way to go since you are only printing text. The finish using vinyl is similar to screen printed shirts.
For vinyl transfers, youll need to by a vinyl cuttom (plotter) and some vinyl. The most commonly used vinyl is thermoflex plus.
Thermoflex vinyl is similar to screenprinting and plasticol transfers. I believe that thermoflex is made out of plasticol, which is that same stuff most screenprinters use, and obviously the same stuff plasticol transfers are made out of. Vinyl gives a smoother finish than plasticol transfers.
For vinyl transfers, youll need to by a vinyl cuttom (plotter) and some vinyl. The most commonly used vinyl is thermoflex plus.
Thermoflex vinyl is similar to screenprinting and plasticol transfers. I believe that thermoflex is made out of plasticol, which is that same stuff most screenprinters use, and obviously the same stuff plasticol transfers are made out of. Vinyl gives a smoother finish than plasticol transfers.
Thanks i'm totally green with the Vinyl stuff, do you need special skills to make the vinyl transfers or is it just a matter of buying the stuff and teaching yourself
debbiebelle,
it's easy to do with the proper equipment/computer/cutter/materials. Get a few tips, try it a few times and that's it.
Scrap-Boy,
So, since vinyl and plastisol sound to be so close in quality and vesitility with light or dark shirts, is using vinyl a good way to go, if you want to make the transfers at home versus having to have transfers printed commercially if you use plastisol?
So, since vinyl and plastisol sound to be so close in quality and vesitility with light or dark shirts, is using vinyl a good way to go, if you want to make the transfers at home versus having to have transfers printed commercially if you use plastisol?
Vinyl is an excellent choice for doing one-of-a-kind, "on demand" designs (like names for sports shirts). However there are some limitations. You can only do around 2-3 colors per design, and you'll need to "weed" (remove) the excess vinyl from each design, which can be very time consuming on complex designs.
Can anyone recommend a good quality shirt (one that lasts as long as the plastisol transfered image) that works best with plastisol transfers?
Do the transfers have to be stretchy since t-shirts are stretchy, in general?
with Stretch transfers you can use fine rib knit stretchy shirts from American/Alternative apparel and such. For heavier stretch knits you will need more density type stretch transfers.
You can also print the transfers on Bamboo/Spandex (95/5) blends, very thin and soft fabric and popular now. For sure a big deal for spring/summer 2007.
I think there is a thread on the board relating to Bamboo/stretch fabrics...where ? du-no.
Question about Plastisol 
