Discuss the various aspects of heat press technology. Transfer paper, inks, plastisol transfers, vinyl cutters, printers, commercial usage, durability, suppliers, etc.
NEED MORE HELP!
Where did you purchase your Oki C8800 Laser and are you happy with it? What transfer paper (light and dark) do you use and how well do the shirts hold up in washing?
the Oki8800 is the only really affordable wide laser..Does super with duracotton...see other post on this from ross. I assume other laser papers will work as well. you wont have to worry about clogged nozzles etc..and have cheaper prints
From what I have been reading, it sounds like laser printing doesn't have a polymer window problem like inkjet, correct? How would you compare the hand, color brightness, and color fastness for laser vs. plastisol?
Thanks again for the info, I really appreciate it!
ImageClip paper is self weeding. DuracottonHT is not self weeding, but the window it leaves just about disappears after one wash. ImageClip haas a soft hand with DuracottonHT a very close second. Both are softer than Plastisol. It's hard to compare color since Plastisol is a spot color process. ImageClip and DuracottonHT hold up very well. My work shirts are done in ImageClip and have been through at least 2 dozen wash/dry cycles.
All in all, plastisol will probably hold up a little better but you are limited to a few colors and it is expensive for short runs. Digital prints are a close second in durability but offer unlimited colors and low production costs for short runs.
The direction you go depends on what you intend to do. Large orders for business, schools, etc or small orders and one-off photo type prints for walk in customers. If you want to be able to do it all with one process, then I'd go with ImageClip.
Hi Ross, thanks for the information. What color garments do you use imageclip on? Would pink, royal blue, etc. work or would I need a paper for darks. Is there are imageclip for darks?
Also Bob, is the c8800 the best printer option? I was looking at the 5500 at staples.. but like I said, I'm new to this business model so I'm not sure what to look for in color laser printers..
Thanks!
Last edited by knox harrington; December 1st, 2007 at 08:27 PM.
Reason: added a note to bob
The 5500 is OK for spot color type prints, but the photo quality was pretty bad compared to the 8800. I bought a 5500 to use on the road and returned it. I print white, ash and pale yellow mostly. Like any light transfer, the shirt color will tint the lighter print colors so royal blue wouldn't work well. I'd make Plastisol transfers for dark colors. I tried a bunch of opaque laser transfers and none of them produced anything I would sell to a customer.
yeah, I was thinking the exact same thing... laser for lights and plastisol for darks. I guess you can't print the color white on laser though can you..?
When printing transfers on laser (specifcally with self weeding paper) does it take special toner or does it use the standard color laser toner?
I've been using an inket with pigment ink for a while and I'd like to be able to not trim the images and not worry about the image being boxed.
Originally I was planning on moving to a DTG printer to achieve this but they just don't seem stable enough for the cost right now. I don't want to get stuck with the nightmare situation some people have had so laser seems to be the way to go.
Hi Ross, thanks for the information. What color garments do you use imageclip on? Would pink, royal blue, etc. work or would I need a paper for darks. Is there are imageclip for darks?
Also Bob, is the c8800 the best printer option? I was looking at the 5500 at staples.. but like I said, I'm new to this business model so I'm not sure what to look for in color laser printers..
Thanks!
I have printed on pink, gold nugget, lime green, gold, yellow, ash and royal blue. I make sure that the customer is aware that the white in the design is replaced by the color of the shirt since there is no white toner on the transfer paper. This is true with any type of transfer paper except opaque. However, some transfer papers that leave polymer window when used on light color garment the polymer does not wash off and some tends to darken or leaves a faint white shade when washed.
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Luis CorelDRAW macro author Macro Website
Last edited by Lnfortun; December 2nd, 2007 at 01:42 AM.
Reason: changed context.
When printing transfers on laser (specifcally with self weeding paper) does it take special toner or does it use the standard color laser toner?
I've been using an inket with pigment ink for a while and I'd like to be able to not trim the images and not worry about the image being boxed.
Originally I was planning on moving to a DTG printer to achieve this but they just don't seem stable enough for the cost right now. I don't want to get stuck with the nightmare situation some people have had so laser seems to be the way to go.
You do not need a special toner. As a matter of fact I ran out of OEM toner and I am presently using a third party toners. I don't see any difference in vibrancy and color fastness. It is just as good.
I want to caution you should you decide to use Imageclip. Imageclip is a two step process system. The instruction that comes with the paper does not always yield good result with the first pressing: http://www.neenah.com/technical/pdf/...p9770P0807.pdf. In order to prevent wasting time and money in making the first press to work there is a solution that works and it is available in one of the threads. Once you get past the hurdle of the first pressing step the rest is easy.
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Luis CorelDRAW macro author Macro Website
I want to thank all of you for replying and I believe that the laser route is the way for me to go. The reason for picking the Oki C8800N is because I want to be able to provide a larger image if needed. I have searched the net and found the Oki C8800N priced from $1,699 to $2,999, so any imput on where to purchase would be appreciated. As far as transfer paper, I will try both the Image clip and DuraCotton.
Just checked Oki Web-site, it looks like I can buy the Oki C8800n for about $1,607 USD plus shipping after the rebate of $791, can't bet that. Again thanks to you, Ross and all the others for replying with all the good information.
I agree with Bob, thank you everyone for the feedback. I hope my business expands enough to purchase an 8800, but I feel from what I have read that I will be satisfied using a smaller Oki printer (and using imageclip).
OKI C8800 LASER printer 
CorelDRAW macro author
