Discuss the various aspects of heat press technology. Transfer paper, inks, plastisol transfers, vinyl cutters, printers, commercial usage, durability, suppliers, etc.
If I'm looking at your photos corrected (which is pressed and which is the photo), I don't think your colors are lighter -- I think they're more YELLOW. If you look at the sky in the "Superman" photo, your sky is almost all yellow, with no other shades. Epson Durabrite inks are famous for this, especially with photos (I actually have two threads about this, one of which is recent and my photos show in the thread "All pigment inks are not created equal?"). Anything that yellow is involved in becomes a problem. My most recent problem was with gray text in one design, and a gray "swish" in the other (the photos posted were of this problem).
One temporary solution is to go into the Advanced Print Settings, and turn the yellow down to -15, at the same time, bump up the magenta and cyan to +5 each. This will get rid of a lot of the yellow that shows up only after pressing.
My biggest problem with this is that you never know when the yellow would become a problem, waste shirts, transfer paper and time reprinting, and sometimes STILL couldn't get the color that I was looking for. So, I've gone to refillable cartridges and 3rd party heat transfer ink that's supposed to cure the problem of the overabundant yellow, and with yellow turning green upon pressing. I've received the refillable carts, but haven't gotten the ink yet -- it's coming on Monday. I will post my results when everything is set up.
As far as the small cracks on the image, which I couldn't see, it could be the transfer paper that you are using. I used to use transfer paper that cracked after washing, but never saw anything before washing. I am now using Jet Pro Sof Stretch, and am thrilled with it! Haven't done any wash-testing yet, but it's supposed to retain it's vibrancy and doesn't crack. It can be purchased at Coastal Business.
If I'm looking at your photos corrected (which is pressed and which is the photo), I don't think your colors are lighter -- I think they're more YELLOW. If you look at the sky in the "Superman" photo, your sky is almost all yellow, with no other shades. Epson Durabrite inks are famous for this, especially with photos (I actually have two threads about this, one of which is recent and my photos show in the thread "All pigment inks are not created equal?"). Anything that yellow is involved in becomes a problem. My most recent problem was with gray text in one design, and a gray "swish" in the other (the photos posted were of this problem).
One temporary solution is to go into the Advanced Print Settings, and turn the yellow down to -15, at the same time, bump up the magenta and cyan to +5 each. This will get rid of a lot of the yellow that shows up only after pressing.
My biggest problem with this is that you never know when the yellow would become a problem, waste shirts, transfer paper and time reprinting, and sometimes STILL couldn't get the color that I was looking for. So, I've gone to refillable cartridges and 3rd party heat transfer ink that's supposed to cure the problem of the overabundant yellow, and with yellow turning green upon pressing. I've received the refillable carts, but haven't gotten the ink yet -- it's coming on Monday. I will post my results when everything is set up.
Good luck!
Melissa
thanks for your post melissa. im happy it's not only me who is having this issue. thought i did it all wrong. now i've realized it's with the durabrite ink. thought the oem ink of epson wont cause any trouble. (sigh)
yup, my "discoloration" term is about those yellow-ish thing that i have encountered. not yet with other colors that are controversial - grey-green, etc
yes, im gonna try adjusting the colors, however, what would be it's effect on the:
- print out on transfer paper , and
- image once it has been pressed on the shirt?
will i still be able to achieve the right colors of my image on the printer and most importantly on the pressed shirt? hope so.
if you have some photos comparing the normal settings (0) and adjusted settings, please post them. i'd like to see how much quality on pressed shirt has been fixed.
im also planning to replace the oem inks with a CIS kit, im just emptying the ink.
since ill also have this for business, oem inks are costly.
update me about this issue and your solutions. thank you
__________________ i can live with nothing on but a shirt
As far as the small cracks on the image, which I couldn't see, it could be the transfer paper that you are using. I used to use transfer paper that cracked after washing, but never saw anything before washing. I am now using Jet Pro Sof Stretch, and am thrilled with it! Haven't done any wash-testing yet, but it's supposed to retain it's vibrancy and doesn't crack. It can be purchased at Coastal Business.
Melissa
it may not be seen clearly through the photos, but up close the shirt, it's really noticeable. it's my first time doing heat pressed shirts, i don't know what's right or wrong about it, but i find this output not perfectly done.
for me, it's not as glossy and smooth-to-touch as it should be. blisters can be seen.
if i find time, ill try variations with the temperature and time using the same transfer paper. if it's all the same, then i will conclude that it's with the paper. otherwise, it's another problem for me.
normally, what's the settings for temperature and press time for light and dark TPs?
__________________ i can live with nothing on but a shirt
It all comes down to the brand of paper you're using. Follow the instructions that came with your paper. You can play around with those settings, but someone telling you the settings for the paper they use won't do any good if it's a different paper.
thanks chani. i tried the instructions of the paper supplier who has been using the same transfer paper for his business but i cant seem to perfect this.
anyway, yesterday was my first time doing it- print out of image on transfer paper using durabrite ink ,then pressing it onto the shirt.
__________________ i can live with nothing on but a shirt
Doug, my guess would be all of the above. There are really only about three factors to consider, but so many variables within those combinations. And as Chani said, everyone's situation will come out different.
Also, I might have overlooked it but, did you mention which paper you were using? If you haven't tried Ironall or JetPro yet, ORDER THEM TODAY! No seriously, they are the best quality on the market these days (with the JetPro edging ahead of Ironall at the moment) and although consistency is not always the case with these papers, it rarely is with any paper honestly. But they generally give the best results when applied correctly, and should do away with all of your troubles with the current paper.
discoloration 101 
