Discuss the various aspects of heat press technology. Transfer paper, inks, plastisol transfers, vinyl cutters, printers, commercial usage, durability, suppliers, etc.
I realized Dye sublimation ink being used for a lot of application beside cotton fabric such as indoor and outdoor banner film, stickers, mugs, and so on.
Can I also use archival or pigment ink to print on sign material - banners or stickers?
Sublimation ink - besides being a bit expensive - is best suited for applying onto products that have been coated to accept these types of heat transfers.
Sub ink heat transfers are not suited for heat pressing onto 100% cotton as the ink will only adhere to man made materials such as polyester, nylon, spandex, etc... If applied to 50/50 blend fabric, after the first wash, the image will wash out of the 50% cotton fabric but the image will remain in the 50% poly fabric. If you apply a sub transfer to 100% cotton, the image will wash out on the first wash.
Sub transfers are perfect for mugs, jewelry, plaques, ceramic tile, plates, caps, etc... that are either 100% polyester or the surface has been coated to accept the sub transfer.
There are materials available to apply sub transfers to stickers and such with good results with the exception of some fading situations when exposed to the outdoors for a period of time.
I started sub transfer printing in 1987 and now only use pigmented inks for garments and a Roland PC-12 for vinyl applications (signs, stickers, etc...). Using pigmented inks on sign material or stickers presented me a problem. For stickers, using either a pigmented ink or dye based ink (not sublimation), you must use a vinyl that is 'inkjet receptive'. There is a coating on the white vinyl which will allow the ink to be absorbed and dry in a short period of time. However, it is best to coat the sticker with a protective coating or clear overlay to protect the finish and image.
If I use coated vinyl for pigment ink, Can I use them outdoor banner or car sign?
For outdoor sign, should it be laminated ? or is it ok with clear coating preventing against fading or scratching?
ANSWER to both questions: Yes you could but you should coat the finished banner or sign with some sort of a clear film (laminated) designed to help reduce effect of UV rays. You could also use other products designed for this, such as 'Frog Juice' and other hand applied liquids which will have the same affect on the graphics.
Thank you for information. It is great help.
One last question - I am sorry, I have too many questions - is
where can I buy those stuffs beside http://www.beacongraphics.com.
Or is this place best? do you know some better and cheaper company?
Thank you so much again
Last edited by Rodney; June 28th, 2006 at 03:01 PM.
Beacon Graphics is where I purchase a lot of suuplies because of the free shipping but there are other companies...probably a lot closer to where you are.
You might wish to try a search at 800go.com select Google for your search engine and type in frog juice or anything you need to find out about.
dye sublimation verse archival ink ??? 
