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filmsimon · October 7th, 2009

I want to do multi colored designs onto t-shirts. The best method with regards to price is heat transfers and a heat press. In its simplest term am I right in thinking that to get started you would need:
·A computer
·Transfer paper
·A printer to print the transfers
·A vinyl cutter
·A Heat press
·And finally the t-shirts

i've got most of this info from this youtube video
is there anything else I should be thinking about?

thanks folks

ladyjn13 · October 7th, 2009

When it comes to your t-shirts, you will need to decide what your area of focus will be. Do you want to print using regular ink jet cartridges on JPSS paper, then the cutter with an optic eye will be necessary. Do you instead want to do sublimation and forget about the cutter? In this case you will be limited to either 100% polyester shirts, Vapor tees are amazing, or 50/50. Another option, if you are starting out is direct to garment printing. If you are handy, there is a thread in this forum on building your own printer for this.

The main thing is, you need to figure out the initial direction for your focus.

filmsimon · October 7th, 2009

after having a look i'd like to create vinyl templates which i then heat press onto the shirts.

I basically want to do what that guy in the video is doing. Is that a vinyl template he's using?

ladyjn13 · October 7th, 2009

He's not cutting vinyl but something that has been printed on an opaque transfer paper, which requires a cutter to remove the extra. This may mean that he is using something like JPSS paper and a regular ink jet printer.

If this is the direction you want to head, then you will need a cutter with an optical eye, like the Roland GX-24.

filmsimon · October 9th, 2009

Ah ok, i'm getting it now. I think i've been mixed up between vinyl and transfer paper. because I'm on a budget and I want full colour prints i'm going to go with the transfer paper method for now.

Would a cutter like this be suitable?

24 Refine vinyl cutter

It's under their vinyl cutters heading on the website so not sure if it's got an optical eye.

If that's not suitable would one of the craft robo models work?

ladyjn13 · October 13th, 2009

Sorry, I have not logged into the forum in a couple of days. The price of the cutter you mention is listed in pounds, are you in the British Isles? According to Graphtec, the Craft Robo cutters do have an optical eye. They are not really heavy duty and the included software is a bit lacking as compared to the GX-24. They are less expensive, however. We were looking at the Craft Robo units and then decided against them for commercial production.

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