My first imageclip shirts looked great, but I did a test wash (cold, inside out) and some of the design is flaking off or coming apart as it stretches. It looks very lightly "distressed."
My first imageclip shirts looked great, but I did a test wash (cold, inside out) and some of the design is flaking off or coming apart as it stretches. It looks very lightly "distressed."
Any thoughts on how I can improve the wash durability?
You have to prestretch the shirt before pressing the transfer paper. Stretch it again after peeling. Cover the image with parchment paper. Press it again for 5 to 6 seconds. Peel the parchment while hot. Give the shirt another stretch. Cracking when stretched is normal. Screen print and plastisol transfer does the same thing. The thing is you don't stretch the shirt when wearing it unless it is a muscle shirt.
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Luis CorelDRAW macro author Macro Website
I did prestretch, but I did not use the teflon paper on the image after I peeled of the backing.
The photos I did with the techniprint came out of the wash as good as they went in, and I had done an extra press with a teflon sheet after removing the backing.
I use plastisol transfers from F&M, and don't have to use the teflon sheet to get them through the wash in one piece, so I guess I just need to get in the habit of doing so with the laser transfer papers.
Related question: What is the difference in purpose, technique, and result between parchment, teflon, and silicon sheets?
I pressed it for about 5 seconds with a teflon sheet directly on the transfer after peeling.
Also, this shirt was a 50/50 blend, both shirts I tried before that were 100% cotton.
I have a Mighty Press, so no readout on the PSI - but I did up the pressure a bit. In fact, I used the same pressure to press the transfer as I did to weed the image, and it worked great.
Otherwise, I followed the steps outlined in this post for temp and time: Problems with Imageclip
I just wanted to get it right before I ordered the new imageclip for darks/Koncert Tees. 100 sheets of each will cost me more than my press did! (But they will be worth it if they work as well as the original imageclip does).
Related question: What is the difference in purpose, technique, and result between parchment, teflon, and silicon sheets?
Teflon is fine but you have to keep an eye on it. It sometimes pick up ink and polymer from the image. If not wiped clean it can transfer on another shirt. It is not suppose to pick up stuff but it does. I use parchment because cleaning the teflon slows me down. When I see something on the parchment paper I toss it. It is cheaper than teflon.
Like David said it reuires very heavy pressure on the second pressing.
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Luis CorelDRAW macro author Macro Website
Last edited by Lnfortun; November 9th, 2009 at 10:56 PM.
Imageclip flaking in the wash? 
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