hey guys
im in the process of setting up a personilised gifts and novelty t-shirts business so i will have the sublimation set up. iv been looking a little at screen printing which would be good for putting funny lines on t-shirts. im just wondering is it as complicated and hard as it sounds? im not even sure of all of what i would need to set it up equipment wise.or should i just stick with sublimation and inkjet transfers? any help is greatly appreciated
Well it is kind of costy and it takes a lot of practice to get the hang of it, but it is a profitable business. I do on the other hand suggest that you be 100% sure that that is the route you wanna go.
this is true it took me quite a while with lots of trial and error to learn but by all mean dont let me discourage you i enjoy it and i certainly am glad to have learned how to do it.
If you just want it for funny lines on the shirts, the easiest way to do that is with a vinyl cutter.
Very simple and easy to learn & does probably a better job than screen printing, also a lot cheaper.
Art
I agree with Art..if you want to do funny sayings..use thermal vinyl. That is what we use for them unless we get a larger order.
We are still in the learning curve (probably always will be..LOL ) with screenprinting but the hardest part seems to be all the setup and prep work to get to the point of pulling the squeegee..which seems to be the easist part!
I'm going to be honest, screen printing is just about one of the most challenging things I have ever tried to master- EVER. Corel Draw- child's play, Photoshop- just play with it, vinyl- the machine does all the work, large format inkjet printing-make sure the colors are right, then print.
Screenprinting is a whole nother animal. A thousand things can go wrong or be done wrong before you actually print one shirt. Then a thousand more can go wrong when you print, then a hundred more AFTER you print them, i.e. ink not cured properly, design not centered, colors out of register, holes in the screen, on and on and on.
I wonder why we love to do it?
__________________
Ridgely, Operations Mngr. Out Da Box Printing & Design www.outdaboxconcepts.com
I also have to agree that using a vinyl cutter is the way to go. Screenprinting i don't know much about , but im going to start building my own 1 and 4 color press next week to try out..Look's like is going to be a challenge but worth a try. Goodluck on whatever you decide on doing. Ambitious
Heat pressed vinyl is certainly the best way to go for small orders of say less than a dozen shirts. But for more than that screenprint is going to be much cheaper as well as less time consuming. I myself am in the process of learning to screen print. Have yet to make my first print just due to the fact of not having enough hours in the day to get everything else accomplished. But I got into it to learn and expand my business.
Transfers and vinyl are a great way to decorate. Just realize that it's only great for small runs. Unless you use plastisol transfers from tranferexpress,ace, or someone else. But, screenprinting in house will always be the cheapest route.
At least that's my thinking. I hope I find out that I'm right and that I've not made a big mistake in investing in screen print equipment.
Is screen printing as hard as it sounds? 
Joshua Perez
) with screenprinting but the hardest part seems to be all the setup and prep work to get to the point of pulling the squeegee..which seems to be the easist part! 
