Hi, I have never done any t-shirt printing before, but I have been really intrested in two methods of printing. Screen Printing and using Vinyl. As I am based within UK, London and Im a student lol (Don't much money) I really want to hire a Vinyl cutter, but I cant find any prices below £17.50 a week for a min of 3 months.
If you've never worked with either before vinyl is the easiest to get into but you're limited on the designs you can print.
Screen printing is brilliant but a very steep learning curve. If you decide on screen get yourself enrolled on a local intro. course if you can, learn on other peoples machinery/inks and so on without taking a risk.
You can do vinyl through a craft robo which will cut A4 sheets, that'd be the cheapest option to start I would think. Hiring is great because it minimises the risk and you get a much better quality machine. You'd also need a good heat press. At £5-£6 per metre the vinyl isn't cheap, so if you wanted to start with a number of different colours it'll soon mount up.
I outsource all of my screen printing, it's just not worth me setting up for the few screen orders I get. The printers I use are very professional and knowledgable and have a lifetimes experience. Outsourcing also helps other companies in the industry get a share of the pie which is important in todays economical climate.
Sublimation is an alternative if you have the right printer/inks and heat press. You can do very high quality full colour onto white/very light pastel shirts easily. Personally I find a few drawbacks with this but it all depends on your market.
Hope this helps you a little, anything else you want to know just shout.
I saw some of the stuff they do on Pimpashirt.com and its amazing. I do really want to screen print some of my designs, but I think I will try my hand at Vinyl for now
Yeah, screen printing is great...but not easy for the novice. That said, my intention personally is to get a single head screen print setup and start to have a play when I get the chance.
i have a robo craft cutter as a back up - i cant get use to it at all, so it sits in a box on the side, after many frustrating hours of trying to get it to work for me. another item for ebay
i have a robo craft cutter as a back up - i cant get use to it at all, so it sits in a box on the side, after many frustrating hours of trying to get it to work for me. another item for ebay
Whats the problem with it? We have had the same but when upgrading from a craft robo, lol.
i just hate it, cant work out how to get it to cut where i want it - it just cuts where ever it feels like, having to put a backing sheet in with it is just plain stoopid, very cheap and nasty wish i had never bothered
hey accdave ive got a Fusion C24 . ts a great cutter for the price. A little tricky to set up but once you have the right settings it cuts good every time. If you need a hand setting it up give me a shout man . Can guide you through it. Thats the down side of the C24 it comes with no instructions ..
If you decide on screen get yourself enrolled on a local intro. course if you can, learn on other peoples machinery/inks and so on without taking a risk.
Justin :-)
Local intro. Where could I find info for these. I'm in london/essex area
Hiring Vinyl Cutters 
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