[curious_jess]

hi I am jess i just want to say that this site is very informative. I am very interested with this heat transfer business and actually i already bought 1 heat press and T10 epson printer. Here is my question; I am having difficulty creating like big letters using dark paper because normally you have to cut the letter manually(using scissor) and the outoput is not that good. Do i have to buy a vinyl cutter to get a best output ?? or is there any other option??

Thanks

 

[Nick Horvath]

Even though there is paper for dark garments, they are mostly for cotton. Any dark polyester content of say 50% or more will cause dye migration through these types of paper most of the time.

I would definately suggest using heat applied vinyl for these types of garments since there are various types that will assist in blocking the dye migration.

 

[curious_jess]

Even though there is paper for dark garments, they are mostly for cotton. Any dark polyester content of say 50% or more will cause dye migration through these types of paper most of the time.

I would definately suggest using heat applied vinyl for these types of garments since there are various types that will assist in blocking the dye migration.

I see , so i believe i need to get a cutter. Can you suggest a cutter which is not that expensive but a reliable one. One more thing , can i use vinyl cutter on any t-shirt and just set aside the light and dark paper?

thanks again nick..

 

[zeusprinting]

We use plastisol heat applied transfers all the time on dark garments with great results. We print our own transfers, but there are several vendors out there that specialize in transfers.

It's a great option, and you don't have to buy any more equipment. Granted, it is not a good option for one-off transfers.

 

[curious_jess]

We use plastisol heat applied transfers all the time on dark garments with great results. We print our own transfers, but there are several vendors out there that specialize in transfers.

It's a great option, and you don't have to buy any more equipment. Granted, it is not a good option for one-off transfers.

oh now i am getting confuse, so hows plastisol heat works?..how do i print or create design on it. is it more cheaper than vinyl cutter?.So plastisol is not a good option if i want to create like 9 colors for my design..I am so sorry for asking many question because i am just confuse on what to buy. all i want is to get great results on my t-shirts to attract customers.

thanks zeus..

 

[zeusprinting]

Plastisol transfers use essentially the same process as screen printing directly on garments, but the design is printed on transfer paper. That design can then be transfered to the garment at a later date using a heat press.

Because it uses screen printing with plastisol "ink", you get the same longevity and quality as directly printed garments.

You can do 9 colors if you want. You can even get 4-color process (full color) transfers. You certainly would not want to try a cad-cut vinyl design with that many colors. Before anyone yells at me, you can of course put 9 colors of vinyl on a shirt, but the registration would be insane and not very practical.

I'm guessing you don't have a screen press and conveyor dryer to create your own plastisol transfers. So, check out Versatranz and First-Edition. You can order transfers from them.

One last tip. These companies allow you to gang multiple designs on a single sheet. So, pile up your designs and save money.

 

[Nick Horvath]

I see , so i believe i need to get a cutter. Can you suggest a cutter which is not that expensive but a reliable one. One more thing , can i use vinyl cutter on any t-shirt and just set aside the light and dark paper?

thanks again nick..

The dark paper is great for dark colored 100% Cotton fabrics, and the light paper is good for White or light colored garments.

A great inexpensive cutter is the GCC Expert 24. If you can spend a little more money, then I would recommend either the Graphtec CE5000, Roland GX-24, or the GCC Puma III.

There are many types of vinyl available. Some apply to cotton/polys, some to just nylons, some to just about every fabric. I would do some research (begin with the vendors listed on this site), collect samples and see what you prefer.

 

[curious_jess]

Plastisol transfers use essentially the same process as screen printing directly on garments, but the design is printed on transfer paper. That design can then be transfered to the garment at a later date using a heat press.

Because it uses screen printing with plastisol "ink", you get the same longevity and quality as directly printed garments.

You can do 9 colors if you want. You can even get 4-color process (full color) transfers. You certainly would not want to try a cad-cut vinyl design with that many colors. Before anyone yells at me, you can of course put 9 colors of vinyl on a shirt, but the registration would be insane and not very practical.

I'm guessing you don't have a screen press and conveyor dryer to create your own plastisol transfers. So, check out Versatranz and First-Edition. You can order transfers from them.

One last tip. These companies allow you to gang multiple designs on a single sheet. So, pile up your designs and save money.

I got 1 question; why do i have to print the design into a transfer paper if i could print it directly??..since you said that i could get the same quality as directly printed.

 

[curious_jess]

The dark paper is great for dark colored 100% Cotton fabrics, and the light paper is good for White or light colored garments.

A great inexpensive cutter is the GCC Expert 24. If you can spend a little more money, then I would recommend either the Graphtec CE5000, Roland GX-24, or the GCC Puma III.

There are many types of vinyl available. Some apply to cotton/polys, some to just nylons, some to just about every fabric. I would do some research (begin with the vendors listed on this site), collect samples and see what you prefer.

Thanks for your response. I'm going to look for those cutter this week. I;ll get back on you as soon as i have it..godbless

 

[SoloStampede]

I got 1 question; why do i have to print the design into a transfer paper if i could print it directly??..since you said that i could get the same quality as directly printed.

Do you have the room and patience to do all the things necessary for screen printing?:
1.) Do you have an exposure unit?
2.) do you have a place to washout your screens?
3.) do you have a pressure washer?
4.) do you have a screen printing press?
5.) do you have an emulsion kit?
6.) do you know how to print out negative images?
7.) Do you have a place to store all of your screens and ink?
8.) do you have a conveyor dryer? or a heat press with a swing arm, or flash dryer?
9.) do you know what size screens and what size screen mesh you need?
10.) do you know what type of ink you want to use?
11.) etc etc

Simply put, heat pressing eliminates all of that and allows you to concentrate on just heat pressing the design to the shirt, instead of prepping the screens, creating the negatives, etc etc. On top of that, heat pressing takes up hardly any room.