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Dye Sub Quality Questions and Samples?

1680 Views 6 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  headfirst, 
T
Ok, so i'm currently a screen printer, i also do some vinyl signage and use a chroma blast printer. I've been thinking about setting up an unused new epson 1100 for dye sublimation but im not very familiar with the process or the product i requested samples from a company and received a vapor apparel tshirt. It was nice but the colors were very dull and "faded". I wasn't sure if that was the intended look or the simply the product.(i could not get an answer from them) I see a lot of websites advertising vibrant looking printed promotional products and tees but the tshirt i saw wasn't like that.

So A) how long after printing is the dye sublimation ink still press able and if the ink stays for several days is there anywhere i can order printed samples i can test myself?
And B) Can you print bright and vibrant products with just a desktop unit and regular heat press?
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lben
thesethvr6 said:
Ok, so i'm currently a screen printer, i also do some vinyl signage and use a chroma blast printer. I've been thinking about setting up an unused new epson 1100 for dye sublimation but im not very familiar with the process or the product i requested samples from a company and received a vapor apparel tshirt. It was nice but the colors were very dull and "faded". I wasn't sure if that was the intended look or the simply the product.(i could not get an answer from them) I see a lot of websites advertising vibrant looking printed promotional products and tees but the tshirt i saw wasn't like that.

So A) how long after printing is the dye sublimation ink still press able and if the ink stays for several days is there anywhere i can order printed samples i can test myself?
And B) Can you print bright and vibrant products with just a desktop unit and regular heat press?
​
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Not sure why the shirt had dull colors, or maybe you just aren't understanding the sublimation process. The ink becomes a part of the fabric, it doesn't sit on top of the fabric and jump out at you.

I have had printed transfers sitting around for months, maybe longer and they printed just fine. You will not have bright or vibrant shirts or any other fabric for that matter, but if you are printing on a hard surface you will have beautiful, vibrant color.

You will need sublimation ink, a dedicated printer, sublimation paper, and sublimation substrates. You cannot print on just anything. Sublimation blanks are specially coated or manufactured to accept the ink.
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R
The colors should pop off a Vapor shirt. You can get great, vibrant colors with dye sub. Whoever sent you a Vapor shirt with dull colors as a sample is a company I would stay away from as if they are sending out poor quality products as sample they surely have issues with the inks, profiles, etc.
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D.Evo.
On a 100% polyester garments dye sublimation should give you very vibrant prints, unless the print is intended to look "vintage".
The print will look a bit faded if it's done on poly/cotton blend.

Dye-sublimation transfers will last a while, just got to be careful not to scratch or scuff them.
There are some people on the forums offering dye-sub transfers that you can press yourself. Go to dye-sub section on the forums and have a look around - you will find a lot of useful information on how to get best results with dye-sub. There are also some threads with pictures of dye-subbed shirts.

Good luck with it and welcome to the forums!
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agensop
maybe is t was a 50/50 shirt???
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lben
Isn't vapor supposed to be 100% poly though? The design might not have been very good either.
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Dull prints can be caused be poor artwork, poor prepress or a poorly configured printer. Did you tell the supplier that you didn't like the color? Did you give them a color to match?
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